Words of Inspiration

Yesterday I showed you a small video clip of our Equestrian Lounge. I ended the post with the idea that there might still be some elements that I wanted to add. There is something that I want to do, but I need some words of inspiration.

I have found 4" galvanized metal letters at a price that seem fairly reasonable. The letters come in a 2-pack for $1.99, so using a letter twice is a bonus. The ranch owner's daughter is the one who suggested the project. She saw the pallet that I have repurposed as a screen to block out some unsightly potted trees. She told me that she had used some pallets as planter boxes and had affixed letters to add some words that she liked - Live, Laugh, Love ... I think. 

You can see the pallet in the yellow circle.

I loved the idea immediately. I have three rows that are tall enough to attach words. The trick is to come up with words that are meaningful. As I sat in front of my online cart, I just couldn't think of what I wanted to say that could be written in just a few words. A dollar a letter sounds great until you realize your sentiment has 50 letters. Suddenly, I didn't feel the need to be so inspired.

I came up with a variety of words and simple sentences. Live, Love, Ride would have been pretty cheap since it has lots of repeated letters, as would Happiness is Horses.  I considered the words Dressage, Harmony, Connection, Balance, Welcome, and Heart. Saddle Up & Ride, Courage, and Ride Humble were other ideas that spoke to me. Two of my favorite quotes are Never ride faster than your guardian angel can follow, and Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway; but they're too long.

Choosing a meaningful message is a lot like getting a tattoo, something I've never done because I can't ever think of anything that I like well enough to have inked onto my body for the rest of my life. And then I reminded myself that it's just a pallet with tin letters tacked on, so pick something already!

In the end, I decided to use the quote attributed to John Wayne, but I modified it to fit my space and stay within my budget. On its way to me now are the letters to form this sentiment: Saddle Up Anyway.

It says who I am. It's hot, It's cold, I had a stressful day ... Saddle Up Anyway. For me, I rarely need to talk myself into riding because I know that when I Saddle Up Anyway, I am going to be so glad I did.