Learning To Trust

Shorty was standing at the fence waiting for me. As I slipped the halter over his head, he nickered and turned so he could walk alongside me, occasionally ducking his head down to snatch a few morsels of tasty grass along the way. I took the brush out and ran it along his sides, watching the dirt fall off. He stood patiently and while I waited for my friend to return with her horse, I decided to comb his mane out. 

His mane was a bit knotty, after all, rolling in the dirt is one of Shorty's favourite pastimes, especially after I've just groomed him. While I took another handful of mane in my hand, he turned and looked at me. I returned the gaze and stood quietly enjoying the moment. In my imagination, it felt like he was saying that I could trust him and that he would not let me down. I gave him another pat and turned back to combing out his mane.

Shorty, at just over 16 hands high, is not very short at all so when I picked up the bit and bridle, he lowered his head so that I could get it on more easily. I fastened the bridle and checked the girth. Shorty knows to hold his breath so that it feels like it is snug and as my left arm is sore - bursitis, impingement of subsomethingaratha etc, I need to use a girth-eze which makes it a lot easier to do up. Even then, it is only after I have mounted, that Lynne checks it again and moves it up another notch to make it fit properly. He's a smart horse!

I moved Shorty away from the mounting block and we waited for Lynne and Trooper to begin our ride. After a quick prayer for safety and a good ride, we headed down the driveway. Shorty followed and stayed to the centre, which meant my head avoided the branches. Trooper began pacing so Lynne pulled him up a couple of times to remind him to walk and Shorty waited each time. On the road, a P-plater hooned past, his engine roared and Shorty fidgeted. Once the car was out of sight, we crossed the road and headed down into the bush, weaving in and out of trees and scrub. The ground was soft in places as there has been a bit of rain lately and at one stage Trooper stopped. Lynne urged him forward and he stood on a wombat hole so we turned and went another way.

It was a pleasant ride and I realised that not only wasn't I feeling nervous, I was really enjoying myself. It's been about 7 months since I fell off a horse that shied badly and it's been just over 5 months since Shorty entered into my life. I smelled the clean air and breathed in deeply. I watched a bird fly overhead and butterflies flitted about. A couple of weeks ago we had seen a herd of kangaroos but we didn't see any today and we haven't seen the albino wallaby for months. 

We talked while we rode and at a clearing I asked Lynne to take a photo of Shorty and I. Shorty stood still and when Lynne passed my phone back to me, she backed up and faced me so I could take a photo of her and Trooper. We headed back home and the horses maintained their stride. Back in the paddock, I was still sitting on the top of (the world) Shorty, when I heard the buzzing of a botfly!!!

Shorty hates botflies! One time Lynne saw Shorty racing up and down the paddock in a frenzy and he worked up a sweat. She noticed that he was losing weight, connected the dots and realised that the botflies really bothered him. It's been a bad season for botflies so when I told her there was a botfly, she cautioned me to stay on Shorty because if he moved when I was getting off him, that could be a problem. Shorty stood still while Lynne swatted at the botfly and I was so proud of him. I got off safely, took off his saddle, bridle, brushed him down and led him back to the paddocks. 

Today was a successful ride. When we were out riding, I commented to Lynne that I felt relaxed and she said that Shorty and I had learned to trust each other. I reflected on that as I rode. When he had turned to look at me earlier while I brushed him, I felt he was saying I could trust him. 

It's taken time, patience and persistence to get to this point. In 'human relationships' it takes time, patience and persistence to build that trust too. Sometimes there will be soft ground that you find it hard to get up out of, there will be "noises" that distract you and you might come across an unexpected obstacle. As you move forward, breathe in the fresh air, notice the blessings and as you step together along the journey and continue to grow the trust between you both. 

When Will I Be Famous?

 "You're the best!" he said flippantly as he ran out the door, grabbing his lunch and keys and blissfully unaware of the unrest he had caused by his request. She had given in to him yet again but what more could she do, she believed it was for his best. The phone rang and she slowly picked it up, checked the caller ID and put on her fake, smiling tone. "You have won a new car!" begun the cheerful caller who then broke down into laughter and asked if she was having a good day and had she heard from their brother lately. The sisters chatted away, crying, laughing, groaning and sharing about the happenings of their ordinary lives. Suddenly one begged her sister to turn on the TV straight away because an old school friend was on the news. They watched it and at the end, Jilly asked, "Who would have thunk it? Who woulda thought she would go on to be famous?"

Politicians, footballers, athletes, newsreaders, actors and performers grace our TV screens as often as we have them on. The other day I was out walking and wondered, "Were they born to be famous? When they were in school, did their teachers and/or parents know they would be destined to be so important?"

The leaders of countries all over the world are facing 'unprecedented times' of a global pandemic. They are making (and changing) rules and restrictions as the virus takes on other variant forms and explodes in their communities. They are all looking older and perhaps more haggard than what they would have been, had it been a smoother 2 years. Where do they get their advice from? What principles and values do they draw strength and wisdom from in order to make decisions and get through this time. Before they became an important politician leading their country, when they were only 10 years old, what preparation did they receive, to equip them for what was to come?

We've read stories of how many now-famous people were told when they were younger that they would never amount to much, that they weren't that good and that they need to reconsider their choice of career or lifestyle.

As Andy and I walked around the block last night, I asked him about the people we had known who had become famous. What was it about them that landed them on their feet? One colleague/friend he had played sport with, went on to be on an Olympics team and another despite being very competitive and good at sport, had just led an 'ordinary life'. The former colleague/friend, Andy had known to be humble and kind and not pushing people out to be ambitious. He didn't gloat about being the best and he treated others with respect.

I feel like I have always wanted to be good at so many things but have become "Jack of all trades, master of none". I love writing, singing, reading, teaching, swimming, playing squash and netball, riding horses and not in that order. I wish I could do all of those things so much better but I don't have the time, money or the ambition. I have been considered as 'good' at things yet sometimes overlooked for promotions because I didn't push myself forward. I know I could do better than the other person so why didn't I stand up for myself?

The song going through my head is, "When will I, will I be famous?" and the next line is, "I can't answer that". Does everyone strive for excellence? I can't help but wonder about those people who mercilessly push others aside in order to further their ambitions. It hurts those of us who are trodden underneath but they still achieve their moment in fame and fortune. By writing this, I am making myself vulnerable and as I write, I am also trying to remind myself of the greater good. I'm wearing a shirt that says, "Enjoy the little things in life" and I get it but.... 

When all is said and done, the only certainty is we will die. There was a poem that included the lines, "Only one life, 'twill soon be past, only what's done for Christ will last."

My mum passed away when she was only a few years older than what I am now. There is rarely a day that goes by when I don't think of her and I know that she influenced and encouraged many people in her life. It's been more than 20 years  since she passed away and yet, she still has an impact on lives today. She was not famous or rich as the world measures, but she made a difference and made her life count.

I need to be the best me I can be, love the people God has blessed me with - friends and family- and continue to strive for excellence. I need to take on challenges that grow me and remember that "faith, hope and love remain - but the greatest of these is love." Whether I grow up to be famous or not, it's what is really important that counts.

1 Corinthians 13:1-8, 13

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

As Much As It Depends on You

 A couple months ago I had the chance to get another horse called Shorty, who, at 16 hands 1 high, is anything but short! He is a Standardbred gelding, just turned 19 and is proving to be quite a gentleman. I have him agisted at a friend's farm and even she has complimented him on him being so good. When I saddle him up, he lowers his head so that I can put his bridle on and he stands still when I am getting on him. Of course I use a mounting block because I am not 10 years younger and it takes a bit more effort. The first time I rode him out of the farm, we walked across the road and down through the bush. He carefully picked his way over the rocks and dirt, mindful of me riding him and slowed his walk to keep alongside the other horse and its rider.

On the day we picked Shorty up, we drove to the next place to pick up a horse called DJ. We took Shorty off the float and put him in a small yard to wait and in the next yard was Harry. Harry was the dominant horse of the stud so Shorty went over to say hello. He went up close to him and touched noses with him over the fence. In a moment, Harry squealed at him and Shorty walked away back to the furthermost side of his yard, away from Harry. He took a drink from the dish, came over to me and I reassured him and patted him before he walked away.

A second time Shorty approached Harry, nudged noses again and this time Harry not only squealed but he also gave a threatening snort and kick - not to make contact but just to let Shorty know who the boss was. Again, Shorty walked away. After some thinking time, he came over to Harry, nudged noses for the third time, then as Harry went to retort, Shorty moved away, turned his back and gave a little kick out at him. He was letting Harry know that he wasn't going to be threatened by him. 

When we got home, Shorty was put into his own paddock but after some grazing time, he went over to the other horses who had all been watching him, wondering who the new horse was. He went over to each of them and touched noses with them all and then walked away and went back to his grazing while they watched and wondered who he was. 

Move forward a couple months later and he has completely settled in and is looking great! Lynne has put him with the other older horse and the 2 of them can graze as much as they like. The other horses aren't quite as fortunate as they need to keep to a regular diet so they don't get fat. When Sinbad is having his hard feed, Shorty is on his own and he looks longingly over at all the other horses, wishing he could join in.

A couple weeks ago, Lynne picked up a couple of rescue mares who needed fattening up. She kept them in a smaller area while they settled in and then put up another electric fence to give them a bigger space to graze and run in. Their fence line was right next to the paddock Shorty and Sinbad were in and while Sinbad grazed, Shorty went over to greet them both. He nuzzled noses with them and watched them as they went back to their grazing. 

The older mare decided she'd flirt with Shorty and remind him of what he once was before he became a gelding. He responded, bared his teeth and leaned forward. She flicked her head and coquettishly walked away, pretending to ignore him and he was not impressed by her teasing. He went over closer to her and when she moved in, batting her eyelashes and tossing her head, he slightly reared at her, before walking away. He was pretty worked up so we went and rescued him and I walked him around the yard to give him time to cool down, before saddling him up and taking him for a ride. 

By the time we returned from our short ride, he was sweating as it was a hot and humid day. I unsaddled him, and took him to a paddock further away from the old mare. After he had grazed for a moment, he pawed the ground, lowered himself and had a good roll around. The old mare looked over in his direction but he paid her no attention. 

So the lesson learned from Shorty is: Initiate friendship and be kind to strangers. Don't let a person treat you with disrespect and stand up for yourself.

Lesson from the Bible, Romans 12:17, 18 "Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."