Pivoting

I've been listening to a lot of podcasts and it struck me recently that twice in one week, on two different podcasts, I heard the word "pivot" used to describe the sidestep or adjustment that can be made when coming up against an obstacle or a challenge. It resonated with me because I feel like that's what I've been doing a lot with Bestie in recent weeks. 

I don't know if it's spring fever or what, but we seem to have regressed to the "oh hey, I'm done" stage at about the 25-minute mark while riding. That, and she has been finding odd (to me, anyway) things to get fired up about. For instance, on Sunday we were having a pleasant ride until someone pulled open the lower door to the other arena without shouting "door" (which is protocol), and Bestie shied away from the aisle and threw a couple low grade bucks for good measure. Then, last night we were going along well until another rider passed us and Bestie decided it was a race. People pass us all the time - that's just what happens when you're about the only Western rider in the barn, and usually she doesn't care. After that, she remained kind of "up" for the duration of the ride. Not misbehaving, but I felt like she was on alert for some other situation to react to.

In both situations, we pivoted. Rather than continue with what we were doing, I chose to scale it down to a walk, yet still keep at it for the full period of time I had allotted for the ride. I asked her to focus and listen, and she did, and I felt more confident at the walk that she wasn't going to pull any tricks. 

Today we pivoted outside. :) 

Rather than ride again, I decided we needed a little down time. The horses haven't been going out because the fields are pretty soupy, and lack of turnout definitely could be contributing to her issues. So we headed out to hand graze. Of course, in Vermont in March you have to look pretty hard for any grass. But up on the hill above the barn is our secret patch where no one ever grazes. There was enough there to keep her busy, and hopefully the relaxed time outside will let us get a fresh start together tomorrow night.

She was pretty tenacious - lots of leaves got pushed aside to find the grass underneath.

One pause to check out the sound of people in the yard next to the barn property. Then, back to eating.