Sweet Moments

Winter break is upon me, and I am quickly discovering the one downside of having my horse at school: leaving her to go home for breaks!

So Beauty will get six weeks off as I will be home for Christmas and then studying abroad in Peru for three weeks in January. The barn manager has assured me that Beauty will be in great hands and not to worry, but being the nervous horse owner that I am, I will worry. My friend L will visit Beauty a few times over the break, but it will just to be lunge and groom. 

And of course this means all the progress that we've gotten lately will be put on hold and possibly forgotten... Really hope some of it stays with her because, damn, she's been fabulous lately! 

So I was feeling kind of down when I went out to the barn for the last time on Thursday, with a combination of stress from finals (four finals. Ugh.) and stress of leaving her. But I was immediately cheered up when I got to the barn and saw this cute sight:

"Okay, that's a horse napping, big deal," you say. Well, in my two and a half years of owning my horse, I've seen her lay down once. And that was when she was colicking!

I expected her to jump up when I got close, but she stayed down. Briefly, I wondered if she was feeling alright, but she wasn't sweating and didn't look unhappy, just sleepy. So I crouched down and snuggled my pony. 

New blanket is no longer clean..

And she put her head in my lap and breathed slow, warm, comforting breaths onto me.

And it was one of the sweetest moments I have ever experienced.

'Sleepy horse in lap' selfies are hard, dude.

She laid her head in my lap and fell fast asleep!

Sleeeeepy muddy pony passed out in my lap!

I have never felt so trusted and loved by a horse, and it was just what I needed that day.

And then we went to have an awesome ride! Way to make me not want to leave, Beauty!!!!!