Yup, we sure are! This semester has been obscenely busy between my senior internship for school, writing/editing/defending/publishing my thesis, & planning a wedding. I have, however, managed to squeeze in some much needed pony time.
What can I say... have we made much new progress? No. I still have a mild tempered, very stubborn, sometimes spooky solid walk/sometimes trot horse. I'm hoping once my internship is over in December I can get her back into training with April & we can really progress. For now, we've just spent a lot of quality time "hanging out." Lots of bareback rides, relaxing trips out on the trail... low stress, high fun kind of stuff. :) Although I am sometimes jealous of those skilled riders who have been practicing for many years, a good afternoon of riding around the pasture bareback makes me grateful I spend my money caring for an awesomely adorable pony instead of a high priced trainer. Granted, I'd love to do both - but it's not financially in the cards. I figure - as long as she's enjoying herself, and I'm enjoying myself, we're both allowed to suck, right? :)
For some reason I seem to have these great equine revelations, that make so much sense to me... but can never be adequately expressed in writing. Regardless, this past Saturday I had this great revelation about trust. Even though monster pony can be spooky at times, I really REALLY trust her. Why? Because she trusts me. I'm in charge. This IS a huge revelation coming from where we started nearly two years ago - when she was the alpha mare in our relationship. In fact, for the first year or more she ran the show & I had NO idea just how badly I was being played. Walking all over me? "Awww how sweet, she wants to be next to me." Not listening? "She's just scared." I had a million rationalizations for all of her bad behaviors.
We are finally getting (I can't say we're 100% there yet) to a place where we've established who is in control. It makes a WORLD of difference in our riding. Before, whenever I would take her somewhere new, SHE was in charge. If she didn't like it, she'd turn around and go back. If it scared her, she'd run the other way. Now she's learning to trust me; she's figuring out that I won't steer her wrong & that regardless of how startling a man running down the trail is or how terrifying a herd of deer rustling the bushes may be... they're not out to eat her.
I think a certain degree of caution is necessary for good horsemanship. Even that good ol' been-there-done-that-dead-broke-20-something-year-old-ex-show-pony is capable of an unexpected freak-out. This is one lesson I learned the hard way when I made the decision to wear flip flops to the barn & ended up with a foot-full of black toes. Have I been "wreckless" with monster pony? To a certain degree. Do I line drive her over 5 foot fences with only a prayer? Certainly not. Do I walk behind her without staying close or touching her butt? I sure do. I think, in a twisted way, that's part of the beauty of horse-ownership. Making that transition between someone else's rules for how to care for their horse, to setting your own. We've established a set of "rules", Cheyenne & I. And although they may not be up to everyone's "standards", they work for us.
What a ramble that was... I'm not convinced any of it made sense... in short.
Monster Pony + Becky = Trust ... usually.
Caution + A Certain Degree of Cautiouslessness = Horse Ownership
Becky + 1:28 am = This Hot Mess Right Here.
& on that note, something I can't botch up too horrible... PICTURES!
Cheyenne & I demonstrating that whole "trust with wreckless abandon" thing. Yeeeeah.
Monster & her new boyfriend Aspen. They're such lovebirds!
Monster pony & friends, or as Lori likes to call this "synchronized horsemanship."
