Lily Goes to Camp

For the first time in 12 years, we have no horse on the farm. Yesterday, we loaded Ms. Lily and took her to a barn with an indoor arena. For the past several years, I've boarded Lily during the late winter and spring months because Ohio winters just aren't conducive to consistent riding outdoors (at least not for wimps like me). It seems like we're always battling mud or cold winds or snow. Regular horseback riding is a great way to get through those late winter days that seem to drag on forever. Originally, the plan was to move Lily in early February. But persistent snow kept us from getting the trailer out of storage and Lily to the boarding barn. Yesterday, she finally went. Taking Lily to camp reminded me of packing for college. We loaded hay in the bed of the pickup. In the front of the livestock trailer went the cart, harness, saddles, grain, and other tack. Then in the back of the trailer went Lily. Lily has been living as an only horse since Christmas when her pasturemate died, so we didn't know how she'd react to seeing other equines. Because she's stayed at the boarding barn numerous times over the years and I've taken riding lessons there, she's quite familiar with the layout and the horses. Even though it had been months since she'd last visited, she didn't forget. She stepped out of the trailer, said her greetings, and then went about being a pony. She looked for any piece of hay that might have fallen in the aisle and inspected every inch of her grain bin, just in case a morsel was left. I, though, don't make the adjustment as easily. For the first time in 12 years, I've stepped outside in the morning and haven't been greeted by the hearty mare nicker. Instead, I hear chickens clucking and an occasional baa from a ewe.