Here without my Horse

When I left for college I thought I the hardest part would be leaving my family and friends behind. The absence from my family has been hard on me but I grew comfortable with my surroundings very quickly making the transition relatively easy. The one aspect of my life that I miss the most is horseback riding. I have been riding horses for nearly eleven years now so the absence of riding is so unfamiliar and strange that I do not know how to handle it. I am not saying that I miss my horse more than my family and friends, but I can talk to them whenever I like on the phone but I obviously cannot ride my horse from 250 miles away. I feel like I have had to go cold turkey from riding which has been extremely hard on me. Horseback riding has always been an activity that I can turn to when I am bored, upset, stressed, and even sick to make me feel better for that hour while I am on my horse. Not only is it hard not to ride because riding is my favorite thing to do, but I also miss my horse more every week. My horse, Ortiz, is my baby and my protege. Most kids grow attached to a small dog or stuffed animal, but I grew attached to a 900 pound horse who was deemed crazy by most people. He was literally scared of shadows and definitely afraid of jumps, but after many years he is now a confident jumper. The reason I love my horse so much is we were both able to improve together. I was able to become a more confident rider and also a more determined person and he became a talented horse that people now actually admire. Hopefully in time I will get to bring my baby up to Dallas so I will get to ride him more than a few time a year. Now more than ever, as the assignments and stress are piling up, I just want be able to escape for an hour and have a completely enjoyable and carefree ride on my horse.