Being Balanced

Sometimes with the best intentions, life can get in the way. That’s how it was with me this past week.

The end of last week, this week, and part of next week were swamped with “to do” projects. Stuff like all my annual doctor visits like a mammogram, colonoscopy, bloodwork, MRI, orthopedics, and the dentist. Yuck.

But it was also the same for my husband so double those doctor visits. He had his follow-up visits, EEG, neurologist, TBI testing, vision, and bloodwork. Neither of us had anything major, but the annual follow-ups on everything seemed to really fill up these 10 days or so.

The days seemed to fly by and were action-packed. But that isn’t always a good thing.

Then the dog had issues I was trying to heal and he had to go to the vet. Plus I was still checking in on Kit who was now an hour and a half away (without traffic) and starting to work with Merlin who was 45 minutes away (without traffic). It was 50/50 if I hit traffic on my way to visit each of them so add another 30 minutes to that commute.

And that’s just the personal stuff. I still had to work as well. There just weren’t enough hours in the day to get all this accomplished. It looked ok in my organizer, but in reality it was a bit much.

Kind of like when you go to the grocery store for 4 things and you come out with 20 because you went in hungry. Hahaha, I know you’ve done it too. Things got hectic quickly and I had to make adjustments.

Life has its bumps in the road and we do adjust. “That’s life” as we say. Our priorities change and we are constantly moving around our “to do” list. That’s exactly what happened this week.

Because of all the activity and things to do, unfortunately I had to prioritize the doctor’s visits over the horses. I still saw them, but it wasn’t every day or even every other day as I had intended. It was more like every 4 days.

I felt so bad I couldn’t get out to them as often as I wanted. I kept telling myself “tomorrow”. Then tomorrow got filled up with other priorities. And “tomorrow” became 4 days later. The more I pushed them off to “tomorrow” the more anxious I became.

The interesting thing was that when I finally got out to be with Kit or Merlin and was able to just hang out with either of them for an hour or so, the peace and calmness that it brought me was huge. There was such a relief and rejuvenation that happened when I could be with them doing nothing, just “being” there.

I got so caught up in the day-to-day priorities of doctor visits that I pushed the “fun” stuff down to the bottom. Yes, doctor visits for me and my husband were important for our health. But I forgot that the “fun” stuff with the horses was actually also healthy for me. For my brain, for my emotional state of being, and for my heart.

I had forgotten all the things on my “Just Be” list.

I forgot the balance and got caught up in my “to do” list. I forgot the “just be” list. You know, where you just hang out with your horse, being a part of the herd, being a part of nature, and being in love with the world around you.

After being away from that for 4 days, getting stressed and anxious doing other stuff, and then spending quality time with my horse… it made a huge difference in my state of being. I felt balanced again.

So, today’s lesson is really a reminder to you and to me…

Make time for your horse.
Make time for yourself to be with your horse.
It won’t add stress to your week. It will help relieve the stressors.
Do it for your own health.
Do it for your horse. Your horse needs you just as much as you need your horse.

And on a side note…

While I was just relaxing and spending quality time with my new little 6-month-old Friesian colt, Merlin, rejuvenating my own health, I was also able to get a halter on him, walk him around with a lead, pick up his feet in preparation for a farrier, start grooming him, and really start building our trust in one another.

Which meant that in doing nothing together we actually got a lot accomplished with very little effort. He did all of that without any question, without spooking, and with no fear. He loves being around me, leaves his mother and his herd to hang out close to me, and he loves to cuddle.

Fingers crossed that his training continues to go so well. It really is amazing what love, compassion, and trust can do for a relationship. It transforms a friendship, a partnership, and your training into something magical. And when a young horse is started in this way, bad habits and fear memories are never formed.

It’s so important to take the time it takes to get whatever you want done and don’t rush the progress. Remain balanced in life and in training.

I remind my students all the time –

“The slower you go the more you get done and the faster the progress.”

If you would like to accomplish this with your horse, I have the perfect program for you. My Recess with your Horse program. It only takes 4-6 weeks, depending on the time you can spend with your horse. The program can be done as a self-study course or you can add personal coaching and I can help you along the way to specialize it just for you and your horse.

Here is a link to find out more: