My Pony is Awesome

I don't have anything new to report on really.  I went out and rode on Thursday and Tessa was a star.  She still would rather go slow than fast and loves to be behind the leg, but when I corrected her she didn't bother arguing.  For my part, I worked on using what I learned in my jumping lesson to help with my dressage problems.

So we just went around while I worked on putting weight on my pinky toe, keeping my shoulders back and most of all, holding still.  No fussing with her head.  No tension in my shoulders.  No cranking her around.  So though 90% of our ride was not pretty, it was all true.  Every single step.  That means that the 10% that was on the bit was light and forward and through her back and didn't involve me trying to push her with my body into a frame.

After our great ride, I was short on time but it wasn't raining so I wanted to stick with my commitment to riding outside.  I hopped on and was pleased to note that I wasn't afraid.  We walked and trotted a few times across the grass lawn and called it good.  Not a speck of fear.

This last month my pony and I have turned the corner.  It's like I'm finally falling in love with her.  I love her funny habits, like when you go get her in the pasture she will come to you but when you put the halter on she puts her ears back.  Not flat back in a nasty way, but more like she's preparing her ears for the halter to get on.  I used to think she was being crabby and it would intimidate me.  I'm seeing things differently now.

I hope the love affair with Tessa continues and that we continue to find out way into a solid relationship comprised of mutual respect and lightness and fairness on both of our parts.  I'm excited for our future together and all the things we'll get to do.  Thanks to my fellow bloggers for seeing us through this.  I can hardly believe how far we've come in just one year.  If you're new to this blog, I highly suggest going back and reading some of my early posts to see the difference.  Especially if you're struggling with your own horse.  It is possible to come through the other side and my pony and I are proof of that.  Now I just need to learn how to take better pony pictures.  Ha!