Today is July 1. Not only is it the beginning of another fabulous month in New England, it just so happens that it is also the opening date for our First Ever Recognized Event.
The entry form has been filled out for a month. If you think I didn't drop that puppy off at the post office at 6 am this morning, then you are just plan silly.
The event in question is the August 17th Horse Trials at Kingsbury Hill. There's still plenty of time to add some polish before then, otherwise I just might throw up from nerves.
Here's a little poem I like to read to get inspired to go do crazy things:
George Gray
By Edgar Lee Masters
I have studied many times
The marble which was chiseled for me-
A boat with a furled sail at rest in a harbor.
In truth it pictures not my destination
But my life.
For love was offered me and I shrank from its disillusionment;
Sorrow knocked at my door, but I was afraid;
Ambition called to me, but I dreaded the chances.
Yet all the while I hungered for meaning in my life.
And now I know that we must lift the sail
And catch the winds of destiny
Wherever they drive the boat.
To put meaning in one’s life may end in madness,
But life without meaning is torture
Of restlessness and vague desire-
It is a boat longing for the sea, and yet afraid.
Now that is a little melodramatic for a horse event, no? But in a way, this horse eventing thing has changed my life. I decided to try to event my Percheron in March of 2007. That was 16 months ago. Sixteen months of work to get to this point, our first beginner novice recognized event. Two date, that is 8 dressage lessons, 4 jumping lessons, 4 cross country schoolings, 3 clinics, 2 hunter trials, 1 hunter show, and approximately 256 different rides. Plus, I moved halfway across the country to pursue a better (eventing) horse scene, uprooting my family, selling my home, changing jobs.
As an aside, that may sound like few lessons, but I had already been riding all my life. Even the lowest levels of eventing are not an entry-level sport, as I have learned.
Through it all, the only constant was my horse. My big, silly horse. These experiences are precious to me.
(Gosh, after that build up, cross your fingers that I get in!!)
Posts
