As I stooped to pick up yet another pile of sticks while cleaning up the trails my dad has been cutting through the woods on our property, I thought to myself, “this is what being a horse person is all about.”

Horses and farms are glamorized in movies and books. I am constantly posting pretty pictures of my family’s farm on Instagram, and many people think that I live this perfect, idyllic life of beautiful scenery and animals. But the truth is, this life is a lot of hard work. I am dirty more than I am clean, I am nearly always sore from heavy lifting, digging, and more. I come inside with grass falling off of me after mowing hay fields for four hours straight. Farm life is tough. It is physically exhausting at times. And the work is endless. Once one thing is done, another chore is there to take its place – especially since we are still clearing and building. But then once everything is finished, horses (and other animals) will be out here and there will be a different kind of work every day.

That being said, there is a parallels between farm work and riding. Riding and training horses is essentially all about hard work. Not necessarily always physically demanding work, but hard work nonetheless. It take a lot of time and a strong work ethic to truly ride well, and train horses well.

I must say though, the work is worth it. It is worth it to wake up to a beautiful sunrise. It is worth it to have so much space. It is worth it to be able to see the sky. And I know that it will be worth it to have horses right outside my door.