The most important blue ribbon that I didn't even win

Scroll back a few posts and you'll see that Soon and I went to Upperville this year.  Not only did we go to Upperville, we jumped clear, Soon made his jumper rounds look like hunter rounds, and he seemed very relaxed and happy in the big horse show atmosphere.  All that for a horse who had only shown off the property twice before that.  Suffice it to say, it was a huge gamble from a training perspective, and it paid off.

I received something today from my wonderful friend, Kim.  Something that will have a special place in my house and in my heart.

We only did the schooling jumpers, just to be safe and keep things fun.  Basically, if you go double clear (no jumping faults, no time) in the schooling jumpers, you get a blue ribbon.  Soonie and I jumped clear, but because I was using this experience as a schooling opportunity, we kept things slower and smoother, and just focused on the experience.  That's the verbose way of saying that we had time faults both days, so we didn't get a ribbon.  That's fine, because I walked away with a happy horse, good experiences for him, a memorable weekend with my friends in hunt country, and a smile on my face.  I didn't need a ribbon to know that was a successful show.

But, it wasn't like I didn't want a ribbon.  Because ribbons.

Kim and Scotty went double clear in both their rounds, so they won two blue ribbons!  And because of her incredible generosity and thoughtfulness, she gave one of them to me today.  It's one of the most important blue ribbons I have ever received, and I didn't even win it.

Soon and I stretched ourselves to get to Upperville.  So did Kim and the two horses she brought.  It was a hard few weeks preparing, and the days there were long.   But we had fun and we all learned a lot.  We worked our asses off for those couple of days at Upperville, playing in the big kids' sandbox.  And it was worth every second.  I felt like because of my job and uncertain future, this might be our one shot at competing at Upperville.  I've wanted to ride at Upperville since I was a kid.   This was a real dream come true for me.  Soonie made that happen.

So while we didn't win this ribbon, Kim was kind enough to point out that Soonie and I earned it.  It is a gift from a friend who I can never thank enough for her kindness, support, and generosity.  It will memorialize not just our efforts to get to Upperville and what happened there, but also our time here at this farm.  It represents our time with our family here.  That means more to me than just a standing in a class or even a horse show ever will.