To ride dressage is to dance with your horse, equal partners in the delicate and sometimes difficult work of creating harmony and beauty.

Wednesday, February 23, 2022

Drifting along with the tumbling tumbleweeds




Stella is getting an extended break from riding and, unfortunately, practically any exercise at all right now. I planned a trip for February 11-17 to visit and help my parents in Texas, and it turned out that the help they ended up needing was not just cleaning out some junk. I wrote more about that on my farm blog (which I will continue to update); the upshot is that I don't know how long I'll be here. My husband finally turned out Stella (and eventually Lance) in the arena last Sunday for the first time, and said she was rather hard to handle given all her pent-up energy. Ya think?!? My hot tamale is used to near-daily turn-out and/or riding; I'm surprised she hasn't self-combusted by now! It will be interesting to see how she handles when I finally get home. Sometimes extended breaks do wonders for a horse's mind; when it comes to Stella, I wonder if it may do the opposite.



I am missing my home, my routine, my animals. I have gotten to love on a neighbor's dog once, and have seen horses once while walking around my parents' small rural neighborhood outside of Amarillo. Having animals around me has been essential to my mental health for my entire life, but right now my parents' needs trump my own.

3 comments:

Retired Knitter said...

A difficult time ford everyone!

Michelle said...

Yes, it is, Elaine.

A :-) said...

I'm finally getting a chance to catch up. I know you're on your way home now, and I'm sure that Stella and Lance will both be happy to see you (not to mention your family and the sheep) :-) You cross my thoughts all the time, my friend.