a run-a-way horse!
The horse was a favorite of mine. He seemed to like giving rides to little kids and had the smoothest gait that flowed across the ground. We just rode him with a rope halter.
After an hour or so of treating the kids with rides, I got on old Fiero myself while a guest got on my younger horse and we rode down the trail for a short jaunt.
On the way back my 24 year old steed decided he had had enough of the trail and broke into a run toward home. When reaching the corral he screeched to a stop! Since I was still in the saddle I turned him around and headed back out on the trail to teach him that he doesn’t get away with that type of behavior.
I also had to explain to my guest that I had to follow through – just like raising children. (Of course I was totally embarrassed but that also goes along with raising kids and horses!)
I was also trying to figure out why my horse had acted this way. A physical action is a form of communication too.
So Fiero and I walked the short distance to where he had broken away before and then headed back toward the barn. But he took off at a run again! This time he didn’t stop at the corral but swirled around the barn and headed to a fence where he screeched to a stop.
This is when I noticed my right arm was shaking. And my right leg. (I wondered how it could stay in the stirrup!)
But I made the decision to turn the horse around again… and back out onto the trail we went. And yes, this time he walked back to the barn where I got off and unsaddled him. And I pondered what he had been trying to tell me.
So how does this tie in with speaking to the Cannon Falls city council at their meeting? They certainly weren’t running away. But as I was talking I noticed my hand was shaking… and then my leg started shaking!
Now I enjoy these folks. I just wanted to explain some things to them.
I wanted to tell them that although I live outside the city limits, I’m concerned about the city’s residents and their taxes.
That’s when I held up some papers (and noticed how I was shaking!) that stated the potential tax increases that Stanton Township residents might get if they had been forced to be annexed through one proposal. It’s not that folks don’t like you, I explained, it’s just that they were scared.
So I encouraged the city council to take care of their present residents and then other folks would feel a lot better about being made a member of the family.
I don’t remember much about what I said that night even if it was short. I had just read a book about the effectiveness of trust in business transactions. If there is trust by the parties involved, the process is speedier and involves less cost.
This is also true for horses… if there is trust there is cooperation and speed… and that could help all of us get back to the barn more easily!
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