December

December

What a month December was!  We had beautiful, sunny days.  We had days with light rain, with extreme cold, with frozen ground, with high rivers and high winds.  Ellen rode in all of them!  She hasn't ridden in snow, yet.  Oddly for northeast Ohio, we didn't have any measurable snow in December this year.

Ellen had her best year for trail riding in many years.  She even had her first ride of 2022 on New Year's Day.

She has really learned how to manage her anxieties.  The year 2021 was a tough year for many reasons, but it was a great year for trail riding.

We think that moving to a new stable helped a lot.  It gave her a chance to start new habits.

So much about riding is forming good habits--and breaking the bad ones, too!  Some habits are things that we actively do; like checking the girth before mounting, but other habits are in our head.  For example, Ellen was in the habit of becoming anxious whenever Dante lifted his head high.  It is a good habit to take notice when your horse does this.  Something may have gotten his attention that can cause him to spook, but it isn't a good reason to become anxious.  Most of the time, it is nothing at all.

Ellen has become aware of her bad habit and is working to replace it with a less anxious response.  As with all habits, they are hard to change--but not impossible.  

These are the kind of things she has been working on.

Hopefully, 2022 will be one where Ellen continues to grow and excel.  She is a fine rider and has a wonderful horse.  The journey will continue...