"Missy" Conclusion, Part 4

Conclusion 

It was a great experience. I learned a lot and had fun.

Missy had one more foal, a filly.  I got to meet her.  So precious.   
I created a portrait of Missy and her filly.  

Later Missy developed a stifle problem and needed to retire from the school program.   She was sold to someone who would give her a good retirement home.

"Missy" Riding and Showing, Part 3

Riding and Showing 

Carole had me riding "Missy" on a regular basis.  We were doing well and making progress. 

I would get to ride her in the schooling shows at the barn.  
Riding and participating in shows was a great and fun experience.   I learned a lot.
I worked on not just riding skills, but how to get her ready for a show: grooming, bathing, braiding, and cleaning tack .  
As with any experience, there were great moments and learning moments. 

Shows

I was able to reassure her and help keep her calm in classes.  
There was one trail class where I had to take a rain jacket off a pole.  At first she was nervous.  It took a few times to get her close  enough.  I did get it and held it in my hand.  She moved slowly but surely to the other poll where I placed it.  Good 

There were times I would of course error.
  
One trail class I watched a rider before me go.  I had looked over the trail chart before.  
I went in and did as the one before me did.  I got to the end of the course and felt  like something wasn't right.  I halted to the judge and left the ring.  Carole came up to me and asked "Do you know what you did?" I replied confused, "no". She told me I had done the course backwards.  The girl before did.  "Ugh". 
Carole told the judge.  

When they called the ribbon winners the girl and I were actually called for 4th and 5th place.  

We were both surprised we got a ribbon after doing it wrong/backwards.   
But thankful.  

Another time, I had worked on quarter turns in a couple if my lessons.  Quarter turns are when one turns your horse around on one spot.  

The next show the trail class had a square to circle in.  Two of the poles were placed so there was a smaller space.  
I fudge up that obstacle,  by  just trying to circle around.  Missy ended up stepping out because I asked too much.  
Ugh.  I was a little mad at myself for that.  
I had just did quarter turns the last couple of weeks.   I had it.  Dah.  

I made sure it didn't happen again.   

In fact, the next trail class was one of our best.  

We were ready and in sync.  
Trotted through cones.  Transition to canter. Hop over low jump, and slowed down at cone.  We approached the square.  I was set to do full 360 turn.  I had her stop at the center of the square.  Then we smoothly,  slowly turn around on spot.  
We stepped out of the square and  trotted to the last cone.  
It felt really good.  
I went up to Carole, and asked if she happened to have seen it.  I knew she was busy with  students.  
She said, "No.  How was it?"
I told her, "It felt really good".   
She said, "Good". 

We make good efforts through the season.  We won ribbons.  

As the show season got near to the end, people there felt I was good for Reserve Champion of the show year in the Walk-Trot division over 18.  .  
There was one more show.  
We did so good that I made Champion in the Walk-Trot division over 18 for the year end awards.  

The barn celebrated awards at their yearly end of season banquet.  

Missy Turn on a Dime, Part 2

Turn on a Dime

We would work on connection,  being relaxed and supple.   It took focus and practice.  
We were successful, little by little, at  being relaxed and working together.   
During the walking cool down at the end of lessons, I would spend most of the time with my feet in the stirrups,  only occasionally taking my feet out to stretch. She got used to me doing that.  It was good.  
It was good, that is as long as I was paying attention.  
Quarter horses are bred for ranch work and need  to be able to turn and move quick. They can "turn on a dime". 
Well one day during walking cool  down, I made the mistake of relaxing so much I started to zone out.  
She must of heard something.   Though I didn't know what.   It could have been the wind blowing.   I didn't know.  But she got startled.   
She turned so quick.  I normally would move with her.  But this time I was left behind.  She went one way, while I slipped the other way  and fell off. 
I landed on my side in the dirt. 
I remember thinking, "She can be a nervous horse and she's probably half way down the ring going toward Carol."  
Instead when I looked up, I discovered she was standing right next to me.  Her head down at my level on the ground.  
She look at me like "What happened.   You fell off." 
I'm not supposed to fall off, but go with her.  
I looked at her and said reassuringly,  I'm ok". 
I got up. 
I was a little sore and stiff from the fall. We took care.  

I was now a member of the Dust Club. 
  
I got better  and got back on with riding her.  

"Missy" Meeting, Part 1

Meeting

In the 1990's, I took riding lessons at Haskins farm in Berkley, MA. Carol LeBalnc was my riding instructor.   

"Missy" (aka "Miss545") was a broodmare at Haskins farm. The first time I saw her was when she had a foal.  

I got to the barn early to get ready for my lesson.   One of the girls came over to me and asked me if I saw the new foal.  I told her I hadn't.   "Let's go. ", she said.   We went to the barn where they were.  In front of the stall was a stool so you could look in.  We both peered in. The foal lay asleep.   "Missy" stood over her foal.  It was a big foal. 
The girl said "Isn't he (the foal) beautiful?"
I replied, "Yes.  And his mom is too." I couldn't stop looking at Missy.  She was beautiful.  
Missy was a dark, almost black quarter horse.  She was elegant.  She had a little more refine body type more like a racing horse.  She had a small star on her forehead.  
We left to go to lessons.   
I knew she was a broodmare. One of the owners owned her.  

What I didn't expect would happen. 

Carol at times would have me ride different horses.  
I would get to the barn and find Carol in the indoor ring or office .  She'd let me know who to go get ready for my lesson.   I'd go get the horse I was to ride.  I'd groom and  tack up the horse .  When ready, we'd go into the ring for our lesson.  
One day she was at the fence of the ring.  When I approached she told me to go get "Missy". She knew I knew who Missy was.  
I was suddenly quite excited.  "Missy. I get to ride Missy. Wow. " 
I went and got her.  I got her ready.  I was excited about it.  
She was a little nervous. I was a new person to her.  I felt a little nervous too.  
Yet with each lesson and time together we got to know each other.  
She was a mare with a strong motherly instinct.  She seemed to be a worry wart.

We learned and grew together, under Carol's teaching.  

                                                                                Pastel Portrait of Missy

Let it go

It was a quiet evening at the barn.  There was no bustling of activity in the barn that night.  
I was riding Freckles, a small flea bitten appaloosa in my riding lesson.  
Freckles could be a little nervous.   She was a little head shy.  A sign that someone had been over bearing and possibly abusive  in the way they had treated her.  She needed  a calm and confident person with her.   
I was learning to  use my sensitivity in the situation.   Guiding with calmness.  It's sometimes a not- so -easy thing to do. 
Thoughts can run through the mind, like a  wild train.  Sometimes a thought can seem to jump out and stir emotions.   
I had my own experiences and dark moments in life.  Negative words said in a bad relationship.   
Then a medical professional that decided they couldn't be bothered to listen or help me with my issue. She  tried to act like it was just in my head.  It turned out to be something physical that needed attention.   
I felt violated.   
Yet thankfully I didn't just cave in.  I eventually found the support and compassion from people that I needed then in my life. 
There I was riding Freckles. I was focusing hard.  A negative thought flashed by in my mind.  I stiffened up.  The opposite of what I was trying to do. 
In the quiet arena, riding, 
Carol, my instructor,  said, "Let it go".  
I knew that's what I had to do.  I had told myself it before.   
Yet having someone else say it in this certain situation gave me the space to really take it in and make the adjustment.  
I no longer had my thoughts fighting  each other.  
I relaxed.  Freckles relax.  We were OK. 

I was very grateful.   
We finished the lesson on a good note. I untacked her and put her in her stall.  
I thanked Carol.  
As I left and drove home, I looked toward the night sky with stars here and there.  
I softly said, "Thank you".

Star. a palomino horse

I volunteered for about a year at Red Sams Stables.  

The owner had a 22 yr.  old palomino horse named Star.  
There was a younger girl that volunteered there that used to ride her.  
At one point that girl's parents bought a horse for her to have as her own.
She no longer came to the farm.  

I'd been helping clean stalls regularly on Saturdays.  I occassionally got to ride.  There was a little brown mare that the owners were rehabilitating and going to sell. I got to ride the little brown mare for a time.  I walked and trotted  her to get her into a healthy form.  

The women owner decided to allow me to ride her horse, Star.  
Star was a palomino. Her coat color was a light gold coloring with a cream colored mane and tail. She had a white strip down her face and four white socks.  
Her life at this point was  leisurely.  
Her saddle now fit just a little snug. 
The other girl rode her bare back.  
I felt confident enough to ride her bare back. 
She was rather comfortable to ride bare back since she was a little round.  
I rode her around the farm.  
I used the ramp near the barn to get on her back.  
The farm consisted of a big barn on the hill.  The barn had two levels.   The main floor's entrance was at the top of the hill. The second level was a basement floor.  The entrance to the lower level was on the west side of the barn, on the hill's slope.  

There  was a smaller barn in back of the main house on the property.  

There were two corals. 
One big main coral, and a smaller coral near the small barn. 

The farm used to run trail rides.  

But at the time I was there, they were no  longer doing trail rides.  
There was a good number of boarders, who boarded their horse there.  

In good weather, I would go for a ride on Star. We  had our riding routine around the farm.  I would mount her and  we would walk past the small barn down an easy slope.  Near the big coral was a short trail.  We would walk the short trail through the trees.  This brought us near the big barn.  
It was up hill from there.  She liked to go fast to get up the hill. She'd go into a canter.  This was a little new to me since I had rode mostly in a saddle. I would ask her to go a little slower into a trot.  She was good about adjusting her speed.   She would trot the rest of the way up the hill.   Then we would walk.  
She was a good teacher.  And gradually I got more skilled at riding her bare back.   
We had fun.  

I love grooming horses, too.  That quiet time being with them and brushing them.
Star enjoyed being brushed and pampered.   
On really hot days I'd take her to the big barn's lower level where it was cooler.  I'd spend time brushing and talking to her.   Her favorite scratch spot was on her neck just below her mane.

Rocking Horse Canter

Rocking Horse Canter

Near Randolph, MA, where I grew up, there was a conservation area called Blue Hills. There was also a summer camp called, Ponkapoag camp. When I turned 13, I was the right age to be in the horse camp that they offered. I learned a lot about horses and how to ride a horse. There were a few different horses that each camper would get to ride.

One of my favorite horses was named, Ceasar. He was a medium size quarter horse. He had a neat coat color referred to as Blue Roan. It consisted of back and white hairs that blended into each other. When the sun shown on his coat it would have a look of tinted blue. Thus the name of his coloring was called Blue Roan. His mane, tail and legs just below the knees were black. I thought he was the coolest horse. He was very gentle and patient with children.

I'm riding Ceasar here at camp Ponkapaog Horse Camp

One year I was able to move to the advanced group. We would work on walking, trotting and would add learning to ride at a canter. A canter is similar to a gallop, but much slower. It has a 3 beat rhythm. It has a rocking back and forward motion that the rider experiences. Some horses move smooth and steady in a canter, that can feel like being in a rocking chair.

Ceasar had a smooth and steady canter.

The day came when we would do our first canter ride. I was riding Ceasar that day. When it was my turn to canter my instructor not only instructed me in what to do but told me Ceasar has a real nice rocking horse canter. "Once he goes just sit back and enjoy it." she said.

I asked for the canter with my "outside" leg, right leg moving in the direction to the left. Ceasar went into the canter. He moved off into a rocking motion. It felt really good. I felt relaxed and moved with his rocking motion. It was really good. We slowed down as we got close to the end of the line of riders. My instructor said "Good." Then added "How was that?" I exclaimed "That felt really good. Awesome."