The Horses Of My Life Part 3

He wasn't hard to catch. My mom walked over to the small white pony and put the halter on. he came with us willingly as we made our way back to the cabin.

Standing at roughly 12hh he was the perfect size for an 8-year-old girl.
Before putting the child-sized western saddle on his back we gave him a good brushing. He didn't fuss. He stood still like a good boy. He seemed to enjoy the attention.

When his coat was clean, and hooves picked we donned the saddle and then bridle. Things were going beautifully. It was looking like the beginning of a great week of riding.

Being the oldest of my siblings I got to go first.

Excitement bubbled up inside me. Back in those days, we weren't thinking much about the effects on the horse's back of a rider mounting from the ground. Mounting from the ground on my own for the first time was nothing short of thrilling.

My cowboy boot slid into the stirrup of the child-sized western saddle.

I was instructed to hold the horn, and given a reminder that it was okay to use it for mounting but it was by no means a handle for riding.
Stepping deep into my left leg I pulled myself from the ground and awkwardly tossed my right leg over the back of the white pony. There were some instructions from my mother, including a reminder that I had to bring the pony back soon so my brother could have a short ride.

Then I was off.

My head, still swollen with the pride of just having mounted a horse on my own for the first time, I felt like could do anything.

We started walking down the pasture through un-grazed field. I noticed the beauty in the maturing grasses. All kinds of fading shades of greens and golds. The odd wildflower offered a hint of purple, adding to the beautiful display of colour and texture.

It was nothing like the sterilized lawns of the city. The texture of colors and lengths of the wild meadow were stunning. Surrounded in beauty and on the back of a pony. Life couldn't get any better.

Everything was perfect. I was riding alone and the world was all mine to enjoy.

Then it happened.

At first, he sped up. I wasn't opposed to the idea but I had been taught that I should be the one to decide when we go faster.
In the early years of my equestrian life, I was taught to pull back on both reins to slow down and stop. So that's what I did.

With a rein each hand clenched in a death grip I pulled. The pony didn't slow, instead, he trotted harder and faster. My eight-year-old body viciously bounced around on his back. He darted into the field, quickening the pace of the already choppy trot.

I could feel myself losing what little control I thought I had over the pony. Staying on suddenly became my main focus as he continued to grow faster. The beautiful grass I had been admiring a few seconds before now streaked together in a blur of color.

He finally broke the trot, but he did so by dropping his head between his legs and hurling his back into the air.

Suddenly the bouncy trot didn't look so bad.

The pony spun mid-air, then landed on his front feet. Performing a very athletic equine handstand.

I hadn't had a chance to recover my senses from the sudden upheaval when I found myself looking towards the ground.

He's bucking. I remember thinking.

There I sat in shock as the white pony, who was good with kids spun me around like a rodeo cowboy. I had always wanted to ride a bronc in the rodeo but I wasn't prepared to do it today.

His back arched and came up in an arc from underneath, then more quick turns as his aerial acrobatics turned into more handstands.

Those minutes felt like they lasted an eternity. An eternity in slow motion, world-spinning upheaval.

To this day I'm still surprised I managed to stay on. How I stayed on was a mystery to me.

Eventually, the pony stopped and I found myself with my mother.

"I can't believe you didn't grab the horn," she said surprised, then insisted I ride the pony just one more time.

I had to get back on the horse. Because if I didn't get back on the horse then this incident might ruin horses for me forever and we couldn't have that.