The first life lesson that I learned from a horse, that I want to talk about, is the most important in my opinion. This lesson is bittersweet. It came with many tears and heart break but also appreciation and gratitude. With that being said let me tell you a story. It is 16 years worth of story but I will do my best to condense. Over 20 years ago now a friend of mine got a horse in to train. This horse was a yearling bay mare who was sent to be halter broke and taught to lead. When she arrived she was underweight but my friend fed her up, did the training, and sent her back. A little over a year later she was sent back to be broke out. At this point she had deteriorated tremendously. This 2 1/2 almost 3 year old innocent bay filly had poor feet, was malnourished, riddled with worms, had horrible rain rot, and was on the brink of death. Everyone that saw this little mare said to put her down, she was not going to survive. My friend saw the fight in her and chose to save her instead. She took her over and got her back to health. She then spent a few months in the pasture, part of a herd, being a horse. 🌹 Here’s where the journey began. 🌹 Along came me, a young very novice/beginner rider. I had only been on dead broke horses at this point but needed a step up. Well…my friend got a crazy idea and decided that I was to ride that little mare. Did I mention she wasn’t broke to ride yet? What about the fact I was only allowed to ride English at this time to build my seat? We all know green + green = purple is the general rule of thumb for horses right? You can imagine then how this went…I flew through the air. In the first year of riding her I flew through the air so much that my father’s new phrase became “if I had known you would spend so much time in the air I would have sent you to pilot school.” 🙄 it became the bane of my existence. I couldn’t stand her but yet I was forced to push through and ride her anyway. Eventually, it clicked and we started to become a team. Over time we went from teammates to partners and then best friends. We spent 16 years together. She won 7 state titles (1st place at the state level), multiple high point awards, a year end trophy for 14 of those years, multiple all around awards, multiple belt buckles, a custom trophy saddle, reserve hi-point horse two years in a row, and many more. She became very well known and carried the titles of hi-point saddle type horse, hi-point English horse, and hi-point running horse. She was incredibly competitive in HUS, Equitation, showmanship, horsemanship, western pleasure, reining, and speed events even becoming successful in NBHA. A true example of the rare all around horse.

There’s something special about horses… they have a way of teaching us things we didn’t even know we needed to learn. Patience. Trust. Boundaries. Resilience. Presence. Communication. Anything you learned! This page is a space to share those moments—the ones that stuck with you long after you left the barn. ✨ What has a horse taught you? ✨ Was it a hard lesson or one that changed your perspective? ✨ Did it come from success… or from a struggle? We’d love for you to: • Share the lesson you learned • Tell the story or experience behind it • Post a picture if you have one 📸 Whether it was one horse or many, one moment or years of growth—your story matters, and someone else might need to hear it. Let’s learn from each other, just like we’ve learned from them. 💛