The four pictured above brought a smile to my heart yesterday. Even though my knees were aching a bit from walking all the way while Debbie and Laura rode, I felt no real pain, just great satisfaction and happiness.
It's hard to describe how thrilling it is finally to be to the stage where one's horses can calmly do what horses are supposed to do----provide their riders with the great pleasure of enjoying the outdoors and of viewing beauty from a different,higher perspective from what we two-legged creatures normally get to see on our own two feet.
Oh, when sitting in that saddle, there's a limb here and there that can scratch your face when plodding through a wooded area, but the tidy wood pile and logs yet to be cut into wood along the trail or the myriad of talkative birds flitting from limb to limb in Bill's lovely forest---nothing beats that.
Debbie had to do some adjusting with Lefty yesterday because he's graduated to a curb bit, and she's ridden him with a snaffle in the past. So, we took great care to see that all went smoothly as she practiced using her leg pressure more than ever and maintained enough contact with his mouth but not too much.
Too much pressure---or shall we call it 'yanking'---with a curb bit can cause great discomfort with a horse's mouth, and even a tiny bit of discomfort on a horse with a "soft, uncalloused" mouth like Lefty's can, in turn, cause the head to go in the air and a whole lot of confusion with both horse and rider.
I can proudly report that Lefty's head never went into the air, and Debbie learned quickly during yesterday's ride, which buttons to push with her leg muscles and what to do with those hands full of reins.
I kept close to Lefty at the beginning to make sure all went well. Then, I couldn't get away from him. Lefty does like his mom, so through most of the time we spent on wooded trails and on most of the road trip, that soft nose was nuzzling me.
I didn't mind.
I guess Lefty figures if Debbie has the right contact with his mouth, he needs to keep the right contact with his mom.
Yup, the little, adorable "I'm yours" baby from that ranch in Ronan, Mont., has grown up to become a nice saddle horse, one who truly loves his peeps.
As for Lily, all I can say is that she and Swiss Miss have bonded. Any worries I may have had prior to Laura's first ride last week are now very distant memories.
One must always be careful when introducing a strangers in the "horse-peeps" category, especially when the peep comes from another country and says she likes horses. A whole world of possibilities could exist with a statement such as that. Some can turn out well, some, disastrous.
In this case, Swiss Miss not only likes horses, but she also knows how to handle them with ease and with a calm, quiet manner. Lily figured that out right away and responded accordingly.
"Guess she knows what she's doing," Lily must have been thinking, "so I guess I'll just plod down the trail and behave, just like my mom expects me to do when she's riding me."
And, that's what Lily does, as Laura sits aboard, quietly directing her wherever she (Laura) wants her (Lily) to go.
The scenario could have easily been the other way around with a different person on board, but horses sense quickly---just like kids---how much mischief they can wreak.
Laura thoroughly enjoyed riding in the woods, directing Lily in and around trees.
She told me that the woods in Switzerland generally have trees growing too close together for an enjoyable horseback ride, so yesterday's experience was a treat for her.
I could not have been happier to walk alongside those horses and their riders on a pretty afternoon as these two ladies enjoyed their time spent aboard my two horse buddies.
Good Lily. Good Lefty.
Definitely a great afternoon memory.
Happy Monday!
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