It was too beautiful an afternoon to ride in the ring. Everything was quiet. There was only one car of walkers parked near the trail (which I hoped meant no loose dogs), and the trails beckoned.

Up until now I’ve been playing it very safe. If I ride alone, I’ve stayed on property. But I’ve been restless.

Today, I looked at the mounting block. My beautiful three step mounting block. I moved it on Sunday so I could ride Freedom out on the trail and it sat, next to the barn, beckoning me. To ride Zelda in the ring would involve schlepping it to the back field. Obviously, the choice was clear. I needed to take her out on the trails.

Zelda agreed. She was not in the mood for working in circles, bending and unbending, transitioning from one gait to another. She wanted to take a walk in the woods. Her enthusiasm waned a bit when the bugs

came out (she’s a sensitive soul), but we both enjoyed the sun on our faces, the absolute verdant green of the trees and the grass, and the odd sighting of a deer off in the distance.

We were only out for a half an hour but the freedom of leaving the safety of the ring felt like an expanding universe.