Roy Rogers' Rider Club Rules

Growing up in the country, we didn't have a television until I was about 5. When we finally got one, I loved watching the westerns. My favorite was Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. When very small, I would ride my "imaginary" horse all around the yard holding the reins out and whipping my hip to make him go faster. I'd have my little hat on and we'd prance and trot and lope until we were both exhausted. We'd lose track of everything else around us for hours on end. My little horse loved to go in difficult spaces and trot up and down and around the shrubs. We preferred riding on the hard, caliche road to riding on the grass because his little hooves would make a clip-clopping sound on the road that they couldn't make on the grass. Roy and I would let Dale ride with us sometimes as long as she didn't get in the way. We had adventures to experience and neither Roy nor I had time to waste on Dale.

Later on, I got a real horse, Papoose, a sorrel mare. She was my mother's baby sitter. Whenever Mom would wash clothes, she would put me on Papoose and swat her on the rump. If she went south, I'd end up at Harrison Ellenburg's barn where she'd eat oats until Lela turned her around and sent me back home. If she went west, Mom knew that I would be at the Eddleman's where Papoose would eat the green grass over the septic tank. Euel would swat her and send us home once she'd had enough to eat.

I loved horses and I loved Roy Rogers. He was one of my best friends. He was such a nice guy. He always did the right thing and whenever he encountered the bad guys, he'd always come out on top. He was living proof that nice guys can finish first.

Recently I discovered a "hard country" radio station (87.9 or is it 89.7?) that plays all of the really old songs from the '50's, '60's, and '70's. Almost every morning, they'll speak about that time period when life was so much simpler. I become very nostalgic. Once a week or so, the radio station announcer will recite Roy Rogers Rider's Club Rules. They take me back to that part of my life. It's remarkable how pertinent these rules still are today. They have served me well and continue to be a good mantra for all to follow.

Roy Rogers Riders' Club Rules:

Be neat and clean.
Be courteous and polite.
Always obey your parents.
Protect the weak and help them.
Be brave but never take chances.
Study hard and learn all you can.
Be kind to animals and take care of them.
Eat all your food and never waste any.
Love God and go to Sunday school regularly.
Always respect our flag and our country.