There is something about a horse that can lead a person to be on cloud nine and then hit rock bottom in a New York minute. Luckily, they can bring you back up just about as quick as they fall, but they definitely have a way of keeping a person humble!
It is in these humble times that I am reminded that all good things don't come by easily without some sort of trial. There is no such thing as perfection in horses, but evertime I swing my leg over a horse I'm striving for it. There are times when I feel so close, although I will never achieve it, it feels within my grasp. Then there are times where you're wondering why you try at all; things just flat out are not going right.
This is how I felt today with one of my horses who I have been at both sides of the spectrum with. I've felt her reach that high and today it just came crashing down. Sure she's fresh and feeling good but it's no excuse for her. I guess we all have bad days and there are two parts of the equation (horse & rider), but we are never expecting or wanting to hit that low.
I've been sitting here pondering my ride today. No doubt am I humbler after today's ride, but as I'm reminded of many other "humbling rides" where even though I was frustrated and discouraged, I learned from it and grew upon it. No one has a perfect ride everyday, but we can always learn something on every ride whether humbling or not. That's part of being a horsemen. Today, I will think about what I learned and will apply it for tomorrow.
Regardless of how tomorrow's ride goes, it will be great knowing that I have that opportunity to grow. If everything was easy, it wouldn't be worth it. These humble rides only bring us onto something great if you think and learn from it and apply it to your horsemanship. My thoughts about today can be summarized as this; Keep riding, keep learning, have faith and have fun!
Happy Trails!
