Category Archives: Stories from the Heart

I survived my first summer in Florida. I didn’t think I would since I barely survived summers in New Jersey, where I moved from last November. I came here to...

A few days after my 30-year-old gelding passed away, my neighbor—a mother in her 40's who grew up on a farm before moving to our suburban community—observed my leather Dover...

Some people vacation on beaches or go skiing in the mountains. Others hop across the pond and chug ale out of steins while noshing on bangers and mash. Some even engage...

"Don't be so hard on yourself." As equestrians, and people, we tend to hear the above phrase a lot. However, for many of us, it seems like it has become nothing but...

In March of 2014, Jamie 'Dodge' Manning's life changed forever. The rancher and rodeo rider from Dubbo, Australia, was driving home to his farm when his sport utility vehicle veered...

I was tired when I arrived at the barn to ride. I had already been running with the dogs, gone to yoga, and I hadn’t slept well. My thoughts had...

In the spring of 1965, I was 12 years old and starting to win lots of ribbons with my horse, Hootenanny, at the Delaware Valley Horseman’s Association (DVHA) horse shows...

Horse owners get a lot of questions from curious "outsiders" about horse ownership, horses themselves, and the “bond” between horse and rider. I am frequently asked if my horses are...

https://youtu.be/-O50Ux-tHnM Rosco and Pacman are both wild horses born free in Arizona’s Tonto National Forest. The foals were abandoned by the herd and nature can be unforgiving for horses in...

We have all been in a trust exercise at some point in our lives. Your boss gathers your coworkers, or the RA your freshman year of college gathers your fellow undergrads,...

When I was two years old, my father put me on a horse and told me to hold on to the horn. Then he taught me how to kick to...

A dear friend and intuitive healer used to say that adversity, sorrow and suffering are actually gifts of manure. She explained to me long ago, that in times of hardship,...

The horse show circuit can be a bit of a bubble for junior riders. Sure, there are plenty of fancy horses to go along with those long days, early mornings,...

I went on vacation last week, and as a guilty pleasure, picked up one of my moms romance novels. It was titled “Love The One You’re With” by Emily Giffin,...

We got a call one cold winter night from the US Forest Service. Apparently, they'd heard that I'm a softie for any person or animal in need because the caller...

I lost my best friend a couple months ago. Dutch and I were a team. From the second I sat on him, I knew he was the one. I believe...

It began as so many things in Julie Lockwood’s life have begun. It was an opportunity to help a fellow human being; a friend and former training client that was in...

"Bella burst into the world in the early hours of the 16th of October, 2015 on the farm. Her six-year-old shetland mum, Rosie, was completely unaided. No one even knew...

On June 12th, renowned horse trainer Mark Russell suffered a catastrophic neck injury while hosting a clinic in Massachusetts. The accident occurred as Russell was working a young horse. He...

Most of the mustangs who become part of the Florence Prison Wild Horse Inmate Progam have never been touched by human hands before, at least not voluntarily. Their first interactions...