Am I Really a Cowgirl?

I’ve wondered more than once whether I have any business calling myself a cowgirl.

I’ve owned horses for much of my life—a lot of horses over the years, in fact. I’ve ridden countless miles, cared for them, worried over them, learned from them and built a good part of my life around them.

But I’ve never been what most people probably picture when they hear the word cowgirl.

I’ve never worked cattle for a living. I’ve never been a rodeo cowgirl. I’ve never shown horses. I’ve sorted cattle on rare occasions, but nobody was ever going to mistake me for someone who spent her days horseback on a working ranch.

So why Golden Country Cowgirl?

Somewhere along the way, I decided that cowgirl didn’t have to describe what I did for a living. For me, it described more of a mindset—independence, resilience, curiosity, a willingness to figure things out, and perhaps the determination to get back in the saddle when life dumps you in the dirt.

But there’s another part of the name that has changed meaning for me over the years too.

From Gold Country to Golden Country

This blog wasn’t always Golden Country Cowgirl.

It began as Gold Country Cowgirl because I lived in Northern California’s beautiful Gold Country. That’s what I wrote about. I wanted to share the places, food, wine and experiences I discovered there.

Then my life changed.

In 2018, I bought an RV and set out to see more of America. Suddenly, Gold Country didn’t make much sense anymore. I wasn’t writing about one little corner of California. I wanted to explore the whole country.

I didn’t want to completely abandon the name I’d been using, so I changed just one word.

Gold became Golden.

The choice wasn’t accidental.

The phrase “Golden Country” had stayed with me from George Orwell’s 1984. His Golden Country was an idyllic landscape, and the phrase had always represented something to me personally—a vision of the beautiful America I loved and wanted to explore.

And now I finally had the opportunity to do exactly that.

For a while, Golden Country Cowgirl really was about going places. I traveled by RV, tasted local wines and food, visited interesting places and tried to discover what made each destination different.

Then life changed again.

As it tends to do.

Somewhere Along the Way

Travel became less important. Texas became home. My horses became a bigger part of my everyday life. I started writing and publishing books. I found new creative interests. I learned new technology. I started projects, abandoned some, changed direction on others and continued asking questions about just about everything.

And somewhere in all of that, I realized something.

I started Golden Country Cowgirl to explore America. Somewhere along the way, it became a way of exploring life instead.

Maybe that’s what Golden Country means to me now.

It’s still America. It’s still wide-open spaces and beautiful places and the possibility of discovering something around the next bend.

But the next bend doesn’t always require an RV.

Sometimes it’s at the ranch.

Sometimes it’s sitting in front of my computer creating something that didn’t exist yesterday.

Sometimes it’s learning something new simply because I wondered about it.

Sometimes it’s remembering a place I’ve been or a person I’ve lost.

And sometimes it’s sitting quietly long enough to realize that something I believed twenty years ago doesn’t quite fit anymore.

Adventure Looks Different Now

Years ago, I thought adventure required going somewhere.

I don’t anymore.

I still hope there are roads left for me to travel and places left for me to discover. Travel will always be part of Golden Country Cowgirl when it happens.

But I’ve learned that adventure can happen remarkably close to home.

It can be learning.

Creating.

Riding.

Trying.

Remembering.

Wondering.

Changing your mind.

Starting something new.

And maybe that’s especially important as we grow older.

My longtime tagline for Golden Country Cowgirl has been:

When you start stopping, you start getting old.

I believe that more than ever.

I don’t think staying young has much to do with pretending we’re not getting older. I think it has something to do with continuing to be interested in what comes next.

So, Am I Really a Cowgirl?

Maybe not by everyone’s definition.

I’m okay with that.

I’ve spent enough years with horses to know they don’t care much about titles anyway.

For me, being a cowgirl was never really about cattle, competitions or buckles. It’s about the way I’ve learned to approach life—with independence, resilience, curiosity and a willingness to see what’s around the next bend.

And perhaps Golden Country isn’t just the country I once set out to explore anymore.

It’s the life I’m still exploring.

Welcome to the next chapter of Golden Country Cowgirl.