MISSING MOMENTS

"Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, it only saps today of its joy." ~ Leo Buscaglia

A Wise Woman once told me that life is filled with moments in time and by savoring that moment is truly what brings life alive!   And to really live, one needs to breathe those moments to life as if resuscitating joy itself!

Last night, I missed a moment filling it with worry and fret over the weeks ahead.  I could have breathed Sugar's sweet smell, a combination of fresh pine woods and newly mown hay.  I could have enjoyed the pleasure of a hard grooming of an itchy coat.  And I could have kissed a very kissable nose and loved being alone with my Lil' Pinto Pony.

Instead, I greeted the evening like an obligation and duty that must be performed.  As the curry greeted her skin, I spent that moment worried about whether she was losing her topline, or weak in her hind end which led to whether or not we will ever be ready for the season.  And if she's ready, will I be?

And so begins the endless planning, self derision and loads of overthinking... Until...

It's all about the moment!  Sugar looks fantastic and is the soundest she's ever been.  Her muscling is even and her body is strong!  She is happy and healthy... We are both lucky to have each other...

Work is hard and life is filled with changes... Some  now and some in the future.  The weather has been brutal and even with an indoor, riding regularly has been challenging.  

Worry and fret hasn't solved anything.  It continues to rob one of that moment...  Like kissing the kissable nose!

What will be will be!

WORKING FOR A LIVIN'

Wow, that was an amazing vacation and one that seems like ancient history.  Two whole weeks of just doing what I wanted to do, mostly when I wanted to do it while surrounded by family and friends.  It was a magical time so, so long ago in a distant galaxy. 

Fighting doesn't help

Enter the Polar Vortex and a return to work filled with chaos and change.  I wonder, where is my sense of peace and utter calm?  Where are the delightful moments riding my lil' pinto pony?  Where is that life of routine filled bliss?   Oh where art thou?  Oh where art thou?

So for those of us who really do know me, I am a Facebook junkie.  Bring it on!  Today, someone posted (and I shared) the following "peace/love/charity" statement:

The kissable nose!

"Everything in life moves in its own rhythm and in its own time." 

 

And, James Van Praagh added, "When you resist change, you are trying to hard to control the outcome and not paying enough attention to the process.  Enjoy the cosmic dance of life and its changes. When making changes, always seek the higher vibrations of love, peace, joy, patience, and abundance."

Somehow, that little post eased some of the craziness of this new year.  Sugar is happy, content and well cared for at the Lil' Country Barn.  And, if weather and work make it difficult for me to achieve my goals, I must remember the pleasure of just smelling the sweet scent of her very kissable nose and the real satisfaction of grooming the white coat clean.  And, how good it feels to the both of us to curry an itchy spot with her body leaning in for more.

Ah, its winter.  The weather is cold and work is hard...  I can stay with this or move graciously into the higher vibrations of what I can do and not what I can't...  The choice is mine...

{{{{I think I'll go to the barn and buy lottery tickets on the way home!}}}}

OOOPS! SHOULD'VE DONE THAT!

Did I ever tell you that I've been on vacation for two weeks!  That's right... two whole weeks.  Here it is Sunday night and I've given up the ship!  There is absolutely no way, at all, that I can complete ALL of those things I had planned to do that Friday afternoon as I waived my coworkers goodbye.

Gotta seize the day!

Instead, I plan to finish this awesome cup of chai tea, stroke the silky ears of a naughty hound draped across my lap and thank god for all the wonder in my life.  Oh, I may take a moment out of this pure pleasure and yell at the Convict to stop licking his paw but as he then crawls up on the napping couch to curl close, all is at peace.

Yeah, I should've have had that project ready to be emailed to the vendor first thing tomorrow morning.  And, I should've have done more research on the even bigger project pending.  The house is a wicked mess and every coat I've worn these two weeks sit piled up on a chair... yeah, I could've have done that too...

Youthful exuberance!

Did I tell you that Sugar is back?  That we had a magnificent dressage lesson with the amazing Niall Quirk?  She was lovely to ride, a willing partner that, when put together, floated like a big, wiggling/swishing dressage horse.  Did I tell you that I spent the morning watching my barn mates achieve beauty as they too, lifted their horses into light, fluffy, fancy prancing?

Ooops, maybe I should've cleaned out my car and put away all the trail cleaning supplies cluttering up and making the back seats unusable.  And, darn... I forgot to cut down those stupid Norway Maples taking root in my overgrown garden beds.  Yes, I know the Christmas decorations do need to come down soon, lest annoy friends and neighbors alike.

Those ears don't miss
anything!

Before I forget, did I tell you of a fabulous New Years Eve jaunt with the Brave Barn Peep?  Oh, the gloriousness of an event horse releasing her pent up energy as we attempted to "gallop" around a field.  Did I tell you...  Sugar is back?  And, can I tell you how fulfilling it was when my lil' pinto pony finally cantered without a leap into the air?

And, I did not clean my bedroom and organize my closets.  And, ok, my laundry is piled up still unwashed...  Thank god, my work clothes are back from the cleaners and I did buy new underwear as a "Christmas present".  Shhh, some folks may still get Christmas cards since I managed to not finish them before New Years....  ooopsie!

Oh, yeah, one more thing...  Did I tell you that Sugar is back?  And, that I grabbed Newbie Eventer, some fabulous Hunt Peeps and ran out before the snow storm to get that one last gallop in.  It was heaven on earth when the two of us actually galloped with nary a spook or a leap.  (I was sure she was colicing.)

Life is short!  You gotta do it while you can!  And, I am so grateful to have so many fabulous compadres willing to live it with me!

TYG! 

FEELS LIKE A MILLION BUCKS

And as the lottery creeps upward and the dreams of being a billionaire dance it's the devilish dance, I sigh with a level of contentment from actually winning the dance of a devilish mare...

All sweetness

You see, as I begin to consider my next (and second) horse, I dream of a plain bay with decent gaits, a level head who just wants to "jump the jumps".  I see "him" as a handsome horse who can take a lot of bling (oh yes... you just wait and see how my inner pre-teen comes out then). 

And then the fantasy takes shape...  I saddle him up on a cold, snowy day to gallop around our field as puffs of snow billow around his strong legs.  I'm laughing at the sheer joy of two beings, together as one. 

Or feeling that moment when I get a call from the Bestest Eventing Buddy, Sugar's Twenty Something Friend or the Newbie Eventer, "let's go XC schooling and jump some jumps!" and being excited and thrilled to jump some jumps!

I'll keep her for that nose!

Yet sometimes, when my lil' pinto pony can not keep her feet on the ground as we finishing her rehab by cantering.  And, I ride her airs above the ground into something that looks like a canter, I feel like a million bucks.  Somewhere in my fantasy world, I am a cowgirl - wild and free!  I am a goddess! 

And, when I ask for that last canter transition and my lil' Mariah Carey impersonator says, "Ok... I'll do it and I'll do it well!"  I feel like a million bucks.

I just hope that when looking for said second horse, I don't fall too much in love with that kind of million bucks! 

{{{Special note of apology to the lessoner and the fellow boarder also sharing ring with the diva princess.  I promise that Saccharine has not been a frequent visitor these past few years...  Sugar will return and it will be good again!  I promise!}}}