Emotional support pony

We all miss Emma.

I miss her so,

so,

so much.

Sigh.

And, of course, it's not just Emma I'm missing.

I still miss her sister.

And James, who is alive and well, but so far away.

It's been a hard month.

The weather has been unrelentingly hot,

work is depressing...

and people I know keep dying. RIP Roxy, one of my favorite servers at my favorite post-ride watering hole. I'm so sorry we never got your girls out to the barn.

RIP also to Carol's neighbor, Mike, that nice man with whom I walked lap during my visit last summer. He passed this morning after a short but intense battle with pancreatic cancer. I know Carol will miss him so much.

It's been such a hard month.

On Sunday, I had a not -terrible but also not-very-good ride on Sage. We worked through it, but by the time I dismounted, I was not feeling very optimistic about my ability to see her through this stage of training.

Because of that and the heat and everything, the last couple days have been grooming days with just a little in-hand work. I did not feel like I could handle another Sunday.

Today, Karen asked if I was going to ride. I said, no. I didn't have the spoons. Then - kind of inexplicably - I tacked her up, led into the ring and climbed aboard.

Sometimes it's like that.

Fortunately, Sage was as good as she could possibly be. I didn't stay on her long. I really need the win, and I was afraid I would jinx in. Still, I am just so glad I decided to ride her today.

This has been a hard month, but Sage has - mostly - made it better. Slowly but surely, she is turning into the horse I need.