Welcome to the New Year

By Mary Gallagher

Sugar and friends

Saying 'so long' to 2018.  If ever there was a year of challenges—extreme ups and downs, deep happiness as well as real sadness—2018 was that year. As a result, this year's letter is a bit longer...

For me, with every challenge there followed reflection on why something had happened, and on whether it could have been different. And after sad events, thankfully, came healing and growth. At times the difficulties truly seemed like bullets striking home, one after another. On reflection, though, each painful 'bullet' brought with it the opportunity to heal old wounds and resolve old memories of similar experiences, as if the present situation had brought with it a kind of cleansing rain.

Thankfully, because of all those challenges and the process of getting through them, we leave 2018 enriched, with many growth opportunities ahead, and so much to remember. I have promised myself, as I write this, to try to do justice to the memories as well as the opportunities, but I hope the reader will be kind if I have missed anything, as it's especially daunting to wrap my arms around all of it!

Equestrian Lifestyle at Freedom Farm: Feet First

By Jerry Schmidt and Mary Gallagher

A natural lifestyle is the foundation of our horses' health at Freedom Farm. Foundational to that is the care of their feet, which are, without exception, barefoot. It's a great first topic of this series on natural equestrian lifestyle. -MG


Our boarding and training business, dedicated to keeping horses in a more natural environment, is a huge undertaking in the horse industry today. The way our horses live – moving barefoot with a herd, enjoying access to natural grasses and hay 24/7 – is not how horses are typically cared for, especially if you have competition aspirations. Yet that is how our horses live and compete: barefoot and in a herd environment.

Inspiration: years of lessons!

By Michelle Grimmer

I have been riding for 33 years, and during this time I have always taken lessons. Am I a sucky rider that just doesn't get it? Do I have difficulty retaining what I learn? Maybe I'm just not very coordinated. Actually, I think I do ok. That said, there are always new things to learn, and new ways to get from point A to point B. Just about the time that I think I've figured it out, I get on a new horse that needs a different way of doing things, or a horse I ride all the time presents me with new

Inspiration: Creating a Program for Yourself

By Michelle Grimmer

Well, it's getting close to the end of summer, and everyone has been doing great work with their horses. I am truly inspired by the progress I am seeing! Just today, Tucker (Jess' horse) learned how to do a half-pass, which turned into HUGE improvements in his canter transitions. Marilyn's horse, Dallas, gets softer and more balanced every week. Mary's girl, Regan is just about ready to jump a small house, and Charlie trots like he is floating on air.

Lesson Notes: Achieving Goals and Having Fun

by Mary Gallagher

As I muse over my teaching and training life at Freedom Farm I feel deeply grateful for having Kenny Hall as one of my trainers. So many things have become clear since we began my fitness journey. Even better, the things I have discovered in myself are true for my horse.

Great Coaching

By Thomas Gallagher

I have been musing on the role of coaching in my own life, early on with equestrian trainer Jimmy Williams, and more recently with Kenny Hall, my personal trainer at Anytime Fitness. I asked my son Thomas, an offensive lineman at Georgetown University, to share his view on the role of coaching in achieving our aspirations not only in physical fitness, but in general. -MG

Humans are extraordinary beings; courageous, proud and resilient. Often times we hear stories of ordinary people performing great feats of strength, speed, bravery, compassion and so on. However these qualities both physical and mental are not inherent to humans. Environment is a key foundation, and people, like any great monument, need a base.

Inspiration: George Morris

by Michelle Grimmer

My first personal encounter with George Morris was about 10 years ago. He was in Toronto doing a coaching seminar, and I volunteered to be part of the "ring crew." We were there to help adjust jumps, and to pick jumping rails up if a horse knocked them down. Simple enough job... except for the immense pressure one is under when setting fences for the Pope of Modern English Riding. I was standing not too far from a jump that seemed to come down way too often.

Inspiration

by Michelle Coleman Grimmer

Mary asked the other day, "Where does Michelle go for inspiration?" Well, that opens up a big can of worms right there. Inspiration is everywhere!



I have been very fortunate in my life to have access to some great riding instruction from the very beginning, in 1981, to the present time. Each instructor has given me things to think about, techniques to add to my Rolodex of horsey knowledge. Some items are used in my daily riding and teaching, and some items are filed away for possible future use. Some are immediately filed under the "NEVER EVER do this" heading. There are always new things to learn!