Archive for The Gathering Place "The Gathering Place" is a web community where people can gather and make new friends, share ideas, enjoy a few laughs and learn about many interesting things together. It is a safe place where friends can correspond with each other about what they love.
I recently had quite an experience. On a cool, sunny Saturday morning about a month ago, DH, DGS (Knock)and I decided we would take advantage of the nice weather and go for a short trail ride. We saddled our horses, Shaq, Godiva and Glory, at the barn and started off. We were having a fine time and the horses were feeling in fine fettle with the cool temps. Shaq was doing well until I started taking pics. The very small, high pitched sound the camera makes when coming on really unerves him. In his past life of horror he was "trained" with a shock collar or a shock stick and the sound of the camera causes him to have flashbacks. He gets really antsy expecting to be shocked so needless to say the pics were out. After the camera went back into the bag he calmed down. Just in time for his bits to fall apart! I use the shanks (side pieces) with the interchangable mouthpiece that screw in from the sides. Just my luck, the screw backed out on one side and I had no bit. Because of the way Shaq had been "trained" he leans hard on the bit, has a hard mouth and requires a big bit to hold him. So, having NO bit was very uncomfortable to say the least. Through the grace of God I was able to find the small pieces that had fallen into all the leaves on the trail and get the bit put back together. And it was just in the nick of time. As soon as I got mounted back up, the horses caught the scent of a bear on the ridge and Shaq nearly went to pieces. It was all I could do to keep him from running away. He was rearing and bucking. Glory nearly jumped from under DH and Godiva pulled Knock over the saddle horn and he was riding on her neck. DH tried in vain to catch the mare as she went past his horse and even though I could look over my shoulder at what was happening, I couldn't get Shaq to turn around for love or money. Knock was able to ride the mare to the side of the trail and slide safely to the ground even though his dismount was less than graceful. He was a bit shaken but mounted back up in a minute or two and rode the mare back to the barn. The two mares settled back down nicely on the return trip but Shaq never did. I was sitting back on his bit with my feet braced in the stirrups and had all I could do to hold him in. When I needed to slow him down for better footing through some rocks in the creek he was having none of it and went up the side of the high wall. He was very intent on getting out of the woods. He was not misbehaving. He was scared senseless. Fortyfive minutes after being back at the barn and safely in his stall he was still jumping at every little sound. I felt so bad for him. There have been times in my life when I have been frightened and it is not a good feeling. While I know I have God to protect me, he has no such understanding to ease his mind.
When I think back on the ride there are so many variables that could have been disasterous. What if my bits had held together just until Shaq smelled the bear and then fallen apart? I would have had no control of him at all and in his his state of mind we would have both been seriously injured. Had DH's riding skills not been greatly improved from last year, his mare may have succeeded in jumping out from under him. Had Knock panicked rather than make the proper adjustments, he could have been fallen from his horse and been stepped on. The devil would have enjoyed any and all of these things. The enemy is always trying to kill, steal and destroy but just as with Joseph and his brothers betrayal, what the devil meant for evil, God used for good. We all know a bit more about our horses now. We are all more confident in our riding abilities. Our horses have a bit more confidence in us to take care of them in a scary situation. But most importantly, we are all more aware than ever that God is always with us and will always take care of us. He is working all things for our good and we can depend on Him to be faithful to His promises, even when the devil throws a bear at us. LOL God is there for you too. So hold to His hand, give the bear a swift kick in the rump and send it on it's way. Have a great day!
Aloe
It just shows how evil the devil is, that he would use God's innocent creatures (horses and bears in this case) to harm God's people.
CajuninKy
He would be scarey if we had to fight him on our own. But we know we have God on our side so we don't have to be afraid.
After the camera went back into the bag he calmed down. Just in time for his bits to fall apart! I use the shanks (side pieces) with the interchangable mouthpiece that screw in from the sides. Just my luck, the screw backed out on one side and I had no bit. Because of the way Shaq had been "trained" he leans hard on the bit, has a hard mouth and requires a big bit to hold him. So, having NO bit was very uncomfortable to say the least. Through the grace of God I was able to find the small pieces that had fallen into all the leaves on the trail and get the bit put back together. And it was just in the nick of time. As soon as I got mounted back up, the horses caught the scent of a bear on the ridge and Shaq nearly went to pieces. It was all I could do to keep him from running away. He was rearing and bucking. Glory nearly jumped from under DH and Godiva pulled Knock over the saddle horn and he was riding on her neck. DH tried in vain to catch the mare as she went past his horse and even though I could look over my shoulder at what was happening, I couldn't get Shaq to turn around for love or money. Knock was able to ride the mare to the side of the trail and slide safely to the ground even though his dismount was less than graceful. He was a bit shaken but mounted back up in a minute or two and rode the mare back to the barn. The two mares settled back down nicely on the return trip but Shaq never did. I was sitting back on his bit with my feet braced in the stirrups and had all I could do to hold him in. When I needed to slow him down for better footing through some rocks in the creek he was having none of it and went up the side of the high wall. He was very intent on getting out of the woods. He was not misbehaving. He was scared senseless. Fortyfive minutes after being back at the barn and safely in his stall he was still jumping at every little sound. I felt so bad for him. There have been times in my life when I have been frightened and it is not a good feeling. While I know I have God to protect me, he has no such understanding to ease his mind.