Some mornings land hard. Today was one of them.

Whitney Widick
Nov 20, 2025
2 min read

We have been in motion for two weekends straight. Rodeo after rodeo. Long drives. Late nights. Early alarms. Kids half asleep in the truck. Horses waiting before sunrise. My body has not caught up yet and my brain is still trying.

Then the new job. Good people. Good opportunity. But it takes everything out of me. I am trying to take in the policies, the rules, the systems, the nonstop details. Every day feels like I am sponging in information faster than I can process it.

On top of that, the migraines have kicked up again. The kind that make the room tilt. The kind where sound feels sharp. The kind that make you a test subject for whatever pain meds the doctor wants to try next. Nothing hits the same twice, and I am tired of being the guinea pig.

And I still have not broken free from the clock. Wake up. Work. Kids. Barn. Lessons. House. Repeat.

Two cups of coffee reheated today. Neither finished. I have not made it to the store in almost three weeks. The house is cluttered. Laundry is stacked.

But the dishes are done. And the Christmas tree is up, because Loretta begged until she won. Her joy is loud enough to cut through the noise.

These are the parts of life no one glamorizes. The mornings carried on grit instead of energy. The days where you show up because you said you would. The moments where survival looks like microwaved coffee, a functioning headache pill, and a small win at the end of the day.

So here is what I tell myself.

You do not need to feel rested to be strong.

You do not need to feel ready to keep moving.

You do not need to feel calm to get through the day.

Some seasons ask more of you.

Some days take more than they give.

Some mornings get finished one breath at a time.

Keep your voice steady.

Keep your standards tight.

Keep your boundaries firm.

Keep your tenderness protected.

Keep your fire close where no one can touch it.