Ten Seconds in the Saddle
- January 29, 2015
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- Terryn Drieling
Posted in: Ranch Life
I have what some might call an eclectic taste in music. My playlist includes songs from bands like Queen and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros to artists like Red Stegall and Don Edwards. No genre is off limits. I show no prejudice when it comes to a good tune and/or great lyrics.
A couple of years ago, I happened to be listening to my widely varied collection of music when Chris Ledoux’s, “Ten Seconds in the Saddle” came through my speakers. As I rode horseback checking cattle that morning, I listened – and I mean really listened to this song that I’d heard so many times before…
His Stetson was faded and battered and worn
The stubble of his beard showed flecks of gray
His limp was severe ’cause a leg had been torn
By a bronc, in his rodeo days
He hung round the chutes while we waited to mount
With a vague look of longing in his eyes
He spoke very few words but he made ’em count
He was broken forgotten but wise
He said life is just like ridin’ broncs it’s a battle
Then he rolled a cigarette with shaky hands
Son I’ll gladly take ten seconds in the saddle
For a lifetime of watching from the stands
I noticed the cigarette burns on his vest
And the remnant of a dream left in his eyes
The boys said he could have well been the best
Had not fate cheated him of his prize
Oh but I learned a lesson that I’d never know
From this guy who’d been busted so bad
It’s better to ride even if you get thrown
Than to wind up just wishin’ you had
He said life is just like ridin’ broncs it’s a battle
Then he rolled a cigarette with shaky hands
Son I’ll gladly take ten seconds in the saddle
For a lifetime of watching from the stands
Yes I’ll gladly take ten seconds in the saddle
For a lifetime of watching from the stands
In all the times I had heard this song, that morning was the first time I actually understood the lesson in the lyrics.
- Listen to, and respect, your elders.
- Even if it scares you – do it anyway. Live without regrets.
- Life is full of unexpected challenges that may change everything in an instant, so do what you love, with the ones you love, while you still can.
Maybe it was because I had never really listened to the words or maybe it was simply the fact that I was older, but that day those words struck a chord with me. To this day whenever I hear “Ten Seconds in the Saddle,” I get goose bumps and am filled with a sense of gratitude that I get to do what I love every day.
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Posted in: Ranch Life
About Terryn Drieling
I grew up on a small feed yard in Northeast Nebraska. Today, my husband, our kids, and I ranch in Western Nebraska. I have raised cattle my whole life, and as far as I am concerned raising cattle and riding good horses go...