Chasing that feeling...

Remembering Duke. Highlights from a Memorial Day weekend parade; the Locust Blossom Festival Parade in Kendrick, Idaho. A first for both Duke and I, as neither of us had ever been in a parade, until that day. This journal entry was originally posted as a note to my Facebook page on June 5, 2015. It popped up in my Memories today. I knew I had to share it here, as well.

For years I have chased a feeling--an elusive feeling--of being one with my horse. Four feet, two hearts, one mind. Buck Brannaman talks about chasing that and reminds us it may take a very long time before we find it, but it's a good thing to chase. Pat Parelli reminds his students, "There's nothing you can't do, when the horse becomes a part of you." 

On Saturday, May 30, 2015, on a street lined with hundreds of people--some friends, most strangers--I understood the feeling the words of these two horsemen. 

We met at 8:00 am on the west side of Kendrick in the Primeland grain silo parking lot. Duke came out of the trailer with that "Where are we?" look, high headed and a wee excited. Rather than tying him next to the tack room, I tied him to the other side so he could see all the other team horses. The horses were all calm and quiet as the team members set about their tasks to get ready. Mounted and ready to roll by 9:00. Parade started at 10:00 on the east side of town, so we rode through town in the alley. This was our chance to practice and Charlene, our coach and team captain, wanted us to maintain one horse length spacing at all times. We had two walkers with us to assist if someone's horse got troubled, and Charlene reminded everyone if we had to correct our horse, to turn the horse inside toward the other horses and away from the crowd. Charlene paired Duke and I with a young rider named Nella and her, paint gelding Tonto, the only boys in the group of eight that day. Duke and Tonto got along very well. 

Duke tacked up pre-parade.

Duke remained calm, but occasionally pressed forward to close the spacing. Rather than pulling on his mouth the whole time, I used half-halts (thank you Jodi Simpson) to encourage him to slow down. Only had one tense moment behind Phil's Family Foods when Duke heard the sound--make that the roar--of the refrigerator unit fan. It was pretty loud, and he danced and jigged a bit but settled down straight away.  

And then there were the bagpipes! :) LOL. They must have been with the Kendrick Fire Company because I never saw the pipers, but the second Duke heard them playing, his head shot up, his ears pricked forward, and he looked in the direction the sound came from. What is that?!?! I had to laugh out loud and told him those are bagpipes and I'm part Scottish, so bagpipes are a good thing! He got over them immediately, and it was refreshing to hear the pipers playing the song over and over. 

While we waited for the parade to start, we practiced some maneuvers, and Charlene went over the different whistle cues to signal each maneuver. Our number in the parade was 73, and there were 74 entries, so we were at the very end. Oh, and our horse group won 2nd place!! We received the ribbon before the parade began. :) About 10:20 we started moving toward the parade route. Duke was mouthing the bit quite rapidly. As we neared the starting point, I closed my eyes, said a quick prayer and surrounded Duke and myself with white light. Over and over, I told myself to relax and sit deep in the saddle and keep my knees out of his side. Duke is a reliable horse, but he's a horse, and I truly had no idea how he would react. I've seen enough to know anything can happen. He's got shoes on now, and metal shoes can be slippery on asphalt. I'd never ridden him on the streets, or around large crowds of people. One of the walkers advised the riders the horses might spook when we passed the announcer's booth because of the sound, but Duke's had exposure to that from our team penning nights. And there's the cheering and clapping, something I've not exposed him to. Bubbles and plastic bags and hoola hoops and streamers and music and pop-up canopies...yes, got all that covered. But not clapping and cheering.  

Turns out, I needn't worry. 

Minutes before we turned on to Main Street, I took the reins up just enough to 'feel' him...make light contact with his mouth. And there I held the reins. 

Moments later, we became one. 

Duke and Tonto at the beginning of the parade route.

I always wondered what it would feel like when I crossed that bridge and felt that harmony. Walking down that parade route, I lived it. The crowd was sparse at the beginning but as we made our way closer and closer to the park the crowd grew larger and larger. Duke took it all in stride, like a seasoned pro. I was so relaxed I found myself waving and smiling at people, whether I knew them or not! And Duke was drinking it all in. He loved it!!!  

One of our maneuvers called The Tractor.

Along the route we performed several maneuvers, and everything just flowed flawlessly along. Duke maintained the spacing and didn't rush. We approached the announcer's booth without a hitch, but at the park someone either had a bubble machine or was blowing a lot of bubbles and the group got a little out of order for a second or two but quickly recovered. I had previously exposed Duke to bubbles plenty of times so we rode through the cloud of the bubbles without breaking stride. 

And it was over before I knew it. It went by so quickly! Funny thing, the only time Duke acted up was at the end, as if he was disappointed it was already over!!! LOL! What a character that boy of mine is!!! 

I really need to give him more credit.  

Photo op time, Duke and I are third from the left.

Back at the trailers it was time for more pictures and Duke copped an attitude about one of the mares and was giving her the stinky eye...to the point that she didn't want to stand next to him. But Mitzi got her to come alongside him; not sure what that was all about but the photos were taken, and we arrived back at the trailers to find ourselves pretty much blocked in by cars. Apparently, people don't realize that parking next to a horse trailer isn't a great idea. I had cars on both sides of my trailer and a very anxious horse who, for some reason, didn't want to stand still now. At first, I considered tying Duke next to the tack room so I could get everything off in a hurry, but as soon as I tied him up, Duke wedged himself between the trailer and the black pick up next to it. Got him out of there before a stirrup got hung up in a side mirror and took him back over to the other side. If he pooped on the white car, well, maybe that would be a lesson for them. 

Getting blocked in by vehicles.

Duke watching all the happenings.

Duke was more excited and "on his toes" after the parade than before. He didn't want to load up (he gets that way sometimes at the end of an event...trail ride, show, team penning, whatever...it's as if he's afraid he's going to get left behind). Interesting... Got him in the trailer and we headed home. I was so very proud of my boy, and yes, I cried on the drive home. I couldn't have asked for a more rewarding, enjoyable and validating first parade experience! Duke carried me proudly, true to his Morgan bloodlines. Brave, courageous, yet calm and levelheaded. 

We did several other parades after that: Culdesac Shebang Days, Lewiston Round Up three times, and Veteran’s Day. He always took good care of me, and never gave me cause to worry. He truly was my heart horse--my once in a lifetime horse. I feel his absence every day. Life just isn’t the same without him.  

Losing Duke reminded me even more than before, to savor every moment we live with someone. And to treasure those moments, hold them close and take time to journal about them because someday when the moment becomes a distant memory, you may want to look back and relive the feeling.

 

Monday Morning Motivation 3/20/2023

 

Hello Spring!

Saying goodbye may be

Painful. But just like the sun

Rises and lights pour

Into your window, all

Nights must end for a

Greater day to start.

Ahhhh, finally spring has arrived

What a week this has been! Mostly good, packed with duties and desires, and lots of out of the ordinary activities.

But first, in one of my previous entries I think I may have given the impression that Duke is traveling to Reno with me, but he is not. When I asked should we, I was contemplating a purchase option between regular tickets priced under $100 a piece, or Gold Savvy Club tickets loaded with lots of benefits but priced at $350 a piece; after thinking it over for several weeks, I decided on Gold. :) Why not?

Last Saturday I had 3 ton of hay delivered after finding a local farmer selling his hay at a very competive price, $150 a ton, delivered from his farm 70 miles away. I've been buying hay from a local feed store at $9 a bale...thats $297 a ton!!! The average weight of a bale of grass hay is 55 pounds, Duke eats about 18 pounds a day so one bale lasts about 3 days. I can get a half a ton of hay in Duke's tack room, but lacking a place to store a ton or more limited my feed options to the local supplier. When I learned the owners of the boarding facility allow us to use unoccupied box stalls in one of the arenas for hay storage, at no extra cost, I jumped on it!! Then I found the farmers ad, gave him a call and after a few weather delays (snow...in April...whaaaa?) finally got Duke's hay delivered. Now instead of paying $9 a bale, I paid $3.94 a bale. And this supply should last about 10 months.

Not having to haul hay for almost a year is a huge bonus for Sam, as he has hay fever...or maybe that should be suffers from hay fever. Bad...real bad. Love knows no boundaries like that of a man who willingly hauls and stacks hay for his woman, hay fever and all; he steps up every time, without hesitation. No complaints, barring the sound of sneezing and nose blowing.

Duke and I have finally started cantering, or should I say I finally found the bravery to canter Duke. Fear has kept us at a walk and trot up to now. The third time I rode Duke last year I was nervous and kept him on a very tight rein, which he responded to by breaking gait into a trot, especially when pointed toward the gate of the outdoor arena. I kept pulling on his mouth and doing everything wrong, until finally he decided he had enough and he bolted into a gallop. I kept my seat (somehow!) and stopped him with a gentle one rein stop. Right then I decided I wasn't getting off just yet, I needed to stay with him and work on the relationship. After that ride, he didn't bolt again, but the question of would he do it often entered my mind. That's when I realized it was time to sharpen not only my riding skills, but my equine psychology skills as well. That decision proved to further enhance my relationship with Duke as I learn to better understand the nature of his complicated mind.


At times I can't believe I used to canter and gallop horses all the time as a teen, back then I only knew two gaits, walk and canter. I rarely trotted a horse (too jarring!). In late March, Duke and I took the plunge and cantered (aka loped) a short but controlled circle for the first time. We've done it several times since and each time we improve our balance a bit; he getting used to cantering with my weight and the tack, and me getting my mind and body in sync with his. I never realized how much is going on during a canter, as a kid I just did it. I have since learned better!

Duke play races with a young colt in an adjacent pasture. Notice how they mirror each other?

When we canter, my favorite part is the rocking horse feel of Duke beneath me. Then there's that split second moment when I first ask him to go into the canter; when I feel him making that first stride I also feel my heart stop momentarily as he shifts his weight in order to lift his front legs and then reach under his belly with his hind legs. It is such a thrill! But we only canter after we properly warm up, spending the first 15 minutes of our ride at a walk reviewing cues and aides, then on to a nice soft jog (trot) for a few minutes. Then, if we are in tune with one another, and Duke is listening to my leg cues and responding to my hands, we will go into a short canter for about a minute. We're taking baby steps here, working to build up Duke's body condition and my riding skills. Slowly we are working toward the goal of total collection (mental as well as physical). He's such a patient and forgiving teacher.

On Sunday, Duke and I embarked on our first riding adventure of the year outside the confines of the arenas. We participated in the annual Sheriff's Mounted Posse Poker Run at Hell's Gate State Park on the Snake River. I've been wanting to get Duke on a trail ride since I brought him home, but again the fear kept me back. Riding him at the cabin last Labor Day was a huge step for us, and that went so well, I was never scared or fearful that he would spook or bolt on me.

Our trail partners Sunday, Ember with Leigh Ann up, Martina with Cary up (hidden) and Elvira with Barb up. I need to remember to hand my camera to other people so I get in a few photos when I'm on Duke.

200 riders turned out with their horses and trailers for the ride. There's a lot of money tied up down there.

On our trail ride Sunday at Hell's Gate Duke took very good care of me. He was in his element and loved the trails! He steps right out and sets a nice easy pace; the only trouble I had with him is he wants to be the leader and out in front, at all times. I few times I put him behind the other three horses we were with, and he wanted to pass them every time; at one time he saw some horses ahead of us and for a moment I thought perhaps he'd try to get a head of them. Fortunately he didn't, because the three in our group were having a time keeping up with him. We had to stop, circle back, slow down (ha!) many times to allow them to catch up. Duke didn't like waiting for the other horses, until we hit a very steep, deep sand hill and he had to stop halfway up to momentarily 'blow' (catch his breath). All in all we had a great ride and a wonderful day, and I can't wait for our next trek to Hell's Gate SP. The only bad thing that happened is I lost my watch; we back tracked most of the way we came, but never saw it. Oh well, I had been thinking about getting a new one anyway.

Untacking Duke after the ride. The weather was perfect, an exceptional day! Like my new Aussie hat? It's an early birthday present from Sam, that I found at a recent Back Country Horse event.

Riders returning from a day on the trails.

I'm a huge fan of George Strait and I have most of his CD's from 1989 on. I love his new song 'Troubadour.' Click this link to watch the video. ->http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aca3s7l_Db0