I Cheated On My Horse Today...

Pictured above is the Berry Queen's horse, Pilgrim. Pilgrim and I have had a love/hate relationship since I arrived here in BerryLand, one that consists of her loving to hate me. I have just been trying to have her not eat my head for breakfast every day.

Now, Joomy thinks that I sometimes exaggerate, but I have to tell the story here and know that I am NOT EXAGGERATING. I was standing by Pilgrim's stall, waiting patiently for her to finish her grain. I suppose that she decided that an audience was not needed for the finishing of the grain, and this is when all hell broke lose. The horse actually snorted at me, pinned her ears, and snapped out with her teeth mere inches away from my head. I don't know how much experience my readers here have with horses, but when a horse's wide open and angry mouth snaps inches from YOUR HEAD, you get a little bit scared.

I have to say that I've never had that experience before and I did take the time to note that MY ENTIRE HEAD WOULD HAVE FIT NICELY BETWEEN HER GIGANTIC JAWS.

I rode Pilgrim today with Berry Baby the First on her horse, Amy. SuperNan gave us a lesson and Berry Baby did wonderfully. Pilgrim would have none of my methods, however, and every chance she got, she trotted over to where the Berry Queen was looking on and gazed longingly at the person she actually loves.

Riding Pilgrim was a feat for me, however, simply because I am scared of horses. I know it seems ridiculous for a person scared of horses to want to ride horses, and that is something I have been working on of late. I am trying my damndest to get over my fear of horses, to be a ballsy rider who looks insanity in the eye and then hops on for a ride.

Pilgrim was neither insane nor too ballsy, although she did try to foist me from her back by ramming me into the fence a few times. I even have the welt and bruises to show for it. I had about three minutes of perfection with her, during which I felt the wonder and power that comes with working a horse and managing to do something right.

That feeling of awe and knowing that my movements can control something that could easily toss me to Kingdom Come is the reason I look insanity in the eye and then hop on for the ride.