Well, today I woke up, like any other Friday and got dressed for my riding lesson. Now, I was WAS planning to ride Western, but I changed my mind when my riding instructor said we could do some jumping today. So, I tacked my horse Shianne up,
and got ready to go to the jumping arena. As I was walking over there, I was thinking about what a pretty day God had made. The sky was blue with little white clouds dotting the sky and there was a little breeze.When we got to the arena, I warmed up a VERY frisky Shianne. Now, I've ridden this horse since the beginning of February, and she's never been "frisky". Shianne is always a lazy horse although, ever since I've been riding her, she's gotten better at doing what her rider asks. Anyway, I didn't think much of Shianne's frisky mood. BIG MISTAKE. After I warmed up Shianne, we started to do some cantering over poles that were on the ground, placed at certain places for a certain amount of steps. I was a little nervous to do that because the last time I did, Shianne tripped TWICE and I nearly fell off. (I was riding Western at the time so I had a saddle horn I could grab onto.) Well, I did my round and it was PERFECT. After that, my friend Olivia got ready to do some jumping. For her first time, she did REALLY well. Then it was my turn. I did a good round as well and after Olivia jumped again, I got ready to do my course. Well, I did even BETTER then before. That is, until things started to go wrong. I was finishing my last pole, when Shianne spooked. She tripped and threw her body back to prevent herself from falling and the pole caught on her leg. She started bucking. Not little crow hops, but BIG bucks that knocked my teeth together. I stayed on for about four bucks when she did a huge one. I fell off, sliding down her shoulder and landing on my back. I must have been going really fast because I rolled about three times before I stopped on my stomach. The first thing I realized was the dust. It was everywhere. I had to close my eyes tight to it wouldn't get in them. Then, I felt the pain. You know how you feel when you've scraped your knee on pavement? That's how it felt like to me on my lower back and right hip along with some soreness. The next thing I did was shout for my riding instructor. It hurt REALLY bad and I would feel better if she was next to me. After telling me I had some scrapes and I would be black and blue, I realized that Shianne hadn't moved from the spot where I had fallen. I looked up at her and realized she felt REALLY bad. I mean, it wasn't like her to buck like that. That's when the owner of the riding company pulled up. I don't think it was because of me, but I did not want her to see me like this. To late. She had already rushed over and my riding instructor told her what happened. Well, after looking back at Shianne, it hit me that I should get back on. The past couple of months, we had formed a bond that helped us work together in our lessons. I said I wanted to get back on and I got to my feet. To fast. WAY to fast. I nearly fell again and I realized my hip and taken a HARD hit. I walked over to Shianne and mounted back up. But not before I grimaced at how hard it was to get back on. I walked around for a while, trying to calm myself down and tell Shianne that it wasn't her fault. It had been an accident. When I had opened my eyes after I fell, my riding instructor asked if I was mad. I said no. Why should I? I didn't blame Shianne at all for what happened. She just spooked and I fell and that's there is to it. As I was walking around I prayed to God, thanking him for keeping me safe. It could have been a lot worse. I could have broken my arm, hit my head hard enough to knock me out. Shianne could have kept running and trampled me. A number of things but God had kept me safe and that's why I love him so much. Even the little things like falling off a horse, he makes sure I'm safe.
The number one thing I wanted to tell you guys is: When people say, "The ground rushed right up to me." They really mean, the ground rushed right up to me. One minute I was on a bucking Shianne, and the next, I was rolling on the ground, with dirt getting on my arms, face, and hair. So next time someone says, "The ground ran to meet me" believe them.
