“That trouble’s behind me now. It’s healed up and haired over.”
At first hearing, the phrase sounds a little rough, but it’s pure frontier poetry. Literally, it comes from ranch life. Cowboys spent their days around cattle and horses, and they saw firsthand how wounds mended. When a brand or a cut or scrape finally closed and fresh hair grew over the scar, the animal was considered sound again. That image made its way into cowboy talk, describing not just physical recovery but also emotional or spiritual healing.
In other words, when something was “healed up and haired over,” it was truly in the past.
A cowboy might say it after patching up from a rope burn, or when letting go of an old quarrel around the campfire. It meant: the hurt’s gone, the scar’s there, but life has moved on.
The phrase also captures the cowboy spirit. It’s resilient, unsentimental, and practical. There was no time to dwell on past injuries, whether of the body or the heart. Once healed, it was time to saddle up and ride forward. Today, the saying still works as a down-to-earth way of telling someone: I’m over it. The scar’s there, but it doesn’t hurt anymore.
How about you? Have you ever heard this saying before? Used it yourself? Could you see yourself using it now? Let me know in a comment!
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