"You must in all Airs follow the strength, spirit and disposition of the horse, and do nothing against nature; for art is but to set nature in order, and nothing else." – William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle

Scouted

I took the red mare down to the outdoor. We walked in sync, her long legs taking slightly shorter steps as I took longer steps. It was a beautiful day. The wind was gently blowing, and big…
Ni

I had been steadily going to karate class about six weeks. This night wasn’t much different. One of the sensei took me to a corner of the room and told me to go through my kata. I…
Peppa Learns Leg Yields

Peppa The Horse Pig and I had finally graduated into the indoor arena out of the round pen. She was being good. We went through her gaits around the arena with her little black nose on the…
“The Herd”

ᵗʷ When I was thirteen, I leased a golden horse down the road. He lived eight miles from my family’s house. Often in the summer, I would hop on my bicycle and ride down to the farm.…
Ichi

I needed help with tying my white belt. One of the younger blackbelts, not yet a sensei, sniggered and then offered to help. The first class was rough. I didn’t know what I was doing. I stood…
Running Scared

It was 4:30 in the morning. I put on my sneakers and a pair of leggings with a bright pink zip-up hoodie, it was a little tight on me in all the wrong ways. I checked myself…
The Egret

I was given the opportunity to work a beautiful, red, warmblood mare for a year. I had ridden many horses in my life by that point, but no extravagant movers. I first set about to longeing her…
Peppa The HorsePig

My first horse, a short black mare, and I stood squared off. We were in the round pen. We were both early in our education. She was the first horse I had started under saddle on my…
Fair Weather

I was 17, in Florida for an equine internship. It had been a long day of grooming, mucking and watching other people ride. It wasn’t until the late afternoon that I had time for the horses I…
Feng Shui Horses

When faced with an atmosphere that is poised and strict, it is easy to fall in line, thinking that this must be the way. Such was the case when I first became enchanted with a particular barn.…