It is often difficult to find peace when you live at a boarding, riding, training and trail riding facility where people are surrounding you constantly. It has been said that HORSE people are not usually “PEOPLE” people. I have found that to be very true. Living here, though, it’s a constant lesson of immersing ourselves with horses (which is so easy) AND getting used to all these people (which isn’t always so easy). We have the “early bird” boarders that tend to be retirees that want to show up first thing in the morning to clean their horses stalls themselves. We have the working crew who show up after 5 pm and rush (or buzz as my little girl says) around like bees before it gets dark. We have the ladies that like to sit and drink coffee all day. We have the early morning riding lessons and horse training sessions. We have the 3 pm after-school rush of riding lessons. We have the homeschooling families that spend their days here. We have the lazy Saturday crowd that plays poker at the picnic table right outside of our front door. The farriers who come for coffee every morning. The casual Sunday boarders who come by after church. Oh, I could go on. Then we have the late Sunday night or early Monday morning delivery of hay of course. It is always (why, I don’t know) a  5 AM forklift fight. Stalling, re-starting, revving engine, stalling, REPEAT. I am awake now and it is Monday morning all over again.

It is times like today where I have to look deep within to find strength. And peace. Even the simple peace of a walk around the property with a flashlight at 11 PM because (usually) there will be quiet and stillness. Finding peace in a 2 AM colicing horse check. Finding peace in the early morning fall chill feedings that keep this place quiet just a little later. Finding peace in the little overgrown niche back behind the round pen where no one really ever ventures. Finding peace in hanging a little swing there for my daughter to escape to. Finding peace in this early morning sunrise scene that I captured before the busy-ness began. Thank you for these oh-so-rare (and oh-so-worth-it) moments of peace.