​Forward Momentum
 
She lost someone very special to her many moons ago, but somehow she felt like she had never recovered from such a devastating blow to her heart. She felt as though a piece of her identity had been taken away to a place no one knows very much about. Her heart aches daily but she tucks that away so deep inside her that few know it is even there.
 
She continues on day-after-day trying to make it look like everything is okay … but it’s not, she knows that. She knows she has done a good job making it look like everything is right as rain and for that she is very proud.
 
Then, one day, seemingly out of the blue, she comes upon a horse … that spiritual mystical animal sent here directly from heaven above she believes. She looks deep into his eye and sees a part of herself looking back at her that she has not seen in a very long time. All the tears, the heartache, the longing for her lost love, is acknowledged and released. Suddenly, she makes peace with the hurt and pain she has been living with all these years. She feels the pain begin to lift.
 
Finally … the ties that have been holding her back are gone, she is free to move forward.
 
Now she will tell you, Life is about moving forward … keeping your eye on a goal and setting out to achieve it. Learn from the past but don’t let those past tragedies, mistakes or unexpected setbacks keep you from being all that it is you can be.
 
Horseback riding is all about forward momentum as well.
 
Every time a rider gets up on a horse, that rider must be focused on the moment - acutely aware of all that is going around them and where they are headed. Personality issues, pre-occupations, conflicts and even grief, needs to be set aside or you simply will not be able to make that horse go forward.
 
And so it is, we invite any of you who may be suffering from the loss of a special loved-one, be it human, equine, canine, or feline, to join us for one of our Grief Groups run by the doctors of McCaskill Family Services.
 
No experience necessary. You don’t even have to get up on a horse if that doesn’t sound like something you want to do - but you can have a horse all to yourself for one hour so you can experience what this elusive ‘mystical magic’ has to offer you.
 
This post is dedicated to all those affiliated with the Palliative Care Program at the University of Michigan Hospital … we have built this Grief Group program with you mind. Hugs.
​

One day not so very long ago a few people got together and decided to make a dream come true. “Let’s build a place that will be a safe nurturing environment filled with love and understanding where people of all ages can gather together and encourage one another to be the best they can be - and lets do all this using the Spiritual Energy of horses.”
 
Less than 12 months later, as unbelievable as this may sound, we are 3 days into officially being open to the public for business, and already, the magic is beginning to happen.
 
This morning I was riding out in the arena and I knew we had a new customer coming in for an assessment lesson but there was plenty of available staff to greet them at the door so I continued to ride my horse. I knew Heather had this covered, but I did find it a little odd when Heather had not appeared with mom in the arena well after this young student’s lesson had begun. My guess was Heather was deep in conversation with mom out in the barn, because that’s what we do. We strive to create a nurturing environment where people feel welcomed and comfortable.
 
Sure enough,as I walked into the stable area, I saw mom and Heather chatting away. When I walked up, there was an instant connection between myself and this woman. You know the kind where you try to figure out where you have previously met. Turns out, we connected on so many different levels as we both have had a great deal of experience dealing with medically fragile children of our own. Casually she made a comment that touched my heart strings … “no one understands.”
 
That is exactly what we are trying to do with our Social Groups … we want to connect people in similar life circumstances through the love of riding horses.
 
Simply said, when you have walked in somebody’s shoes, it gives you a new perspective of understanding and I believe this world is full of people who just need someone to understand. This is the very idea and intention of the social groups we offer today and all the ones we plan to have in the future.
 
So as I bid good-bye to my new-found friend today, I couldn’t help but stop and reflect on that group of us so few months ago deciding to make a dream come true.
 
In the future, we hope to have groups like Think Pink for those whose lives have been touched by Breast Cancer; and our Hero Hour group for active military and vets; or our Special Siblings groups for kids who have medically fragile, or handicap brothers and sisters; the list goes on and on.
  
All in due time because here at the Brighton Equestrian Club we believe that everything we do, we do with excellence so until it can be done properly, we won’t rush to roll it out.
 
However, we do hope you continue to support us until we get there by taking riding lessons or doing social groups as this is going to be something very special … in fact … I think it already is.

I’m not sure which has been more overwhelming for me … building a 45,000 square foot, state-of-the-art Equestrian facility or trying to learn how to become social media savvy.
 
Followers, likes, tweets, hashtags, and bytes … please make it all stop!

They say all these hashtags will bring the people to the Brighton Equestrian Club, but I can’t help but wonder … is it really those hashtags or is there something bigger that will attract people to the BEC?
 
Earlier in my lifetime, I was lucky enough to be closely associated with the Neurosurgery Department at the University of Michigan’s C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The head of that Department is one of the most remarkable people you will every meet - all 5-foot-nothing of a woman who was born with Spina Bifida and decided she was going to dedicate her career to helping kids born like her live a more normal life. She is, in a word, incredible. And her team? Well they are incredible too. Like attracts like; a scientific theory I remember learning in High School. (Those are my kind of ‘likes’.)
 
When a group of like-minded individuals collaborate and produce, magic happens. It’s why we should all be looking for our group of ‘likes’.
 
Some people have to look a little harder than others because some of us, myself included, are fantastically unique! But never give up looking for your likes … it can take a lifetime to find them, but once you do … you will feel like you have finally arrived. I believe, when a group of like-minded individuals come together there is nothing they cannot achieve when they begin to collaborate and work as a team.

It is our hope at the Brighton Equestrian Club to build a place where an equally impressive group of people, will gather and find their likes. If you take a look at our core values, you will see things like Respect, Trust, Integrity, Faith, Hope and Love. If these things ring true to you, and you love horses, then you may have just found your likes at the Brighton Equestrian Club.
 
I invite you to become part of something that is very special in Southeastern Michigan. Learn to ride a horse, develop your self-confidence, reduce stress and anxiety, meet some likes, and become part of a club that is actually more of a family.
 
The Brighton Equestrian Club … making this world a better place at a soul-ular level.
 
#teamworkmakesthedreamwork #lifeisgood #toooldforhashtags #brightonequestrianclub #meetyourlikes #husbandsawthevisabill