On Horses
Being homeschooled and introverted, I developed many hobbies as a kid. I sang at church and participated in years of piano lessons, as well as dabbled in drawing, poetry writing, and play production with my little sisters. All these however paled in comparison to a passion that would go on to consume my teenage years.
When I was nine years old I developed a seemingly instantaneous and overwhelming adoration of horses. I to this day cannot remember what initially brought this on, as I was living a relatively horse-free existence in the middle of suburban Southern California. Whatever brought it on, it came on strong. I was soon voraciously reading everything about horses I could get my hands on. I saved up to buy horse-themed magazines from the grocery store (Equus was a favorite because it was so very serious and professional). I bought out-dated horse calendars and ripped all the pictures out to hang on my wall, and began amassing a collection of Breyer model horses (the best kind). I begged for riding lessons and my parents tried to placate me, assuming this obsession would soon go the way of most young girl's love of horses and be replaced by a desire to look pretty and get a boyfriend. This, however, did not happen.
By the time I was ten I had acquired my first horse and started boarding her at a friend's. Soon there were two, then three, and then a house in the country where we could keep them all ourselves. After years of second-hand saddles, even older horses, and countless lessons, trainers, and dollars, I found myself at fifteen with a beautiful personal arena, a competitive barrel-racing horse, a trailer, a lucrative riding lesson business, and very happy. Afton, her horse Abu, and my horse Joe and I spent weekend after weekend on three different competitive circuits and loved every minute of it. I remember by Junior year of high school when we were at our best, girls would start complaining and sometimes even crying when they saw our trailer pull up. They knew we would kick their little 4-H asses.
When my Dad got involved, we added a different element into our competitive horse lives. Dad liked to trail ride, and not just the wimpy trails around our house in the Wine Country. He got his friend Bud involved, and pretty soon we were all hauling our horses up and down mountains and riding for days with only what our horses and one uncharacteristicly small mule could carry. These rides were invaluable to me in the way I looked at horses. What was first an obsession had become a sport and a job. My horse was an impressive athlete, but his mind had been lost with too much work and way too much speed. When we got out onto a mountain trail we both settled down and enjoyed the scenery and each other. He got to be a real, useful animal, who I needed to get where I was going and home again, and he learned to trust me in the face of cliffs, bears, and the rushing rivers I was asking him to cross. He became my friend and fellow adventurer and we got to experience a side of nature that most people don't get to see.
When I went to school I had to leave the horses behind and concentrate on academics. For the first couple years I road on the weekends and on summer vacations, but it had gotten to the point recently where I would go for 6 months without sitting on a horse. Afton and I went to the Norco rodeo a few weeks ago, and since that time I couldn't get my horses out of my head. The holiday weekend and the visitation (in the non-ghostly sense of the word) of Heather Dodds gave me an opportunity to ride, and oh how I've missed it. The next night I went out again at dusk with Afton and we loped out to a vineyard. As night fell and the last traces of the sun went down behind the mountains between us and the coast, we road through the newly harvested vineyards, got chased by an angry coyote, and road home by the moon light. Our horses are a little older now, and we've been through so much with them that they are pure pleasure to ride now.
I remembered last night how peaceful the outdoors can be. I don't think you can experience natural beauty on a postcard or in a movie. You have to be really out in it to get it, and that's what horses have done for me. Despite finally being at the point in my life wherein I would in fact like to look pretty and have a boyfriend, I will never lose the love of horses instilled in me over the years.
When I was nine years old I developed a seemingly instantaneous and overwhelming adoration of horses. I to this day cannot remember what initially brought this on, as I was living a relatively horse-free existence in the middle of suburban Southern California. Whatever brought it on, it came on strong. I was soon voraciously reading everything about horses I could get my hands on. I saved up to buy horse-themed magazines from the grocery store (Equus was a favorite because it was so very serious and professional). I bought out-dated horse calendars and ripped all the pictures out to hang on my wall, and began amassing a collection of Breyer model horses (the best kind). I begged for riding lessons and my parents tried to placate me, assuming this obsession would soon go the way of most young girl's love of horses and be replaced by a desire to look pretty and get a boyfriend. This, however, did not happen.
By the time I was ten I had acquired my first horse and started boarding her at a friend's. Soon there were two, then three, and then a house in the country where we could keep them all ourselves. After years of second-hand saddles, even older horses, and countless lessons, trainers, and dollars, I found myself at fifteen with a beautiful personal arena, a competitive barrel-racing horse, a trailer, a lucrative riding lesson business, and very happy. Afton, her horse Abu, and my horse Joe and I spent weekend after weekend on three different competitive circuits and loved every minute of it. I remember by Junior year of high school when we were at our best, girls would start complaining and sometimes even crying when they saw our trailer pull up. They knew we would kick their little 4-H asses.
When my Dad got involved, we added a different element into our competitive horse lives. Dad liked to trail ride, and not just the wimpy trails around our house in the Wine Country. He got his friend Bud involved, and pretty soon we were all hauling our horses up and down mountains and riding for days with only what our horses and one uncharacteristicly small mule could carry. These rides were invaluable to me in the way I looked at horses. What was first an obsession had become a sport and a job. My horse was an impressive athlete, but his mind had been lost with too much work and way too much speed. When we got out onto a mountain trail we both settled down and enjoyed the scenery and each other. He got to be a real, useful animal, who I needed to get where I was going and home again, and he learned to trust me in the face of cliffs, bears, and the rushing rivers I was asking him to cross. He became my friend and fellow adventurer and we got to experience a side of nature that most people don't get to see.
When I went to school I had to leave the horses behind and concentrate on academics. For the first couple years I road on the weekends and on summer vacations, but it had gotten to the point recently where I would go for 6 months without sitting on a horse. Afton and I went to the Norco rodeo a few weeks ago, and since that time I couldn't get my horses out of my head. The holiday weekend and the visitation (in the non-ghostly sense of the word) of Heather Dodds gave me an opportunity to ride, and oh how I've missed it. The next night I went out again at dusk with Afton and we loped out to a vineyard. As night fell and the last traces of the sun went down behind the mountains between us and the coast, we road through the newly harvested vineyards, got chased by an angry coyote, and road home by the moon light. Our horses are a little older now, and we've been through so much with them that they are pure pleasure to ride now.
I remembered last night how peaceful the outdoors can be. I don't think you can experience natural beauty on a postcard or in a movie. You have to be really out in it to get it, and that's what horses have done for me. Despite finally being at the point in my life wherein I would in fact like to look pretty and have a boyfriend, I will never lose the love of horses instilled in me over the years.
posted by Cate at 11:19 AM
7 Comments:
i love this post, and feel exactly the same. i spent like three hours the night i got back from your house trying to find a place to board my horse down here that wouldn't require me to sell crack and/or organs on the black market to pay the bill.
turns out, such a place does not exist.
i'm down with a party.
"A desire to look pretty. This, however, did not happen."
Damn right.
HAHAHAHHA.
I have to disrespectfully disagree with Amanda. It happened. It definitely happened.
Oh, my! Cate, I love horses too! One of my favorite places is atop a horse riding in the mountains. Thought I haven't done any riding since I had kids. I LOVE HORSES and can still approach any horse and put my cheek next to theirs. The next time I'm in Southern california, may I invite myself to the place of Teepees and ride with you?
Of course, but you may be dissapointed with your daughter for so deceiving you about Temecula. Not a Teepee in sight, nor wigwams, in case you were wondering.
Wow. I think I want to ride horses now.
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