I wrote in my journal for the first time today after a week of being on the ranch. I brought it in hopes that I would journal after each day and make sure I put my thoughts to paper. That hasn’t happened until now because for the first week I’ve been adjusting to how freaking tired I am by the end of the day (not that writing in a journal takes that much effort, but anyways..) So I thought I’d post a portion of my first journal entry with my little blogosphere, because it is an observation I made and something that I think is worth sharing:

Working one on one with this little girl who is on the autism spectrum has been stretching me and helping me grow in ways that are challenging, and wonderful. Her face lights up when she sees the horses, and she runs over to me with her helmet already on ready to go. She is instantly tranquil the moment she makes contact with a horse, and gives it sweet hugs and kisses. She squeals with excitement when I ask her if she is ready to ride. I have learned that with autism, everything is amplified. Sounds, colors, surroundings, and sometimes it can just be too much. But this little girl, she tunes in. She is in sync with these horses and they can feel her. When the horse chews, she walks right up to their mouth and presses her ear up to it simply to feel the vibration. When she is on her back, she slides her hands down the horses neck so gracefully and listens to the breath. It truly is a beautiful thing to witness this connection I have never seen before, or maybe have never taken the time to notice. The horse is a therapeutic animal if you allow it to be. Just after two days, I am learning from this little girl how to tune in to your own surroundings, and just listen. I am currently sitting in a garden with horses in a pasture directly in front of me, hearing a dozen different birds chirp and horses grazing. I am a little bit sunburned, a little bit dirty, and extremely tired, but I am happy and so very grateful for this experience.