Last Minute Lesson

What is going on? If Ransom could speak, I knew that’s what he would have asked as I tied him to the hitching post. Those bewildered eyes watched me hop on the feed cart and drive dinner past him.

Ten minutes before, my plan was to ride and then feed at six o’ clock like every other Wednesday night. Then Alana walked up to me with a brilliant idea:

 

“There’s hardly anyone riding in the lesson tonight. Do you want to join? Let me ask Charles if you can feed early.”

While I waited in limbo for an answer, I mounted and walked a few laps around the arena. The beep of my phone brought good news: a text that simply said “yes.”

So instead of riding, I was tying Ransom to the hitching post to wait at the barn while I fed the other horses. I hurried through my routine, sweeping up the loose hay with vigor. I finished the outside loop with five minutes to spare before the lesson began. That didn’t leave much time to prepare, mentally or physically. Hoping to squeeze in a quick warm-up, I put Ransom on a circle at the lope. But I had barely started when Charles walked through the gate, took one look at me, and launched into instruction.

“Push him up. More. MORE!” Ready or not, the work began. We were flying – Ransom by a flurry of legs and me by the seat of my pants.

After we gave up the hot seat to someone else, Ransom seemed happy to hang out with those watching from the far end. He sidled up to Zone and sent flirtatious glances at Arya, Merideth’s sleek black hunter mare, while I watched the others ride.

Afterwards, it was back to the hitching post to watch dinner drive by for the second time that night, so I could finish feeding the main barn. It was almost dark by the time I untacked and patient Ransom finally started dinner. Well, the afternoon didn’t go how I expected. It went better.