Krista adopted a formerly wild Corolla filly, developed a Girl Scout Silver Award project promoting the preservation of these nearly extinct, historic horses, worked her for months to get her comfortable with each step in the training process, and yesterday rode her in the woods for the first time. The horse will continue to be trained slowly and will develop a great deal of muscle mass over the next year of long, slow riding.
(She was a yearling in the old picture above.)
The horse performed flawlessly. Krista has done a lot of growing up while training her horse. She is more patient. She is more mature. She has more empathy.
She is a better person than she was when she first met her horse. And that is the test of a training program. That is the test of any equine program. A program is not successful if it merely produces better horses.
It must also produce better people.
I was about to bust, I was so proud of those two yesterday...even with Snow nudging Katalina along she was just a perfect lady...took care of her rider.
ReplyDeleteKrysta let her check out the water in the swamp and urged her across...pretty quickly, this tiny little horse's hear came out and she just started jumping the ditches. Strong young horse and strong young lady.
The real reward at Mill Swamp is watching it happen.
Karen (Krysta's mom) rode pretty well too...we might do some more of that soon too.
Here is is where I get to digress into windy windy moralization about where Mill Swamp gains more traction than the "sit up straight, sandy circle" riding programs...I don't see too many parents around those programs coming off the trail wore out and tired from a good long hard ride with their kids.
Watching the kids and horses grow is a great thing...watching a parent who may have had just one too many bored hours of sitting at ________ (cheerleading, tiddlywinks, dance, karate...pick a scenario) and not much to do but watch and no chance of participating...(for those of you picturing me in a cheerleader uniform...wipe the smirk off your face...I would own that sucker...but no...not gonna happen) Anyway, we have seen a real shift in alot of parents who come out and get involved...this...it is good for everyone. Cures what ails you.
I get to pick on Karen here a little bit...she mentioned getting to ride to me a few times last year and seemed to need a little push to start...looked at her one morning and handed her a bridle..."ok..let's go catch you a horse." We did, she did...and there you go. Mama rode yesterday, as her daughter and grandhorse had two big firsts...first ride outside the round pen, followed closely by first, and incredibly successful ride in the big woods.
If you do not believe in magic...you might give that another look.