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| Quintas (left) Vivienne (right) Mauna Kea (everywhere else) |
Guardian of Forever: "Well, that's because this is tomorrow's paper. You're 'still very much alive' today. But by all means, continue wasting time."
(Temporal insights from the writers of "Star Trek Discovery")
***
It's good to learn new things.
Especially things you never imagined you'd do, ever—because why would you?
Random example: I never imagined becoming a runner. Why would I? Did I even like running? I DID NOT.
I did enjoy lunchtime basketball and weights, though, a routine that served very well for a long time.
Until I tore an ACL, which required surgery and a year of recovery.
That year gave me lots of time to ponder the need for more basketball in my life. Very few of those deliberations ended with, "Yes, more hoops for Peter Pan, please!"
So, after 25 years, I quit—and learned to love running [insert a couple years of ambivalence here].
In time, infatuation turned to passion turned to compulsion. Solo 5k runs became 10k group runs, half marathons, whole entire marathons, and eventually ultra marathons.
It was even fun sometimes!
Then came a pandemic, and a move to an island, and a shredded meniscus. More months of recovery.
In the interim, horses entered our lives. I mean, they didn't just wander into our yard—we went out and got them. Intentionally.
A couple of them we bought to train alongside and ride—the rest are rescues from kill pens on the mainland, because humans are awful.
Every one came to us with a mystery bag full of trials and trauma—learning how to speak horse and listen to their stories has become a worthy and lifelong archeological project.
Equally important are the complementary skills I never imagined I'd need, but are now mandatory. Among the many:
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| Get busy living, get busy driving. |
* How to load an agitated horse into a trailer at a bustling airport
* How to calmly drive a truck pulling a horse trailer with horses inside
Full disclosure: that last thing still makes me anxious, every time. These creatures found their way from a kill pen to a sanctuary to an airport on the mainland to an airport on an island in the middle of an ocean—and somehow they end up with me as their Uber driver? The gods have an odd sense of humor sometimes.
I'd like to say years of getting comfortable being uncomfortable prepared me for such challenges...but I'm not sure I can.
Either way, I'm learning—because it's a requirement for doing things we never imagined, while we're still able.
Do I need more marathons in my life? I'm no longer certain. The universe has a way of sending us in directions we never considered—maybe our job is simply to be ready for that when it happens.
And, whenever possible, not to squander the time in between.
Loving Wife: "Quintas has his vet check Monday. If all goes well, Michael will own his first horse at the ripe age of 62."
Hilarious friend Ruth: "62? A youngster! It’s never too late to find out if you have osteoporosis!"
Hilarious friend Ruth: "62? A youngster! It’s never too late to find out if you have osteoporosis!"
