Nature Blog Post 2- Enjoying the Fall Landscape

So, today, September 17th I went to the barn around 1:00 in the afternoon. I did homework in the morning and waited for the weather to heat to a beautiful almost fall day. Angie and I only did a little flat work in the arena before I decided to go on a trail ride. I am letting her have an easy week because we just had a show on Sunday, and she did amazing, so she gets a little vacation.

Angie and I with our second place ribbon for 2'3" Novice Jumpers

Jamie, the 8 year old I give lessons to also won a first (blue) and a third (yellow) for her classes! Plus, I swear my horse poses for pictures- look at that sweet face!

The sun felt warm on my face as we started up the hill and I felt comfortable in my hoodie with the cool air around us. I went in through our usual way, down the road a bit and then up into the woods. I love going this way because I love hearing the sound of Angie's shoes on the concrete. The rhythmic "clip clop" soothes me. Today though, the neighbors were doing some sort of construction and tree trimming, so it made her uneasy. I am not sure exactly what they were doing, but it's a big truck yard thing so every time they dropped something heavy our of one of the dump trucks Angie spooked forward a little bit. She was very tense today.

 I would just like to make a note here and say that my horse is not a trail horse, she is truly a show pony and quite the diva extraordinaire. When she got off the trailer the other day she tried so hard to avoid stepping down into mud that she jumped and landed in an even bigger mud puddle, splashing the whole front of her legs and my good show breeches. *Sigh,* if she had just stepped down we could have avoided all of that. So, you can see, she does not find trail rides as amusing as I do. Sometimes I can get her to relax and others I just have to deal with her fast paced walk and snorts and sudden bursts of trot.

Okay, back to the main topic of the men doing construction or whatever they were working on. I think it is funny that they were trimming trees and altering the landscape around us. It really made me think about how it is such a big deal to be immersed in nature these days and how we as humans value this, but then again we only like it when it is shaped into what we want and almost domesticated. Those trees and bushes on the side of the road were not hurting anybody, and yet, the barn neighbor was out there with his chainsaw looking thing cutting branches down and making a ruckus.

Angie's ears were pricked forward the entire ride today though, which meant she was listening to me, she was just uneasy. Every time I even touched her sides with my legs she tensed and thought there was danger because she would jolt forward. Even though she was not completely relaxed I did let her eat a couple bites of grass so she calmed down enough for me to enjoy our ride. We went up through the woods and the way the sun shone through the trees in little golden slivers was beautiful (of course Angie was having no picture breaks today). The leaves had already started falling to the ground and they crunched under Angie's sure steps. We made it out into the big field and I decided to take her on a path we don't venture our on very often. Mostly because I don't feel that she is relaxed enough to take her out into the wide open spaces of the field. I know she wasn't completely relaxed today, but I wasn't ready to go back to the barn yet and there are only so many trails in the woods.

We started out and rounded the bend, nothing but wide open spaces surrounding us. I could see the dump and hear their usual business of covering up our unwanted thing, but they didn't seem as loud today. We stayed out in the field for about thirty minutes, following the worn in paths. As Angie was in no mood to stand still for a picture, I got off and snapped some of the new landscape. The grass was dry and getting ready to die off for another winter. Angie kept stomping her feet because hundreds of grasshoppers were jumping on our legs and over one another.

Her ears are in the picture because she didn't want me to step away from her, but you can see how the grass is drying into a brown and the surrounding shrubs are starting to yellow for Fall.

The clear blue sky always amazes me, it makes me feel like we are in a different world, almost like coming out of the treeline takes us into our own Narnia.

I jumped back on, which is difficult to do in an English saddle, but I wanted you guys to witness the beauty that I get to see whenever I spend time with my mare. We made our way back down the hill to that barn and I dismounted, sad that our ride was over, but happy that I got to spend time with her. I would stay on her back all day if I could, I don't care if that makes me weird or obsessed or crazy, but we understand each other without having to say a word to one another.

Since it was such a beautiful day out I got to turn her out into one of the fields with her sister and another one of our younger horses. They had a blast running together and bucking and letting out all of their energy.

Angie, her sister Sophia on the right, and Sealia, the black Appendix in the middle.

I wasn't ready to leave just yet because no one else was there and I was enjoying some time to myself, so I swept the aisle and made sure that everyone had enough water. The baby even let me kiss his nose without trying to use me as a teething ring (I'll make sure to get a picture of him for next time). I enjoyed my time at the barn and look forward to going back this weekend.

One more picture before you go, Chancey, one of the barn cats, lazily stretching on a bale of hay.

Nature Blog Post 1- Riding into the End of Summer

I visited my place on Thursday September 5th around one in the afternoon. The sun was shining and a cool breeze blew steadily. I cherished the way that Angie's hooves crunched on the already fallen leaves. Summer was ending and I don't know how many more trail rides we will be allowed to take in such beautiful weather. The leaves that were still thriving surrounded us, the trees covered us on the trail and in the woods, making me feel like we were the only two left on this planet. We were secluded.

Angie's ears were perked and her breath came out in short small puffs. I rode with a loose rein, letting her stretch her neck and take a bite of tall grass or leaves from a bush every once in a while. Squirrels scurried in the underbrush, occasionally running across our path. If I listened closely enough I could hear the purrs that squirrels make when talking to one another. The woods were shady and cool, I was glad I had my sweatshirt on. Angie's soft coat was just drying after our workout before we went into the woods.

My favorite place to be.

She was relaxing now, her neck lowered slightly to the ground. The fluctuating changes in weather was affecting the horses, making them less tired, loosening their muscles. On a day like this that started out cold in the morning, you never knew what personality was going to show. She had been a little bit more wired today, more willing to move forward and faster under my leg. I was glad to be giving her a moment to relax instead of just drilling her over jump courses- our show was only a little over a week away and we had recently been getting conditioned for that.

Sometimes, we need a walk to ourselves, to clear our minds, to be alone. We mostly stayed in the woods, but we did walk out into the big field on the other side of the woods for a brief moment. With the weather change I wasn't comfortable taking her too far out in case she spooked, but when we emerged from the wooded area the sun greeted us with bright warm rays. We walked on a well worn trail, the tall grasses whooshing against our bodies, grabbing at my stirrups. Before long, we entered the woods again to start our path home. The cicadas hummed constantly, keeping us company. I spoke softly to her, gave her pats. She swung her head back and forth, taking in the sights and smells of the woods like I was. Sometimes, I feel like she understands me, that she wants the same things I do. I enjoy spending time alone with her, away from the rest of the world.

Leaves brushed against my helmet as we retreated back through the woods to the barn and I could hear the echoes of the machinery across the valley. My barn is in Imperial, Pennsylvania and our trails lead to the highest places in Allegheny County. Unfortunately, across the valley from our beautiful fields and trails there is a dump. Machinery runs constantly during the week, beeping and crashing, covering and moving other people's garbage. As much as I enjoy the beautiful landscape, looking across the valley always fills me with a heavy sadness, like a weight on my chest. To see how we are destroying and wasting the land makes me wish humans didn't waste so much. Everything comes with a price- to evolve and thrive we destroy the Earth that we live on. I dwell on this for a moment as I listen to the sounds of backhoes rumbling across the ground, but I also hear the thriving sounds of the woods around me. As long as this is the barn's land, it won't be touched. Angie and I make our way back to the barn at a steady pace, her back legs carefully picking out footing as we go down a hill. The way she moves down the hill it reminds me of a woman sashaying her hips and I smile. Back at the barn I give her some pats on her slightly sweaty shoulder before dismounting and kissing her nose. Spending time with her is what I consider being in nature.

Emerging from the woods with the wasteland across the Valley.