I Wasn't Always a Big Girl!!

According to my cute baby pictures, I was at one time under a 100 pounds. I grew up a country girl chasing the wind and dreaming of owning a horse! At age 6, the horse arrived. He was crippled with arthritis (knees so stiff), red as a blazing fire and as gentle as a breeze. He became "Blaze" and I learned to ride very well for my daddy promised me a saddle when I knew how to ride...BAREBACK FOR TWO YEARS!! But, alas, the day came and we went to Montgomery Wards in downtown Waco. Down in the basement they carried saddles and stuff.
Early on, I had a life changing experience with Blaze. We were trailing the hay truck on the gravel road. He broke into a canter and somehow, as he was bouncing up, I was bouncing down and totally missed him! That's right...earth to ME!! Daddy stopped the hay truck and came to my rescue. As the tears streamed down my cheeks I declared I wasn't going to get back on. My pride was injured, along with a few other personal parts of my body!
Daddy looked me in the eyes and said, "get back on and follow me on around or lead Blaze back to the house and we'll sell him tomorrow." I thought about that for one second and asked him to give me a hand up. From that day forward I seemed to be in tune with that animal.
Funny how we learn valuable lessons throughout our lives. Sometimes, it's very challenging and not so easy. Needless to say, I became a 'kinda good' rider and could race the wind without flinching at all. As long as I had a horse and the hours in a day to ride and enjoy the freedom of the outdoors I was a very happy camper.
We had cousins galore and during the summer, many of them would come and visit. One, in particular, was Robert from Houston. I was always threatened within an inch of my life so I would listen to my folks and stay away from the water, not have a rodeo in the calf pen and not get on any raft that Robert put together. Well, I didn't get on the rafts...I sat in the tall, green grass and watched him float to the middle and yell for a longer limb to reach the bottom.
Country life to me was the greatest thing in the world. Back then, you could explore and go miles away from home and be safe. A couple of girl friends would ride out during the summer and stay over for a slumber party. We'd pasture the horses and wait till midnight. Then, in our babydoll jammies, we'd go bridle the horses at midnight and ride down the gravel road for two or three hours. That was livin' the good life as a baby boomer.
From all of those 'good times' and the parents instilling strong character...I guess that's one reason I can smile as I deal with my current situation. Strong enough to face it, trusting enough to experience it and willing to make it happen. However, the insurance company has a completely different view of this new escapade I'm into. They have many barriers/hurdles that must be dealt with in a timely fashion. It's obvious they desire to delay this procedure at least six months with a stipulation of being on a weight loss program witnessed by the doctor for six months prior to surgery.
After many phone calls, paperwork, questions, more phone calls, more paperwork, faxes to various individuals and more..I feel like I have a new full time job. This too shall pass, she said to herself.
With all of that said, it's nice sometimes just to sit and think about how neat it was being a kid in the country. The big challenge back then was to ride with a saddle or ride bareback on any given day. Where did the simplicity of life go?
Oh well, I'll get a round tuit next week and jump back into the mix of do this, do that. Not sure where it will end up in the next few weeks, but, I'm going to climb back on, bareback, and ride again.
When I need something to think about, I'll go fill the car up at almost $4 a gallon and think about that. Ain't life fun? It is kinda like a box of chocolates...and those hard nuts can hurt your teeth when ya least expect it!!
"Always laugh when you can. It is the cheapest medicine."