All I Want For Christmas Is ...

12/23/2016

I know it's a little late, and all the Black Friday sales are over, but this is something that I really need. There's still time for an "e" gift certificate!

I want Izzy to be just like Speedy: patient himself, honest, a go with the flow fellow, but then I remember I've had Speedy nine years (December was his Gotcha month). It took us NINE YEARS to get here. Speedy is now 12. Izzy is only 8.

I keep asking my close friends just how long this is going to take. My friend, Jen, who, with the help of our trainer, Chemaine Hurtado, brought her home-bred Hanoverian to the International levels of dressage where they now compete successfully. It wasn't easy. She said it took her boy until he was 10 before he started acting like a real horse, and she's had him since the beginning. That's patience.

I know Izzy is making progress. When I doubt it, I read my Facebook reminder posts. While those are usually encouraging, sometimes I read a post that I could have written again today because we're stuck on the same issue.

For Christmas, I am asking for patience, and equally valuable, the positive attitude that I will need to embrace the wait, the suck, and those days that don't go as well as I want.

I am not sure that Santa has a lot of extra patience laying around that he's willing to part with, so I turned to yet another friend who is kind of an expert in these kinds of things. She gave me some things to read this Christmas weekend. Taking the time to do that is my Christmas gift to myself.

All I want for Christmas ...

Ian Holland

12/23/2016 07:11:12 am

And I want it RIGHT NOW!

Bakersfield Dressage link

12/23/2016 07:12:39 am

EXACTLY! HAHAHAHA :0)

Elinor Yee link

12/23/2016 02:14:39 pm

THIS, is what I needed to read today!

Thank you.

I didn't even ride today. Lunged. Moped a little beforehand. Getting over it now... Hugs!

12/27/2016 06:07:43 am

Believe me, most days are filled with worry: what am I doing wrong? What's wrong with HIM? How did I screw up today? Why can't he get it? It's demoralizing.

Speedy reminds me all the time that he was terrible to ride for years. I would get so frustrated with him. His resistance wasn't as amplified as is Izzy's but it was all there.

I am really trying hard to just go at Izzy's pace as well as trying to see it from a young horse's perspective. Just yesterday I caught a look of pure baby on Izzy's face. While he might look all grown up, he's still clearly just a kid.

It's easier to read someone else's struggle and see the progress that they're making. Right now, I feel like we're slowly sinking to the bottom even though I know it's not true. :0)

Teresa link

12/24/2016 11:37:59 am

Ha! You can have some patience because I need some too! :)

12/27/2016 06:08:58 am

Izzy had a bridling melt down yesterday, and after losing my temper briefly, I sucked it up and tole myself to keep it together. Once I acknowledged that I would have to be patient to get what I wanted, it was pretty easy to do. :0)

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Not-So-Speedy Dressage