So we made it out of the Great Big Hole in the Ground much to our amazement (or at least those of us taking our time on the B team). It’s an amazing hike: sheer cliffs and wheeling birds, twisted rock and falling water…
This morning we took some intentional time to reunite with our horses, most of whom had taken a trailer ride around the Canyon and spent 3 days resting without us. I spent time just hanging out with Black Oak in his pen, scratching his neck and playing games. He has been tearing the bark off of the Pinyon pines that he can reach over the rails, so I started helping him by tearing off pieces he couldn’t reach and feeding them to him. I was feeling really good about our energy and his playfulness right up through the point when neither of us were paying attention and, in taking a shred of bark, dear Black Oak bit off a small piece of the tip of my right thumb.
As I stood there, realizing what had just happened, staring at my bleeding hand, I noticed an absence of any kind of anger in me. I knew it was a mistake, I knew it was pretty much my fault, and in the past these truths had not helped to quell any negative feelings. Somehow, in this particular instance, something in me had changed. So out with the Neosporin and bandages, time to smile, move on, and heal.
