Out Of My Comfort Zone

By Shauna Winters

I am a talker. I love people. I love crowds. I didn’t necessarily like being in front of people, but it also didn’t cripple me.

I signed my kids up for some rodeos here in Nephi, our home town. My kids were just beginning to ride, so I thought being in front of an audience would be good for them. The first year, I got to go and just sit and watch my kids. When they were done, I got to go home. It was nice, but I am a person who likes to help.

I volunteered to do a snack shack for the Junior High State Qualifier the following year (what was I thinking?). I figured it was a good thing because it helped our association. I also felt like I was contributing to the association in a positive way. I then became the snack shack lady.

Then one day, I was hanging around the office before the rodeo started. Chad (who had been my 5th grade teacher) had been announcing all of the rodeos. He must have told them at some time that it would be nice if someone could come up occasionally and give him a little break. He said, “Shauna could do it”.

First I thought he was joking. Although I like to talk, I was PETRIFIED of the microphone. But because I have a problem with the word “No”, I said “Sure”. So that first rodeo he calls me up to the announcer’s stand. I take the microphone, and I am shaking like a leaf. I start calling out names. As if the microphone wasn’t bad enough, I couldn’t pronounce half of the names. But that wasn’t the worst part. I could hear myself echoing behind me, so I would start to talk and then wait until I heard it over the speakers before continuing.

If you were in attendance at that rodeo, I am apologizing now. My brother called me just to tell me I sounded horrible. My own MOTHER called me to tell me it was terrible and laugh her butt off at me. My friend called me to tell me it was “pretty bad”. Well thanks for all the votes of confidence folks.

I got through that first rodeo though, but apparently someone was either deaf or had a lot of faith, because I am still announcing rodeos. I love it. I love to watch the kids compete. I love it more to see their faces when they are winning. But most of all, I am thankful for all of the people it has brought into my life. I have made some amazing friends and I have witnessed some amazing growth, not only in my own kids, but everyone else’s as well.