“I’ll do it tomorrow”

We say it all the time, probably multiple times a day. Sometimes we even say, “Oh I’ll do it next week” or “I’ll get back into training my horse next month.” Maybe we say this because life just gets too busy or we are feeling unmotivated or tired. I mean I totally understand – life is crazy these days and juggling work, school, motherhood, and everything in between can be exhausting. Not to mention the unending stress of caring for our horses – I get it, its wild. But what if tomorrow never comes? What if we don’t have next week or month to spend time with our horse?

What if the mindset of having “all the time in the world” is a lie?

Now don’t get me wrong. I am not trying to be pessimistic or live in fear. I am usually not a person who dwells on the “what ifs” but when it comes to this deep topic of valuing every moment of life, we have to be realistic and think about the possible outcomes to reflect on our priorities. We have to face the reality that we really don’t have “all the time in the world” to do something, especially when it comes to our horses.

A few months ago, I was in a hard spot in my horse journey. I was filling my time with tons of client work and helping as many horses and humans as I could. I was pouring everything I had into my business and other job at the time and was in full speed work mode in helping horses heal. I was doing everything for my clients in ensuring their horses were feeling their best and I was so focused on the growth of my business that I forgot about the other CEO’s of my business – MY horses. 

I felt so stuck in my journey when it came to my growth and connection with my horses. Obviously I spent time with them on a daily basis because I live with my horses, but it wasn’t intentional. I was stuck in the motions of just feeding them and caring for them, but I wasn’t setting aside time to connect with them. I told myself I just didn’t have time, but in reality I wasn’t making time. My priorities were backwards. I was blinded and stuck in a time warp of avoidance, shame, guilt, and thoughts that never turned into actions. 

I found myself repeatedly saying, “I’m going to spend time with my horses tomorrow” or “I’m going to start training after I get through my stack of client evaluations and reports.” I was always making excuse after excuse and before I knew it, weeks had passed by that I never got around to spending time with them beyond feeding and grooming. The pile of client inquires and evaluations just kept piling and all of my energy was pouring into clients – horses and humans. But I didn’t realize it and I thought it was what I had to do to be “successful.” 

But something I realized was that I should never have to sacrifice time with my horses to be successful – that’s not what success looks like to me and my goal is to have MORE time with my horses, not less. But one of the biggest mistakes I made was assuming I just had more time. I was constantly assuming that time was abundant and I would have “all the time in the world” to spend time with them. I could just do it tomorrow or when busy season was “over.”

But at the end of the day, when reality hit, I realized I didn’t have all the time in the world. 

On June 13th, 2022 my heart horse Orion suddenly passed away. This was the hardest day of my life. The horse that has been with me through it all – the horse that started this business with me – was suddenly gone. I never expected him to leave so soon. I don’t think any of us expect our horses to leave us so soon, but Orion was so strong. He was my little angel that I thought I was going to have for years to come. And because of this, I took advantage of our time together. I always thought I had so much time to spend with him and if I could just get through the busy season, I could spend all day with him. 

But I was wrong and I quickly realized this mindset was so toxic and unhealthy – it was spinning me in circles of unproductivity and I was wasting the time I did have. 

Suddenly, I no longer had “all the time in the world” to spend time with him. I no longer had years to train behaviors and have fun with him. I no longer had hundreds of days to do bodywork on him and care for him with my whole heart and attention. Everything changed in that moment. In less than 24 hours, he was gone and tomorrow, next week, next month, and next year were no longer in the picture. I was out of opportunities and “I was out of time.”

It was in that moment that I realized I needed to change things. I needed to change my perspective, my priorities, and my goals. As much as I absolutely love helping client horses, I realized I couldn’t help clients until I took care of myself and my horses. I couldn’t truly fulfill my work at my full potential until my horses and I felt our best and I continuously created a connection with them.

It was in that moment that I realized it wasn’t healthy for me to live in my work. It wasn’t healthy for me to struggle so much with finding energy and time to spend with my own horses – I didn’t have my priorities straight. I was putting client work first because I had “deadlines” and strict schedules for them. I had obligations and I didn’t have the mindset of “I have all the time in the world” to get them done so I put them first. I put my work above my health, my horses health, and my family. I was blinded by what truly mattered.

But I realized that I needed to make a shift and it was time for me to start my healing journey so I could show up with everything I had for my horses and my clients. Everything changed for me and my eyes were opened to the importance and delicacy of time.

So while losing my precious Orion has been the hardest thing in the world. It was the wake up call I needed to help me slow down and find balance in what matters most. I take every day moment by moment, breath by breath, to fully take in the beautiful gift of life. I have been learning how to put my health at the top of my priority list and slow down to spend intentional time building a stronger relationship and connection with my horses and it is such a beautiful way of living. No moment should ever be taken for granted and time is not endless like we think.

So the next time you tell your horse that you will spend more time with them tomorrow or you will start riding or training with them consistently again next week, stop yourself and do it TODAY. Even if you just do it for 5 minutes – at least you’re starting. Rearrange your priorities and find a consistent routine that allows you to enjoy your horses. It doesn’t need to be everyday all day – all it needs to be is consistent. 

Take an hour out of your morning and just go sit with your horse today. Take an hour out of your afternoon to go do some training sessions. Take an hour out of your evening to go offer them some herbs and do bodywork. I don’t care which one you decide, but just pick something. Go spend time with your horses because you don’t know when they will be gone. Time is a precious thing and we should never take it for granted. Whether we realize it or not, tomorrow is not guaranteed, so go do it today. 

You don’t have to choose between work and horses. You don’t have to choose between success, rest, and horses. You can find a balance in everything you do with a healthy mindset and perspective – with the right intentions, priorities, and awareness of healthy boundaries.

The Author…