We’ve all witnessed it in the stores. Children throwing themselves on the floor and screaming at the top of their lungs. Mothers totally embarrassed or just plain fit-to-be tied over their out of control toddler. They scoop them up into the air, some get a beating, some don’t. Some parents walk away and make believe they never saw the kid before.

Now I am no child expert by any means, but there is a break down somewhere, in the parent child relationship. Or there is a chemical imbalance in the child, I’m not going there. But there is a difference between a 15 lb. child who is throwing a fit and a 1000 lb. horse who is NOT happy.

We’ve all lived through horses who resist and just don’t want to do something. I don’t want to cross that puddle, I don’t want my saddle on, I don’t want to pick up my foot, and the ultimate one – I don’t want to get in that trailer. Usually they are very quiet about it. They just don’t want it and that’s all there is to it. Avoidance is their idea of getting away with the behavior. They will side step, back up, expand their belly. No major tramma or dramatics, just a quiet no thanks, not today. Maybe try me again tomorrow. We’ll see.

However, I have a horse with a different slant on “I don’t want to, please don’t make me do this.” There is always one in your life.

So here is the deal. He’s very reasonable about most everything. He may fling his ears back to tell you “I don’t think I like that” but no follow through. For instance, don’t bother me with my blanket while I’m eating. My response – get over it your getting your blanket on – like he never said a word. I usually just ignore him and go ahead with whatever I was going to do. When he sees I’m not paying attention to him, he just goes back to doing whatever he was doing that he didn’t want interrupted.

BUT this horse hates rain. Two drops and he’s up in the air, kicking, striking out, totally angry with whoever caused this to happen to him. Copper ignores him and goes to stand under a tree and Lou will bite him, push him, and blame him, that he is going to get wet.

So really, what chance do I have in this situation? I always try to get him in before it sprinkles. If it’s just going to be a passing spritz, I leave him out there to deal with it. However, if I know that we are in for a good steady rain, especially if there is going to be a lightening display, I try to get him in. With my luck it usually starts to sprinkle as I’m bringing him up. So let the games begin. I’m sure you’ve watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Well you know those big balloons that float down the avenues during the parade? That’s what I have on the end of my lead line. Now on a windy day they keep them close to the ground or they don’t even let them fly. Here is Lou, all fours off the ground, striking out, kicking, and carrying on. Shaking his head like it stings him. I keep telling him that he is not going to shrink, or fade. He goes into the pond and wallows, but a few drops of rain makes him crazy.

I do put a chain across his nose, and sometimes in his mouth. He normally is very respectful of a chain from his track days, but rain puts him over the edge.

I’ve left him out in rains that came on quickly, he will throw his tantrum and when he looks like a drenched rat, he will go stand under a tree. Still totally angry that I didn’t do my job properly, but I will hear about it when I go down there. I just smile and nod and tell him he’s fine, and he will sulk off to another part of the pasture.

I don’t know; some peoples children.

Driving up my road the other day I saw a big yellow ribbon around a tree. Didn’t look to see if it was an oak, probably was. I had been thinking about ribbons lately and their meaning.

We all know about yellow ribbons, Red White and Blue, Pink lapel and many others. The lapel ribbons cross on the bottom, I’m sure you are all familiar with them, but I saw the best one on the Facebook the other day. It was in the shape of the lapel ribbons and it was specific for what is going on, it was made out of toilet paper. Yup that’s our new lapel ribbon folks. I laughed when I saw it, but it really isn’t funny at all. This pandemic has brought out the good in many people, but it also has shown the true colors of many people who are just out for themselves. I’m not going any further with this.

My thoughts on ribbons went in a different direction. Ribbons that have been won to signify our determination to be the best at whatever we do. We work hard, day after day, year after year, and hope for that blue ribbon. Whether it’s in a baking contest or at a horse show, it proves that our hard work and determination has paid off.

Sometimes we win the ribbon, sometimes the horse wins the ribbon, or sometimes it’s a combination effort.

Of course blue is our ultimate goal, to be the best at what we have done, but I’ve always told my students that it’s not the most important thing. The most important thing is that you and your horse have given it your all. If you’ve improved from the last time, good for you, you are a winner.

Ribbons are a mile stone. I have four ribbons, out of all of them, that are the most important to me, and only one of them is a blue. One is a fifth place ribbon that I got at my first horse show. Serious riding had been something that I longed for my whole childhood. Four months after I started my real lessons I went to my first show. Out of about a dozen kids, I got fifth. I had gotten there, I was a real rider. That pink ribbon proved it to me.

The next one on my list, I don’t even remember what color it was, I have a picture, but it was in black and white, doesn’t matter. I had my lunatic Thoroughbred at a Recognized show for an Open Jumper Class. On trying to get him to the In Gate he reared up and almost came down on the judges car. He reared all the way to that gate and even when he got through the gate. It was almost like a barrel race. When I got him going forward, something clicked and he was beautiful. The picture I have of us going over a fence, you could see my smile of joy and satisfaction. He was very talented, but even though there was a light on in his head, no one was home. Just being able to get him in the ring, over those jumps and place, the ribbon was blue to me.

The next ribbon was just pure fun. A bunch of us were at a horse show in Allaire Park, New Jersey (that’s for Nancy). They needed people to fill a pair class so they could hold it. My girlfriend had a dark dun gelding with a dorsal strip and zebra stripes on his legs. He was a big dude and they called him a flying box car, but boy could this horse jump. My mare was a light dun mare, and didn’t have the same big stride the gelding did. We were both dressed the same because that’s what you wore to a show back then. So we said, since they only had two teams, and they were looking for four, we would at least get fourth place, let’s do it. We worked it out that when we had to reverse, we would reverse in place so that my mare was always on the inside because her stride was smaller. We also worked it out that since I was on the inside, my friend would change her diagonal to always go up when I was going up. Well we got in there and all of a sudden it was a big class, and let me tell you those horses matched perfectly. It was both an English and Western class together. Pretty Paints and outstanding outfits. So my friend Kris and I decided we’d just have fun. They asked us to reverse three or four times just to figure out how we were doing that. We laughed and joked with the people on the rail. I still smile when I think about it. We just totally enjoyed ourselves and ended up with a second place. I’m sure the other teams that took it seriously must have been angry, but that just showed us that relaxing and having a good time with your horse means something, even to the judge.

My last favorite ribbon was a blue. I brought my buckskin baby Desert to his first show, just to get him used to everything. I figured I’d bring him in a walk trot class just to get him in the ring with other horses. I would let the stewards and judge know that I was not to be judged, that he was only in there for the experience. I guess he was maybe four or five at the time. Well once again they needed to fill a halter class. Bobby so wanted to bring Toy into that class he asked me to help fill the class so it wouldn’t be cancelled. Now I had always taught Desert to square up during our breaks in his lesson. He knew to stand perfectly still as I walked around him with his lead on the ground, but he had a slight clubbed foot, so once again I was just in for fun and schooling. I said okay, we can do this. Now Toy was a drop dead gorgeous Appendix Quarter Horse. Beautiful Bay with four white stockings and a stripe down his face, showing was very new to him and Bob. He had been raced, but I think Bobby and Toy had only been to one show before. That was an experience in itself. Bobby did a figure eight and never knew when to stop so he kept going until the judge finally stopped him. We go in, Desert stood like a perfect statue. Toy however wouldn’t stand still, neither did many of the horses, and there were many. Desert got first, I don’t remember what Toy got. Bobby was not happy with me. Toy, after that, got lessons on standing, and squaring up.

Just for the record. Desert and I went into the Walk Trot class and in the middle of the trot he stopped and peed. Everyone laughed including me and the judge.

My point to this whole long post is that it doesn’t matter the color of your ribbon. If you and your horse work hard and give it your best, any sign of improvement is always a “Blue Ribbon.”

Stay safe.