Hows that lyric end? for nothin’ left to lose. Today I set out for freedom.

You see, my horse. The one I’ve blogged about before. He has been a challenge. A wonderful challenge. We have gone from a bucking maniac to a horse that trail rides, arena works, JUMPS, took second all around in five classes in an English show with one of my students on him. Really, one and a half years of work with this guy and he’s become a wonderful horse. Our last hurdle (I hope anyways) has been venturing out on trails ALONE. A touch of the back story…when I got him I wanted an easy trail horse that I could go out alone on trail rides with. Well, my guy of course took that opportunity to show me the mirror. Show me what I needed to learn myself. I thought about giving up and just getting “an old quarter horse”. Nothing against Quarter horses of course. I love them. But I had to go for something different. That could be a whole different post topic with a psychological twist, but ….anyways. We came through so much. I have been working with him on going out on the trails, the mountain and the ranch land alone. He gets nervous and jumpy. Then, I get nervous and jumpy. We take a little bit at a time and then turn back so we can end on a sucessfull (and, you know, still alive) note. Well, well. I wanted to head out on our own last Sunday. The stable was overwhelming. Everytime I walked out my front door there was someone needing something. Heck, I had three knocks on my door and another person outside yelling “Hellooo?” before 10 AM. I saddled up for my ride and, I kid you not, as I’m mounting a car pulls in full of teenaged girls wanting to see the “rescue horses”. I can’t believe this. I need a break. Please. Peace. Please. I smile and direct them to where the “rescues” are so they can look at them. I let them know they can come back tomorrow (Monday) if they are interested and want further information. Bless them for their interest and hearts for the rescues, though. Really. Then I hit the road, to the trail, to the ranch that is wide open land for riding as far as you could ever want to go. And, today, it was different. I just so deeply felt the need for solitude. For quiet. For peace. Did I already say please? My nervousness took second place to this need. My horse felt it too. He must have. Because he stayed calm and cool the whole way. We went all the way out…through the ranch gate, through the ranch land, we ran. Oh did we run. Full circle back to my title here. “Freedom’s just another word for nothin’ left to lose”. I needed so deeply that FREEDOM, that solitude and that quiet that my fear and nerves subconsciously stepped back and let me have what I needed. That is a rare thing but when your need “rears it’s head”, remember there is no stopping you.