hereeee horsey horsey

The quote on the left really describes being a Kentuckian. Just when you think you can't take another cold, wintry day, the sky opens up with sunshine and everything starts blooming most recklessly once again.

When I left work yesterday, I knew what kind of day it was.
It was the horseback riding kind of day. So i called my friend and said "Let's carpe diem! Let's carpe diem!" She agreed. We set out to go ride horses at her fiances family farm.

So there we were.
Boots on.
Saddles ready.
Weather perfect.
Just needed our transportation.

But here's the thing about horses: they are not like a dog where you are like "hey, i wanna go for a walk" and he/she's like "me too, here my leash, let's go!". Or a friend who you call up and say "hey, let's go for a run" and they're like "yeah! got my running shoes on, meet you there!" No, my friends, horses are not this way.

It really is comical looking back but in the midst of trying to manipulate the horse into coming up to you, it's reallyreally frustrating. It's this game of cat and mouse, where the mouse usually wins. The horse saunters up, hesitantly...may lick a bit of sweet feed off your palm...but usually backs up...or in a fit of anger if she just caught on to your intentions, will swing her butt around, reminding you who's ass (literally) is in charge here. And let's just say, I am not one of those horse people who doesn't fear being kicked. No, I fear it. So I usually back down and end up saying "Look, you're right. You're in charge dude." But my friend is the opposite. She's brave and is hellbent on convincing the horse that she is the master. She is right, I know, but it never fails that when she says "i'm going to get the whip out, because this just can't continue" that I will scream back at her "No! Don't! There's GOT to be another way!" Then I get the reminder that they're not like human friends, they are animals who need to be disciplined. So usually I let my friend do the talking with the horses, since they take her more seriously. I just horse around (no pun intended) with the dogs (see picture) while I wait to see if she can get the ropes on them. But yesterday, there was no chance of her being the master.

After 1.5 hours of sweet talk and sweet feed (lots of both), neither horse was game. They had probably remembered being ridden the day before and wanted no more of that work nonsense. In the final 15 minutes we had alloted to be out there, MaggieHorse warmed up to us. We ended up just grooming her though because we were running out of time.

So my friend and I spent 15 minutes not talking , just brushing the horse's coat. And believe me when I say that it was one of those times in life where you thank God for unanswered prayers. Because as much as I wanted to ride down to the creek, I realized I was glad it ended up this way. Deep down I think MaggieHorse was pleasantly surprised that we weren't only using her to ride. This was like a surprise day at the spa for a horse (and LilHorse was standing at the fence wishing she could have an afternoon at the spa like her daughter). I think it helped in the efforts to build her trust. Trust is what you need with horses. It really is a friendship that must be formed and cultivated.

After we put Maggie back in the pasture with her mom Lil, I turned around. And I swear to you I saw a hint of regret in her eyes. I think she wished we would have stayed for just awhile longer to go for a ride.


"There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man." --Winston Churchill