...of course and depending on where and how you keep your horses, there can be financial costs including livery fees, feed, farriers, vets, equipment, lessons, travel…the list is long. Some setups make life easier, others make it heavier, but wherever your horse lives, there is always an investment involved. And then there’s the time. The early mornings, the late evenings, the muddy boots, the frozen fingers, the broken fence posts and the days when you planned to ride but ended up doing maintenance instead. Showing up even when you’re tired, learning even when it’s uncomfortable, looking honestly at what’s not working and deciding to improve it rather than ignoring it. 👉 But there’s another cost we don’t talk about much and that is that sometimes it’s how people treat you when you decide you actually want to get good. Not just dabble, not just go through the motions, but really learn. The moment you start taking horsemanship seriously, things can change and not always feeling for the better. Some people become supportive and well, others…not so much. You may hear comments. Get unsolicited advice. Be questioned. Be told you’re overthinking things. Or that you’re doing too much, too little etc. Sometimes the people who were comfortable with you before, become uncomfortable when you start to grow. Not because you’re doing something wrong - but because growth can be confronting (for them). For me personally it has been some of the lonelist times of my life. But then I only had to look at them, my beautiful darlings and immediately thought nah, and quite literally have always found the courage thankfully, and carried on. Big thanks to my amazing husband for this. So yes, getting good with horses comes with a cost - financially, energetically and sometimes socially too, but here’s the beautiful part, the return on that investment is incredible. The quiet breakthroughs, the moments when your horse truly understands you, the growing calmness, the trust that starts to show up in their eyes, oh my goodness, it is so worth it.

A really big win today with Celeste. We went for a walk in the woods! We did this already last summer and back then it went well. In October we went for a walk again, the thing that changed? A couple of weeks prior Shetland Pukky passed.... It was to much for Celeste. The first few minutes went well, until she had a complete error and started rearing and bucking. I didnt recognize her at all... So i went back home as fast as i could. I havent been in a walk with her ever since. I did do 2 hacks under the saddle with her which went well (only thing didnt went well was the big open fields, she hated to much space and i think that was a big trigger). Today i did it differently. I did the shortest route to woods to limit the big fields. It paid of. The walk went absolutely amazing. No stress, relaxed, following my rythm and pace. Couldnt be more proud🤎 I dont call it a mistake what i did last year, I call it a learning curve!