I was so excited to get to go riding this morning! I may also get to ride tomorrow – weather permitting. It’s therapeutic for me. I enjoy it, the weather was perfect, I got to spend time soaking up Vitamin D in the sun, and my mare (female horse) behaved so perfectly today. We worked on transitions – moving from one gait to another – like walk to trot, trot to canter, or canter to walk. Moving from canter to walk requires collection, which involves the horse moving with shorter strides and balancing on her hind end (carrying more of her weight on her back legs as she moves). We also worked on lateral movements – moving sideways to the left or right without turning her body. This creates suppleness and flexibility in her body and it helps her feel more comfortable. I really enjoy rides like the one I had today.
I am also a somewhat avid reader – I like to read nonfiction books, but I do have some nonfiction authors I enjoy – like Francine Rivers. I really like her series The Mark of the Lion Trilogy. I read all three – A Voice in the Wind, Echo in the Darkness and As Sure As the Dawn in English when I was in high school, but I was also given a set in Spanish last year. I enjoy re-reading books – and this is perfect. I am able to pick up some higher level vocabulary that I don’t usually see online or hear in Spanish regularly – but I do use those words in English so having an opportunity to see them used in context in Spanish is fantastic.
I’m also noticing the effects of cleaning more often. My wood furniture is in great condition – almost shiny even. The countertops certainly shine.
I am almost finished making a shirt for the first time. While waiting for help with a particularly complex step, I may repeat the pattern with different fabric and try it again. Practice makes perfect! I also have a set of pants to try making and I may try another skirt. This would be the 2nd or 3rd time I’ve attempted the skirt pattern, so it may work out even better this time (particularly because I used the wrong type of fabric the first time). That can mess up a project but once in a while, it does work out.
I read Job 24 in Spanish this morning. It is hard to read about the challenges he faced, but encouraging to see how the Lord blessed Job as he remained faithful to the Lord, even while passing through deep, catastrophic valleys – like the loss of his family. Job did not know why he was faced with these trials, but remain faithful to God. What kinds of trials are you facing right now? Personally, I have faced some health challenges for several years. Now, it’s normal for me – I can’t imagine what life would be like without it. Jesus has plans for each of us – and it’s for the best, even if it doesn’t seem that way at the moment. I’m not sure I would have created this blog if I didn’t have a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and had more job options. Truthfully, it may have made life harder. My day-to-day experiences have not changed much since the beginning of the pandemic. I already spent a lot of time at home, and life remained very similar to before as the virus spread. Without my TBI, life might have been a lot more difficult. I have trouble remembering the details of yesterday sometimes, which also means that I don’t remember the challenges very well. It’s literally as if they never happened. I actually feel like the pandemic opened up opportunities rather than closed them, including employment, time to ride, time to read and such. I’ve certainly had the time to expand my cooking and baking skills.
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