The smell hit me first, fresh hay, and horse manure.
In an instant I felt more relaxed. I heard the nervous giggles of my daughter as I looked down and smiled.
I had been riding since I was a child, even bought and paid for my first horse at seven after selling my bull dairy calves at auction. To say I was excited is such an understatement.
My parents would stand at the top of the hill yelling and screaming at me as I grabbed a halter and lead rope, jumped on and took off at a dead run through the pasture. They didn’t think I'd make it to 10 without a broken bone. Well, I have news for you, I still have not broken any.
As we walked in the barn for her first lesson at a stable, I found online, we were welcomed with knickers and banging of stall doors, I was home. Ashley, the riding instructor, was a friend of my co-worker and that made me feel much more at ease.
She was only 3 years old, sitting on a horse that probably felt as big as the world to her. Her tiny boots didn’t quite reach the stirrups. Her little hands gripped the saddle, and I stood there holding my breath, not sure if I was more excited or more nervous.
Everything felt still for a moment — like time slowed down just enough for me to take it all in.
“Mom, I’m not scared,” she said, looking back at me with the biggest smile.
I wasn’t so sure I could say the same.
The instructor gently led the horse forward, one step at a time. I walked beside her, my heart racing. I could catch her if she fell.
I knew she wouldn’t be afraid. She has confidence growing in a way that only kids seem to do so naturally.
Maybe it is due to the TV show she watches, “Spirit, Riding Free” on Netflix. The show is about Lucky, a young girl who has lost her mother at a young age. Now she’s with her father and aunt, moving across the country to a small town where her mom was born. Lucky meets a wild mustang she names Spirit. They become the best of friends, and she's the only one able to ride him. Since he is wild, she only rides bareback with no reins. Lucky meets two other best friends, Pru and Abigail, and together the three of them go on many adventures.
With me growing up horse-crazed, it seemed just a matter of time before my daughter would be, too. So, when we found “Spirit, Riding Free,” we watched every episode of every season.
And that was the day I saw the spark and love come alive in my daughter's soul. I knew horses were it for her, too.
This was more than a riding lesson. It was one of those moments where you realize my baby is becoming their own person — brave, free-spirited and willing to try something new even when it’s a little scary.
And if I’m being honest, it was a moment for me, too. I saw myself at that age and the love I had for horses reflecting back at me in my daughter.
As a single mom, there are so many times when I question if I’m doing enough, if I’m giving her the experiences she deserves.
But watching her that day, I realized something important. She didn’t need everything to be perfect — she just needed the opportunity to try, to grow, and to feel supported.
And when our backs were turned, to stand in the saddle like Lucky from her favorite TV show.
I couldn’t hold my laugh. Here I was nervous and scared and that little girl was just plotting and scheming until we weren’t looking, so she could pretend to be in her own circus.
I see now she was born to ride. She looked like a little ant on a log riding that big palomino horse. As she gathered the reins and kicked the horse to a trot.
All I could do was smile and laugh as I shook my head thinking she is going to break a bone before she is 10.
