Muskateers

Old friends are one of the best things in life. And your good old friends are friends that you can pick up with even if you haven’t seen them in years. My dear old friend Ruth was in town this past weekend. She turned fourty on March 13 and left the snowy hills of Middlebury, VT to pay several friends a visit here in the San Francisco area. We were one of those friends.

Ruth and I have known each other since I was about 9 and she was about 8. We never went to the same school but we bonded over ponies. She and my friend Catherine and I were the three muskateers growing up. Catherine also went to a different school. Three friends – three different schools – all bonded by mutual love of the equine.
Most of you know that I still ride today. I am so thankful that I have horses in my life. While Ruth was out, I took her to the barn. She hadn’t ridden in 15 years. I put her up on Rhett and she looked as if she had never left it. You could see a certain spirit return to her as she cantered around.

There is just something freeing about being around something you love. You can forget about daily troubles. You can forget about errands, bills, and the never ending to-do list. Being around something you love, like being around horses is to me, transports me to a place where I can remember my carefree younger days and dream about infinite possibilities in the future.

Thanks to horses, I have amazing women in my life that connect me through the years. They too give me possibilities as each of our friends offer wisdom, ideas, thoughts that we may never have stumbled upon ourselves. Thanks to my friends, to the equines we love and the past and present memories we have and will pass down to our kids.

On my other side in the photo is Jenny - whom I have been friends with since we were 5 years old. Yes, certainly old friends are the best friends.