Seasons Greetings from Amazing Backcountry !
No doubt everyone is familiar with being busy this time of year. I recently spoke to someone who dreads this time of year because it becomes hectic; malls are crowded and people are, for lack of a better word, intense.
But stress isn’t what the season is about. The season is traditionally about celebrating the birth of Jesus, and in that we celebrate family, friends and togetherness. In my sometimes naive way of thinking, Christmas is like Thanksgiving. In the eight hours I put on the highway the other day hauling horses in two different trailers–both of which were loaned to me, I had plenty of time to contemplate what I was going to sit down and write this morning. Invariably my thoughts kept drifting to the people that have helped me out this year.
I was in fact, almost six hours late on my drive home. Given the events that delayed my departure: truck troubles, trailer troubles and an impromptu three hour horse training session, I was prepared for another disaster or delay on the way home. Bring it on, I thought. But I had a smile on my face; I was heading home. My drive was uneventful, save for a highway closure (police all over) and some patches of dense fog. Thinking of hungry horses and a dog in the house whose bladder was probably aching, I called a friend of mine who lives nearby. He didn’t hesitate to drive all the way over to my place and take care of things.
This past year has been busy but exciting. Amazing Backcountry has big plans to restructure in 2015 to offer some great new services to members, including 2-day horsemanship / obstacle course clinics in the summer…but more on that later. The home ranch is coming along with new fences and paddocks, landscaping, a new roof on the barn, a new horse obstacle course, an arena, new flooring in the house and of course…more horses! Given the age of the property, renovations take much longer; starting one project inevitably means the start of many other projects which must be completed before the project of your original intent can even begin.
If you’ve renovated an old place, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
The construction zone, which basically covers the entire property, is also my home and home to all my horses, boarded horses and horses in for training. It takes a bit of coordination to keep all things flowing smoothly.
More than that, it takes help. There is no way I could have accomplished the things I did this year by myself. I would still by hanging fence rails, pulling old barbed wire out of the bush and pounding fence posts if it wasn’t for the support I received. I’d be using my cell phone as an internet modem if I wasn’t able to borrow a bucket truck to mount the dish on the barn. My sheds would still be leaking if I didn’t have help re-roofing them.
But it doesn’t stop there.If you read my last article, Bonds with Horses, you’re familiar with how poor Ty has struggled this year. Honestly, I don’t think he would be around if it wasn’t for the folks that supported me in his recovery: rushing over to provide emergency therapy, offering guidance and supplement suggestions. Not to mention the folks and the vet that attended him when he was discovered on the ground. Nor the long list of veterinarians, nutritionists and therapists that have supported us over the years.
And as I mentioned above: trailers. My trailer has decided it doesn’t like me any more. Now that I think about it, I believe it made that decision 10 years ago when it rolled out of the factory. Twice stranded in Athabasca, I’m only home with the horses I was hauling because of some great people that were willing to lend me their trailers to get home.
And I think that is a key word: home.
I was smiling during the long drive because I knew what awaited me: a dog jumping around with joy at my return, sharing space with relaxing horses that simply ooze peace and contentment save for Chip, who, when I’ve been gone for a while wants nothing more than to play with me. But that just makes me laugh; he’s a character, and quite possibly an equine mirror of me. Those animals make our home a warm, comfortable place.
I’ve been on the new property now for a year and a half. I’ll probably be the new guy on the block for the next 30 years, but when I went into the local hardware the other day I realized that the staff and I know each other on a first name basis.
I never leave that establishment without sharing a coffee and a joke or a laugh. It is comfortable, and little things like that makes home, well–home.
In the end, it comes down to horses. Ty, Belle, Spud, Chip, Ponkey and Bailey provide the framework that I exist in. If it wasn’t for those horses, I’m really not sure where, or what, home would be. Of course the new property and all the construction is part of a business plan, but it also provides a needed home for those horses. Their safety, comfort and well being are, and will always be, at the top of my priority list. That work pays off because on a daily basis those horses provide hope, understanding, fun, play and laughter, trust, faith, joy and peace.
And that’s a fairly accurate description of Christmas too, isn’t it?
Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas,
Scott Phillips
December 2014