W. C. Fields once said, "This old world is a very tough place and you're darn lucky if you can get out of it alive." And this world IS a very tough place indeed. We ALL have tough challenges. Tough challenges need tough optimism. Often it is easier said than done. Yet I always tend to take a deep breath and just PLUNGE forth. Sometimes I've PLUNGED BACKWARDS though, but sometimes, the plunge forth is sweet, oh so very amazingly sweet.
My last horse Patches was a foal in dire need of being rescued when he came into my life. How he came into my life is quite a story too, for a later blog. In the late 1980's following spine surgery I had to learn to walk again for the second time, but was darn grateful I could. Still there were severe complications, so I traveled to Johns-Hopkins to see the world renown Dr. Kopits, who devoted his career to Little People. That I got to see him at all was the result of a plunge I made. Due to the severity of my condition he asked if I could move to Baltimore. "Why yes, of course! I will go to my money tree! No problem!" I reminded him I came with a horse and cat package.😏 Financially there was just no way. Impossible.
After I returned to Kentucky I had this idea but shoved it away. Everything could go wrong. Yet the idea persisted. I would ride Patches 10 miles, involve the media, and seek pledges for each mile. If I plunged BACK trying all this the media would be right there to show it, so I HAD to shove the crazy idea aside.
Then I was given a nudge. More like a huge SHOVE. I was moving Patches from one farm to one closer to my home. One day, leaving the farm I still had him at, it suddenly came to me out of nowhere to clock the miles from one farm to the other. I did.
The distance...was...EXACTLY...10...MILES!
I took a deep breath and PLUNGED forth.
And what a plunging forth of faith it was! It HAD to be.
I contacted both the printed and television media. "You're doing WHAT?!!"😓
Since the first mile of The Ride involved riding down a 4 lane highway, I had to ask if police could assist. "You're doing WHAT?!!"😓
I only asked for and received promise of a few pledges prior to The Ride because everything depended upon actually DOING The Ride with the help of media.
Then the day came. Everybody showed up. Patches was only 2 years old when I did this, the deep bond we shared enabling us to embark on this amazing little journey at all escorted by police and a media entourage as we began. Aside from the traffic noise and two bridges...the one I thought Patches wouldn't have a problem with he did at first, and the one I thought would be a problem, wasn't. Other than that we completed it in 3 hours!
The newspaper and television pieces hit the next day. And then...AND THEN our journey REALLY took off! People were SO touched and inspired they couldn't get enough of us. No one could remember my name but they sure remembered "Patches!" I quickly became known as "the Patches lady!" With a business prior to The Ride, in the event donations did actually come in
we set up a trust fund, and the donations began pouring in.
Not all was monetary. Since I needed transportation to get Patches to Baltimore, one of the largest national horse transportation firms donated their services. Mechanics overhauled my car so I could get there too. A vet donated his fee to vet Patches with the paperwork needed to cross state lines. It went on and on.
Because of the keen interest in our amazing story the media kept coming to the farm to get more coverage of Patches and I, like the way he would come running to me when he heard me call him. The news pieces were lovely.
Yet it didn't stop in Kentucky. The Govenor of Maryland at that time learned about us and welcomed Patches and I to Maryland! In all, The Ride received just over $11,000.00 in money and donations. We were on our way.
All because I took a HUGE crazy leap of faith and plunged forth. And it all went FORTH...not BACK!😊
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