But its going to be a beautiful day outside today, so I hope to get enough written to feel good about taking a pass once it warms up.
This morning I went out to feed horses, walk around a bit and gather eggs. It was 25*F, and the eggs were late ones from yesterday so they were frozen little rocks in my pocket.
With most of the required housework done, I’m not feeling a lot of pressure to do that today. The trimmer is coming for the horses at 3 p.m. and last night I dreamt I forgot she was coming and left her waiting down by the gate for almost an hour! I’ll be extra diligent not to forget her today, haha.
My horses don’t wear shoes. The trimmer does what’s called a ‘barefoot’ trim, and although we live in a very rocky environment, they don’t need the shoes. My young horse, Comanche is especially tough-hooved and he sometimes appears to be roller-skating over the loose rocks in his path. That scares me, but he hasn’t taken me horizontal yet.
His breed (Missouri Foxtrotter/Spotted Saddle Horse) is known for sure-footed traveling in the sometimes rugged Ozarks. This summer I intend to get a lot more training in with him and maybe he’ll (we’ll) progress enough to go on one of the long trail rides before the end of summer.
Working with a young horse is mental and physical exercise different from anything else I do. It does a good job of releasing tension and freeing up pathways for creativity. Maybe it’s because the work requires all of my attention. It’s one of the few things I do that occupies my mind entirely while I’m doing it.
