Everywhere A Sign

      There are and have been increasingly more signs of spring all around these past few weeks.  Everywhere a sign: warming temperatures, although windy, migrating birds, blooming flowers, hatching of bugs, shedding pets and horses...

"Sign, sign, everywhere a sign
Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind
Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign"?
Remember this old song?

     Signs are great. They make our lives easier. They let us know what's going on. They direct us where to go.  But if not written well, they can misguide.  And some are made intentionally to be hurtful.  Fortunately, the signs of spring are from God giving us hope for the future.  They remind us of rebirth, of life anew.


     So, throughout this blog, I will be posting photo signs of spring.

     I worked on school stuff, with distractions, much of Saturday morning.  Then I had a great 4 hours outside, spending most of the afternoon with Roni.  After the usual preliminary brushing, hoof picking, tacking, round pen lunging and riding,
I headed out into the country on a
riding adventure.  I did a big loop in          Fly on wall of tack room.
the bean field south of our back pasture, rode along interstate 74 on Becks path, took off across a cornfield going west of Becks, crossed the tracks at Lisa's and paid her a short visit.  Then I headed Roni down and around Lisa's place and back towards Becks along 150.  I had Roni cross the highway at Becks and headed down a field lane.  I took it a long way north over a little wooden bridge and
                                                     continued till it came to an end.  Then
I headed east across a cornfield towards Brian's road.  But I came to another creek that was down in a ravine too deep to cross.  So I circled back, crossed the creek at the same bridge, and then headed towards the road.  We were well north of Brian's when we got to the road and turned south towards home.  Most of the time Roni walked in a calm, relaxed ease.  Occasionally he was jumpy, and
rushed some of the time, but I felt
comfortable enough to push
him into a gait several times.  I slowed him back down when he started going too fast.  Once he caught sight of home though, he was really pushing it.  I had read an article about this very problem the night before, so as soon as I got him home I rode him right into the round pen and made him work for 10 minutes.  Then I rode him back down the drive, stopped him, and let him rest. I turned him towards Becks, then got off and led him home at a walk.  I looked at my watch... I had been on him 3 minutes short of two hours.  I really had fun, and hope that he enjoyed the adventure too.

     The cat eagerly trying to get out any open door is another sure sign of spring.  Once out, Abbey has a great time exploring.






 



     Joe and I went into LeRoy to eat at Chiefs bar and grill, using a coupon.  We watched a few hours of TV when we got home.

     I was up at my normal time Sunday, but with the time change it was an hour later.  I had to start chores before sunrise, and getting the sleeping cows in from out in the meadow (back pasture) took some extra steps, going out to get their attention with a feed bucket. 

     There were no babies in the nursery, probably because of the time change.  After waiting 25 minutes, I ran to school to get an hour of work done, then met Joe back at Church.  Brian's cat had shown back up during the night, so Joe dropped her off on his way in to town.

     After lunch I did yard work, picking up lots of sticks.  I also picked rocks and gravel out of the flower bed by the drive.  The over zealous chickens with their scratching are responsible for most of it.   
 



      Also the cows had walked through the day they had gotten out and knocked some rocks down the hill side.  And I discovered that they had pulled the stake out of the ground that held this red bud up and ripped the top off of the little tree. 

Notice the red bud buds, another sign of spring.  In fact, there is life springing up through out the rock garden.












     Once it was time, I got Roni ready to go, and hopped on without any ground work or lunging.  I wanted to save his energy.  I rode him over to Lisa's house, and from there, Lisa and I rode "around the block". 





     The day was pretty, and we enjoyed chatting while riding along the road.  It was a bit nerve racking riding up over interstate 74, but Roni handled it well.  He did fairly well throughout the ride, spooking twice by jumping a little at stuff blowing on the ground.  He also rushed more than I was happy with, but if I kept him behind Mark (Lisa's big ole' quarter horse) that seemed to help slow him down. 

     Once we had turned west for the final leg home, Roni really started rushing and got revved up many times.  As tired and sweaty as he was once home, I still made him work in the round pen.  The article said to keep their feet moving.  I circled one way and then the other, did serpentines, zigzags, and circle patterns.  Then we headed back out towards Beck.  He hesitated but continued with some gentle nudging.  once to 150, I stopped and let him stand and rest.  He turned his head towards home, but didn't move his feet.  I got off and walked him across our front and up the drive.  My legs needed the movement after being in the saddle for over two hours.
    
     Monday I gave Roni and I a day off.  It was warm but windy.  I messed here at the computer, did minimal school work, and I don't have any idea what else... but the time flew. Joe worked on hay clean up so I got some photos of that.


     He moved all the hay bales from the north + west sides of the chicken coop and stored them in the grain bin.  
 



     The chickens enjoyed scratching in the newly uncovered earth.  We also discovered this nest of duck eggs in the ornamental grass.


     Joe also cleaned out the corn crib where the cows have spent cold winter nights. 



     This stuff he took straight out back and dumped along the railroad tracks.

     I don't know how sister Carol manages to do this kind of work with just her wheel barrow.  She is definitely in better shape than I.

     We headed to town for Growth Group, stopping to buy snacks to mail Dan in his care package.  There was also more bad news in Afghanistan.
A U.S. Army staff sergeant went on a shooting rampage Sunday night in the southern province of Kandahar, killing 16 Afghan civilians, including nine children and three women.  This is the worst war crime in the ten year history of the U.S. led mission in Afghanistan. Now our soldiers have an even bigger target on their back.  I am thinking this is a clear sign to get them all out of Afghanistan.

     I was going to give Roni a second day off Tuesday, but it was just too nice a day. I ate lunch outside, graded papers on a lounge chair in the 78 degree sun, and helped Brian load his kitty (whom I now call Kit Kat) to take her home once again.  She has not been spayed, and I am sure she is in heat, returning here to her new boyfriend (Brother).  He has been "fixed" so he is not interested in anything but playing.  

     I got Roni ready for riding.  He was only bad when riding in the side pasture along the east fence line.  I wanted him to gait slowly, but he kept cantering. I would get to one end, stop him, turn and walk off, gently push him to gait slowly, and we would be off to the races.  So then I decided to just make him canter.  We did 3 or 4 passes the whole length of the fence. I kept thinking he would tire and slow down, or realize we weren't going to the barn.  Since this approach was not working, although it was kind of fun, I decided to just keep him at a walk the rest of the ride.  He calmed back down and was much more manageable.  I turned him
towards Becks to see how he would do.  He would hesitate. 'We're not done?'- "Come on Roni, we’re going!"... ‘Where are we going?’ ... "We’re going for a walk." ... "A walk to where?" ... "Nowhere, we’re just going for a walk…"  I would start down one path, stop him till he stood quietly, continue and then turn and go a different direction.  He did very well.  Just once, out by 74, he got frustrated and started backing up and wouldn't stop.  I took off all pressure and waited for him to stop, turned him and headed a different direction yet again.  By the time I
                                                     decided to head home, he was done
with rushing, and we sauntered all the way back to the barn.  I had made an agreement with him if he didn't rush, there would be no round pen work.  He was very hot and sweaty when we got back.  I brushed him after untacking and then took him to the round pen to let him roll in the sand.  Then he got a drink and I turned him and the other two back out to pasture.

      It was a neat, foggy sunrise Wednesday.  I had to go out to find and lure the cows back to the paddock before turning the horses out. 














     I have noticed dark splotches and shadows in many of my photos and especially videos now.  It is definitely time to do something about my cheap little pocket camera... the signs are abominable.

     It turned out to be another gorgeous day, although quite a bit more windy. To the right, Roni and Brother are lounging in the sun.






     I stepped inside the fence to make sure Roni was okay and he got up right away.  This video shows what a sweet boy he is.

     I took Roni to Marj's for my weekly lesson.  I was not having great success getting him collected.  Marj showed me the difference between letting the horse move inverted and getting it to collect.  I think (and hope) it has finally clicked.  When I let Roni have a tad bit more rein, he noses out, hollows his back, and does not work with his feet under himself.  He is not in balance, is tight through his neck and back, and is not fluid in his movement.  He is a strong and muscular horse with a mind of his own, so
                                                     my being there with the bit and staying

consistent is really important.  In a desire to be light with the reins and bit, I have "thrown him away" so to speak, and he is doing the driving instead of me.  The first step to

overcoming a problem, is recognizing it... but Marj has pointed the problem out many times.  It is hard to unlearn bad habits.  I need to keep watching for signs of being too lose with the bit and reins, and correct immediately.

     When riding Roni Thursday, I stayed in the round pen and side pasture, just working on keeping tight reins and getting him to bend his neck to circle one way and then the other. I need to retrain myself as I train Roni.  We progressed and he ended up doing fairly well, so I decided to stop for the day and not over do it by pushing him past his patience.  The sun was                                                      so warm, this duck was resting in the
shade.  I cleaned (scrubbed out) six water buckets, 3 heated ones to stow away, and 3 rubber ones I had stored in a rather dirty state last fall.  I also cleaned the feed and water bucket we had used for Norman... and it rekindled the sad memories of his death.  I cooked a pork roast for dinner, and between different jobs and chores, I graded papers out on the front porch.

     Britney pointed out a bible verse that speaks the old saying, red sky at night... etc.  Matthew 16:2+3 (NIV) 
He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.

      We have had red morning skies, and dark rain clouds with the forecast of thunder storms, but have yet to see a drop of rain.  I keep the cows and horses in the paddock if I think it is going to storm. 





     Today proved to be just as nice as all the other days this week.  There was a chance of rain, so it clouded up occasionally, but we never got the much needed precipitation. 

 




     I had given the dog a leather chew bone, which upset Hercules for some reason.  I even told him it was cow not chicken.

Maybe Hercules was just looking for a reason to strut his stuff.

     After a nap in the lawn chair, I started to finish this blog, but Roni was beckoning me.  As I rode, I worked on getting him to turn with a soft relaxed neck, stepping under himself and not rushing.  He did well in the round pen, but when I tried the same things out at Becks, he kept rushing, getting nervous and mad.  So I settled for a relaxed walk around at Becks' and then
brought him back into the round pen for more
circling and foot work.  My hands are staying steadier and tighter on the reins, but I catch myself letting him nose out too often.  He is a persistent boy, and will gain length on the rein when I let my guard down. 








       The Forsythia blooming is a sure sign of spring.  Notice how much the lilies have grown just this week.  If we get some rain, they would really flourish.  Zorro has signs (looser manure) of getting too much green grass, so we are going to start keeping him and the other two in the paddock more.  Joe and I wrapped up the week and the day watching a good movie "The Descendants", although it was kind of sad.

      With the signs that I need to spring into action concerning my teaching career, I finally called to speak with a TRS retirement counselor.  There are many options I have, so he is going to send me a print-out of the different choices.  If I do retire, I will still need to find part time work.  I would love the opportunity to stay with my part time teaching, but do not know what will be
available.  More importantly, I do not

know what God's plans are for me... where He wants me, what path I should take.  I will wait for signs, as I pray for direction.
     Sometimes we can over do it with signs.  But sometimes I wish I had more... especially when I am floundering in a problem or dilemma, and want guidance.