50 pages • 1 hour read
Lost and Lassoed
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Symbols & Motifs
Art and Creativity
Art and creativity allow Teddy to articulate her true self in a world that often demands conformity. Her designs and artistic endeavors reveal her individuality, allowing her to communicate aspects of herself that people might not see otherwise. Whether through sewing, embroidering, or painting, art is a means of personal expression, therapeutic escape, and connection for Teddy. Teddy’s creativity shines through her passion for clothing design, which allows her to combine practicality with artistry, crafting garments that serve functional purposes and reflect her unique style and perspective. Sewing is a valuable skill in her life that enables her to help others. It’s also a way for her to add her personal touch and express her creativity and attention to detail—for example, by adding the embroidered flowers to the repaired holes in Riley’s jeans. Teddy’s artistic pursuits also play a significant role in her relationships. She invites others into her world by sharing her designs, creating opportunities for people to understand her better. When she designs the embroidered piece for Riley, showcasing the wildflowers symbolizes her feelings for what their summer together has meant to her, allowing her to express her emotions in a tangible form.
Teddy’s art acts as a therapeutic outlet, symbolizing her capacity to process and overcome challenges. When dealing with the complexities of her relationships, she turns to painting on the back of the garage to work through difficult or confusing emotions. She notes that for her, painting is like “listening to music or working on clothes; it [is] like the front half of [her] brain [is] turned off, which [makes] room for the things that [are] all jumbled in the back of [her] brain to start working themselves out” (233-34). Painting allows her to work through her feelings and make the garage more lovely, representing her ability to transform difficulties into beauty and meaning. The act of painting helps her mind find answers to her questions, such as when she’s working through what to do about Gus and realizes that she’s painting the landscape view from Gus’s house, symbolizing what her heart already knows: that she belongs at Rebel Blue Ranch.
Teddy finds empowerment and agency through clothing design. Her creative abilities allow her to take control of her narrative, using her talents to carve out a space where she can fully express herself. Gus supports Teddy’s creativity by helping her repair her sewing machine and encouraging her to pursue her clothing design business, as he understands how important it is for her to express herself. Creating and sharing clothing to sell requires Teddy to put herself out there for all to see, symbolizing her courage to be authentic and open in both her work and her relationships and her willingness to take risks, emotionally and artistically, as she grows throughout the story. By channeling her creativity, Teddy transforms her life and connections with those around her, illustrating the role of art and creative expression in Finding a Sense of Belonging.
Rebel Blue Ranch
Rebel Blue Ranch provides a picturesque setting for Sage’s story and serves as the backdrop for much of the novel’s development. Through its physical landscape, history, and the work it demands, Rebel Blue Ranch represents the personal journeys of Gus and Teddy. The ranch is a living, breathing symbol of connection, tying the characters together in shared labor, history, and future dreams. The very name of the ranch, Rebel Blue, reflects the polarity of its nature. The word “rebel” evokes freedom, wildness, and defiance, while “blue” suggests calm and stability. This duality parallels Gus’s and Teddy’s emotional journeys as they navigate their inner conflicts and learn to balance passion with responsibility and independence with connection.
For the Ryder Family, Rebel Blue Ranch symbolizes identity and represents the family’s legacy and the carrying forward of their traditions—a place of stability and belonging in a chaotic world. While its wide-open spaces symbolize freedom, its tradition and routine offer comfort and security for Amos and his children. At first, Gus views the ranch as a burden, tethering him to a life of hard work. Over time, however, the ranch becomes a symbol of self-discovery and evolves from a monolith of obligation to one of pride and responsibility for conservation. As Gus notes, “At its core, ranching could be summed up in one word: stewardship. Stewardship of the animals on the land and stewardship of the land itself. The land took care of us, and it was our greatest responsibility to take care of it” (274). Eventually, the ranch serves as a home where Gus begins a new family of his own.
Rebel Blue Ranch mirrors the evolving relationship between Gus and Teddy. Initially, the ranch feels like a point of division, representing the differences between Gus’s structured life and Teddy’s free-spirited nature. Though Teddy has wonderful childhood memories from spending time at Rebel Blue, living there now feels like a necessary obligation. Yet Teddy falls in love with the ranch before she falls for Gus, roaming its fields of wildflowers with Riley, riding horses, and watching the sunset from Gus’s porch. The ranch is a place where she feels both free and rooted; she notes, “Rebel Blue was the only place where I felt like I could be grounded and steady while also having my head in the clouds” (85). As they grow closer, the ranch becomes a shared space, symbolizing how two people with different backgrounds can build something meaningful together.
Wildflowers
In Lost and Lassoed, wildflowers foreshadow the connection that Teddy will find at Rebel Blue with Riley and Gus. When Teddy arrives at Gus’s house, she finds a jar of wildflowers in her room. Gus puts them there to make the room feel warm and welcoming, but Teddy lingers on the gesture since it feels out of character for grumpy Gus. Teddy and Riley’s wildflower project keeps Riley busy during the day. It becomes a shared activity that strengthens their relationship, a metaphor for self-discovery, connection to nature, and finding beauty in unexpected places. The wildflowers represent the ranch’s natural and surprising beauty and Teddy’s free-spirited creativity. Like Teddy, the wildflowers thrive in inhospitable conditions, overcoming challenges that might seem insurmountable and symbolizing her growth and transformation. Just as rock jasmine flourishes in rocky, dry soil, Teddy’s creative spirit thrives despite the obstacles that life has presented her. Using Hank’s guidebook, Teddy grounds herself in her new environment by searching for and crossing plants off the list. By appreciating the ranch’s natural beauty, she deepens her connection to the land and Riley.
The embroidery project allows Teddy to express her creativity and document her summer adventures with Riley. Gathering flowers becomes a meaningful and lasting experience. While the wildflowers symbolize the bond between Teddy and Riley, they later also represent Gus and Teddy’s decision to begin a new chapter and build a life together. Teddy wonders, “[W]ould we see what would bloom from the seeds that had been planted this summer? Would we discover our own new type of flower, wild and unexpected and ours to behold? Or would it wither on the vine?” (264-65) The elusive rock jasmine is the final piece needed to complete Riley and Teddy’s summer project, making Gus realize that Teddy is the missing piece he needs for his family. When Amos directs Gus to the hidden rock jasmine patch, he’s also showing Gus the way to his future. This patch becomes a shared experience that connects Gus, Teddy, and Riley, reflecting Gus’s desire to build a family, with the flowers’ beauty mirroring the meaningful relationships that Teddy and Gus are nurturing together.
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