Reflecting

Several years ago, I made a drawing of a close up of a horses eye with a human shape reflected in it. It was always meant to go to a fellow dressage trainer but unfortunately, I haven’t been able to catch up with him to pass it along. It did seem to speak to a lot of people and the idea has been percolating in my mind.

As anyone who has been following me on social media knows, our dear lesson horse, Tommie, was diagnosed with a carcinoma by his eye. This brought that original drawing to mind and I decided to offer more to help cover the cost of his care. That ended up being quite a project with over 20 requested!

To keep the idea fresh in my mind, I have been thinking a lot about how our animals reflect ourselves. They can reveal weaknesses and strengths. They always give us a chance to grow, when we chose to see it. Horses, in particular, with the unique relationship we develop when we climb up on them, can show us a lot of ourselves. I have been blessed by many that have influenced me in my life and I hope the patience and kindness I strive to maintain can be traced back to those creatures and the wonderful parents that raised me.

I also have to reflect back on the last year and a half, where I had many changes in my life, from my 1st hospital stay, Ed retiring, building this art business and restructuring my equestrian career. The horse business has thrown a lot of changes at me over the decades, often times making me feel like I have to live in “survival mode”. Finding my true love and best friend in Ed has enabled me to take the opportunity to look around at things with a feeling of being supported. I found I was curious about how I deal with changes such as these and also how people react to me and my actions. I hope that what I have learned helps me continue to grow as a person. One thing I have learned, what you put out gets reflected back to you! Send chaos and that is what you will find but send love and receive love. As an artist, I hope to create beauty and let it surround us!