Would you trade...?

After the most amazing play sessions with Walker this weekend, I had brushes with what perseverance can produce. Following literally years of time and effort, often seemingly to little or no affect, I had moments of  pure joy with Walker. Both online and bareback and bridle less, there was such a connection between us that at moments it seemed as though he was in my head reading my thoughts and I was in his head reading his thoughts. 

Our connectedness went beyond the feather lines we played with online, the savvy string hanging around his neck when I was riding or the cookies and scratches I gave Walker by way of saying, "You're right, good job!". There is now a trust he has in me, a trust I have with him, a mental connection I know is not easy for Walker to offer given his tendency to be naughty, contrary and mischievous. I thought "a little faster", he went faster, "a little slower", he went slower. Everything was so soft and light. When Pat talks about how Tom Dorrance wasn't interested in doing anything with his horses with anything more than a string, I really understood that this weekend, because there is such a joy when you are connected in such a fundamental way that you might not even need a string to move together.

Walker followed me around after our play sessions in ways he never has before. Once, when we were done, I opened the arena gate so Walker could mosey over to the water as I gathered some of my tools, and he did walk out of the arena. But instead of going over to the water, he stopped, turned around, and walked back into the arena, nuzzling right up next to me. He then proceeded to grab the feather lines off the hanging hooks and handing them to me. 

Now, he knew we were done, he could have left, I allowed him to do so, but he chose to come back to me and help me out with my tools. He may have realized I would give him cookies as a reward, but there was clearly more in it for him than just that. He wanted me close, I could feel he felt better being close to me. He wanted me to know he did not want our time together to be over just yet. 

And for the first time, he licked my hands, not small licks, but big, wet slobbering licks. He was doing everything he could to show me how much he was enjoying my company. We spent quite a long time just standing together, content. 

As we did finally mosey our way to the water trough, I realized that I would do it all again. For those few moments of that connection and joy, I would trade all the hours, days, weeks and months of struggle to gain those few precious moments. Never again will I doubt the process I have gone through to find those moments I have achieved with Walker. I don't doubt that at some point down the road, Maverick and I will have similar experiences, only faster.  I look forward to many more days like this like weekend.