That old Kenny Rogers song came to mind today, as I was thinking over the happenings of yesterday. In terms of horses, you should never be to sure of a horse. Riding horses is always a gamble. There are no sure bets, and you could win or lose with a stroke of luck, good or bad, or some people like to say "that's how the cookie crumbles" or "it is what it is". There is no predicting it, how things are going to go or what exactly is going to take place. Today, I think the cards were stacked against me in the hand I was dealt yesterday (being soooo sore today!) Well, the two hours were fabulous, but paying for it now...I don't want to focus on the pain though...I want to share with you each detail from start to finish as if you were there.
I wouldn't exactly call myself a cowgirl...maybe a city girl that you can take out of the country, but can't take the country of this girl. I am definitely not an Annie Oakley, Calamity Jane or Dale Evans, but I do have a new found respect for them. Ok, Ok, actually, I owned a horse for years. I rode for hours and days. I have memories of trail rides with Manteca Horseman Association, camping with my daddy and Deena Olson and being able to ride anyway we wanted in the mountains, through creeks and rivers. I remember Kelly Montalvo falling off my horse and breaking her arm (wonder if she remembers?) I also fell off my horse as he tripped on railroad tracks, praise God for braces on my teeth or I think they would of been knocked out. I have memories of racing around the football field during halftime of football games dressed in the Lancer suit. Barrel racing out at the Lewellans areana, breaking records and setting new times, all the trophies and ribbons Rico and I won. Rico and I ( and my daddy and his horse) rode in many downtown parades. My horse Rico was a beautiful quarter horse and my daddys horse name was Pizan "my friend". I have great memories that I will cherish forever and yet it saddens my heart when I realize I chose to sell Rico in order to be the new owner of a red Vega, stick shift and all, not even knowing how to drive it....yet because we sold the farm, moved to town, I was limited on options....yet warms my heart to know Rico went to a loving family and home of Dr. Howard Miller, who it seems had Rico for 100 years!
Ok, Ok, you see I have some experiences riding horses, yet found myself filling out the paper work yesterday and signing my life away at the horse stables here in Half Moon Bay marking "inexperienced/1st time rider".
It's obvious I love to write and I love to include details. For me, there is nothing like getting a brand new notebook ( sorry Greg, you are stuck with me and all my notebooks!) You open it and it's blank...just waiting to be filled in with adventures, experiences, knowledge, sentiments, good memories, tears of sadness and tears of joy, colorful adjectives and whatever else comes my way....my horseback ride was very similar yesterday.
We had actually gone down to the harbor. You see, kayaking in the ocean is on my bucket list...yet Greg and Lex weren't nearly as excited, so I decided to leave it on my bucket list and head back to the campground...when on our right, which I have seen 1,000 times "Seahorse Ranch", we passed it right up but with some slight corhorsing from Lex, Greg flipped a U-turn. Lex and I walked up to inquire about this adventure. We were both in shorts and flip-flops which are both not allowed on the horse ride....in fact Lex only had flip-flops, so we were on a mission to get lex some tennis shoes. We placed our name on the next day early-bird trail ride. I then remembered I had 2 pairs of tennis shoes, we'd make them work for her. Yes, they were big, but she had all her basis covered...." I just come from a family that all have BIG feet and I have lots of growing pains in my feet!"
Lex wanted to set the alarm for 3 am, then decided 5 am would give us enough time to get there by 7;30....7 am was actually enough time to get ready!
Back to signing the release forms, Lex getting her helmet, meeting 2 sisters her age from Oregon that were going on the trail ride also. Time to get on our horses, piece of cake for Lex, a tiny boost from the Ranch-hand. Me, on the other hand, thinking you want me to put my foot that high, then pull myself up and swing my right leg over.....uuummmm no, can I use those steps to get on. Once I was on the saddle, it was all coming back...too late now, once paid, no refunds. The Ranch-hands reminded us one hand on the reins and the other on the saddle horn, once feet in stir-ups....toes up and heels down, and if your horse starts to trot, stand up in the stir-ups....ok, well I had no intentions of trotting...but my horse had other intentions. Not even sure my horses name, something in Spanish, so was Lex's. She was very good natured and they both sensed our calmness, thank you Jesus!! Once we were on our horses and we were headed out through the back of the stables, there were many more horses grazing and watching us leave, probably knowing they were up for the next trail-ride. Clop-Clop, tails swishing, biting of bridels, we were underway....small bunnies hopping across the trail, little cotton tails, amazing how the small things become the BIG things. The ocean was insight, the cool breeze and the smell of the salt air....I now just felt like this was meant to be!
We took a high trail, through the state park, smelling of coffee and bacon cooking..yumm! Oh No, a dog on the loose, yet the ranch-hand was on it and cut the dog off, not letting him spook our horses. The scenery changed quickly down and amongst some trees...the ground was muddy, bushes and trees completely hiding this area. It reminded me of a secret garden, within seconds our horses were stomping through a foot of water, splashing one another. It was a magical place....a place I will never lose sight of, absolutely gorgeous. The ranch hands are now telling us as we head down the rugged and steep path to the ocean lean back in your saddle. Oh boy, I can do this, I can do this, just relax and have faith. Oh, so worth it....our horses headed straight to the water. The sounds of nawwwing horses, ocean waves crashes and little girls laughing as horses stopped to pee and poop, eewwies and ickies and comments like "no grammie, my butt won't be sore tomorrow , because my bottom is like cotton balls, it's fluffy". I had to giggle. No cameras or cell phones were allowed and I obeyed ( well greg made me). Yet, one smart lady had her phone and the guide said no problem, he'd take pictures. I have a picture or two but the visual pictures in my mind and heart are way more valuable. I think Lex is loving it as much as me. She, like me, is in her own little world. I know it's something both of us will never forget. We headed back and enjoyed each second left, taking it all in. Headed back to the stables, I was looking forward to hearing what Lex had to say..."for 2 hours that horse was mine, it loved me and I loved it.. ...that was the best thing ever."
Yes, I agree Lex, it was the best thing ever! Yet I'm pretty sure I will leave the horseback riding to the youngsters. I'm really sore today, I can barely move, as I lay in my trailer listening to the birds chirp, people staring to move about the campground, the ping of golf balls being hit and the fog rolling out and the sun peaking through and it's...
All Because of His Amazing Grace....
