Riding has been my passion since I was a little kid on my first pony, Stormy. But back then, growing up on a horse farm, horses just were. They weren't a choice and they weren't a sacrifice. I rode and rode and rode all day long simply because that's what I did. Didn't everyone?
Now that I'm an adult and living on a postage stamp in a suburb of Pittsburgh, keeping up with my horse addiction isn't as simple as it once was. And the fact that I didn't take my mother's advice and either 1) marry rich or 2) become a lawyer isn't helping matters much. But I made the choice to keep horses in my life, and each day it is an adventure to not only ride while working full time and being a mother to a 3-year-old, but to also try as best I can to keep showing my horses.
That task teaches me so many lessons in life. From the big pictures of sacrificing for what you really want, working hard and not being intimidated by those who appear to have more money or any other advantage over you in life. To the smaller lessons such as: you don't need the fancy brand name spandex tail sock when an old cotton gym sock will do the same job and, guess what, the judges really don't care about all that silver (gasp!).
Riding and showing horses on a tight budget is definitely an adventure. It's frustrating. It's unfair. Some days I feel like not even trying. But on the flip said, when you win, it's doubley rewarding. The sacrifice and the hard work can pay off with the right choices. And to know you got yourself there and no one simply handed it to you can make all the difference in the end.
No comments:
Post a Comment