Photos below are of a few of our friends – what a great group of people to spend five days with – all supportive of each other, even when competing in the same event – a welcome camaraderie we all need to see more often everywhere in life.
It’s looks all glittery in these photos but the truth is those jackets are worn for about 15 minutes – the rest of these people’s time is spent cleaning stalls, filling water buckets, sweeping isles, cleaning tack, feeding horses, exercising them, brushing them, practice practice practice and some sitting around waiting for classes too. By the end of each day, it feels as if we’re wearing as much dirt as we are clothing.
It’s all worth it, though – every penny and every bead of sweat equity. The lesson in showing is it takes hard work and dedication. It takes caring for another living thing who depends on you to do so, it means disappointment as well as triumph, building relationships, elbow grease, determination. It means learning the art of losing gracefully as well as celebrating the win. The friendships along the way are the icing on the cake – an important icing.
At the end of the show we were so ready to get home – we missed the dogs, we missed our people. The gorgeous sunset behind us and rising moon ahead were the perfect cap on a successful week.