Horses have a special stress-relieving power.

Me and "Junior" riding last summer with Whistler the faithful Weimaraner.

A quick update: For the last two weeks, my family and I have been camping at the hospital, watching over a family member who suffered a massive heart attack. The good news is, he is now out of the woods. He is going to survive, although there’s still a long road to recovery. And with that development, our vigils will become somewhat less round-the-clock. Life for us will regain some semblance of normalcy, although of course there will still be frequent hospital visits.

And for me, normalcy means I get to spend time with the ponies again. A dear friend and other family members had pitched in to feed in my absence, and I have now reclaimed that job. (I hate to call it a “chore,” since that implies that it’s something I don’t like to do. I enjoy feeding the ponies, as well as cleaning their stalls, and it’s a routine I had really missed.)

On Sunday, I got to ride Junior, for the first time in a long time. We didn’t tackle any big riding projects, and we didn’t ride very long, but wow – it’s impossible to describe how restorative that was.

You all have heard the quote about how the outside of a horse is good for the inside of a man (or woman!). And I’m betting you have your own experiences – when knots of stress began dissolving the moment you swung up into the saddle.

Junior’s a pretty darned good psychotherapist, and he doesn’t have to say a word.

Happy riding!
Holly Clanahan
Editor, America’s Horse magazine

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