Feb 06 2011
It’s All About the Journey
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I didn’t get much sleep last night, but I woke up this morning wanting to ride down into the canyon. I don’t know why… I just wanted to spend time near the river and take some photos. I also just wanted to be with my horses.
I decided to ride Asali and pony Forest. It would be just the three of us and I decided not to have an agenda today. There would be no keeping track of the mileage (although I know it’s 8 miles to the Feather River and 8 back home) or pushing for the faster pace. I decided I wouldn’t rush in getting myself or the horses ready. If we had to ride home in the dark, then we’d ride home in the dark.
I spent a lot of time reflecting on that discouraging ride with Asali that occurred 9 days ago. I really don’t know what went wrong… it could have been a number of things. I am always so caught up in trying to find a reason for everything that I often miss what it was I was supposed to learn. So, I decided Asali is allowed to have off days. I decided I am allowed to have off days.
There are a lot of things I am scared about… I am worried that we will fail and what people will think of that. I am worried that I will miss something my horse is trying to tell me. I am worried I have no business getting into endurance riding. (Do I really know enough about the sport? Do I know enough about horses – about my horse?)
I decided today that this endurance training would not be about the Tevis Cup but about the journey towards the Tevis Cup. Even if we never finish the 100 miles, I believe it’s really about what brought us there.
And so, the journey continues…
There is no failure in the doing. The only failure is failure to try.
Don’t worry about what your friends think. Friends will always think well of you. That is their nature.
d
Thanks, Donna. 🙂
Hey J, listening to you describe your plans for a day with your horses just sounds so peaceful…don’t worry too much about the Tevis cup, just the fact that you’re going to attempt it is amazing! Hope all else is going well!
Thanks for reading my blog, Chris! I hope you are enjoying my posts. When things slow down for both of us, I’ll take you for a ride. 🙂