Busy week-end = lots of editing

I spent most of the week-end at the Princess Louise Park Show Centre in Sussex, NB. My student, Zara Morrison, was competing on two horses this time: her own Fadjura's Ajiba NA+, with whom she achieved the horse's Legion of Honour designation AND received the Rider of Champions Award; AND NF Satori (owned by Jessie MacLean of Sussex Corner).

This whole dressage thing is new to Tori. The 15-year-old gelding has only been in dressage training for about a month and this was his first Dressage NB show. Although a novice, he performed well and, when all was said and done, Zara and Tori captured the Training (Junior division) Championship for the week-end AND Zara and Ajiba were the Reserve Champions for the same division.

Zara and Tori

Zara and Ajiba

None of these achievements would have been possible, however, without the tremendous support of family and friends. Zara's mother, Marion, is the backbone of the support team, making sure that both daughter and horse(s) are ready, gleaming, hydrated and ready to go - with help from Nicky (designated team support person), me (the coach / photographer / publicist) and this time, Jessie (Tori's owner).

And speaking of family, once the horse show was over I dashed off to do a 3-generation family photoshoot. What a great group to work with - just too much fun. And, of course, Marv the Burmese Mountain Dog got into the act too.

All in all it was quite the week-end!

 

Knowing I had a schedule to keep, sleep eluded me last night. I checked the clock every thirty minutes on my last night with my west coast family. Ten days goes by so quickly.

Finally it was time to get up, shower, finish packing and head out to the airport.

Just as David and I were going out the door the grand toddlers woke up and came to say goodbye. Mattias offered a big hug and an "I love you Gramma." Isla was less awake and so just shyly whispered "bye bye".

Leaving is always heart wrenching, especially knowing that it could be a year or more before I see them again, all depending on opportunity and, of course, money.

Sometimes being in a rush to leave is a good thing! No time for tears, as I fly over the big mountains, across the wide prairies, around the Great Lakes and on home to New Brunswick, Joel and our fur babies Hoover and Halo. Does that sound like a good opening for a story for the kids? Hmmm mm.

Thank you...

Here we are, almost at the end of May, and we are FINALLY experiencing a titch of warm weather. Sadly, the warmth comes at the expense of any potential sunshine and, much to everyone's surprise (not), more rain is in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow. Oh well, c'est la vie.

As one of my friends on Facebook pointed out, our lousy weather is primarily an inconvenience. For those in the US states hard hit by tornadoes, the weather is a life-altering event with devastating consequences.

With that in mind, I stumbled across this website for The Grateful Project What was a personal quest for one woman has become a documentary film project. The concept is that we should each take time on a daily basis to seek out, and be grateful for, those mundane things that bring us a moment of happiness on a daily basis. By focusing on those positive moments, we can and will change our lives, and those of others, for the better. This same concept was espoused by Oprah Winfrey during her Finale episode yesterday.

This is a concept I can both believe in and get behind. Since first reading about it a couple of days ago I began paying attention to those things that bring me joy - in small measures or large - for a brief time, or a long one. Here are a few examples from the literally hundreds I thought of in only one day... 

Two healthy grandchildren and my son (show age 3 below) who has grown up to be a loving and caring man, husband and father...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For a wonderfully supportive husband

For Hoover who teaches me to relax, daily.

And so very much more. I may take this on as my personal project as well - to photograph and document those things that often go unnoticed and yet bring us small measures of joy on a regular basis.

So, what are YOU grateful for today?