What a day! I had one of those schedules today where every thing had to happen right on time or the whole thing would fall apart - no wiggle room for any variance at all! And surprisingly, it all came off without a hitch.
I knew as the day began that if I would just cancel my riding lesson this afternoon, tons of stress would be alleviated from the hectic pace of the day....but I just couldn't do it. I so wanted to ride - and now I am so glad I did!
Zoe and I spent our lesson working on getting her to lower her head and to quickly respond to me asking for a trot, then walk. I had to work on relaxing my arms (bend those elbows!) and shoulders, sitting back and tall and looking where I wanted to turn. I kept holding my head to the side, looking down at Zoe's head, trying to see where her nose was. Not a good riding position, to say the least. I just don't have much feel for when she's doing the right thing yet, so I keep looking.
I was able to trot a full 20 meter circle without stopping and we are getting better at picking up the trot and slowing to a walk.
I still feel like I'm pulling awfully hard on her mouth, but my instructor says I'm actually being soft and to not worry. If Zoe wants to feel less pressure, she just needs to lower that pretty Arab nose of hers!
