On the Road to Reddick

Sonny and I left for Reddick, Florida today. We are headed to the Parelli Center to attend a four week Fast Track program to study Parelli Natural Horsemanshipä and while our physical trip got underway today, the journey actually began three years ago.
Its been three years now since I began working at the horse rescue. Shortly after I began working there, our director, Elena DiSilvestro invited me to attend a Parelli even in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. I’d never heard of Pat Parelli and didn’t know anything about natural horsemanship but I was intrigued by Elena’s enthusiasm for this unknown (to me) horse trainer. Unfortunately, I had a conflict and wasn’t able to attend the event, but Elena lent me a series of DVDs that explained the most basic level of the Parelli method
After watching the DVDs and reading about Parelli on the internet, I was curious enough to purchase the basic tools, a rope halter and 12’ line and a carrot stick and 6’ string and begin experimenting with Sonny. For several weeks, I played Parelli's Seven Games with Sonny and was amazed at the change it created in his responsiveness and our relationship. Before long I was hooked.
After attending several clinics with five-star Parelli instructor Carol Coppinger and taking weekly lessons with my local Parelli instructor Jane Bartsch, I really wanted to take my horsemanship to the next level by attending a class at one of the Parelli Centers in the USA but I just couldn't seem to figure out the logistics. My mother, who is a spry 87 years old, lives with me and she doesn't really like to be alone for long periods of time. I had considered taking her with me to Florida while I took a course but the idea of leaving her alone from 7 am to 7 pm each day while I was attending classes and playing with Sonny just didn't seem like the right thing to do.
Then this spring I received an e-mail from Parelli Central that was about to change my life. The e-mail announced that there were a small number of scholarships available for Fast Track programs at the Parelli Centers. Interested parties were encouraged to use the on-line application. I casually mentioned this to my mother and she immediately encouraged me to apply. When I told her that I thought it wouldn't be much fun for her to be hanging around a hotel room day after day while I attended classes, she told me not to worry, we'd figure something out.
So I filled out the application and then pretty much forgot about it until early August when I opened my e-mail one day and found an e-mail from Parelli University. I was almost afraid to open the message but when I did, the first word I saw was "Congratulations!" I had been accepted to the Fast Track program and granted a partial scholarship. It took a few minutes for the message to sink in but when it did, I grabbed my phone, called Jane Bartsch and gushed out, "The most wonderful thing has happened. I've been give a scholarship to the November Fast Track program. There were over 1200 applicants. I don't know why they picked me but I am definitely going!"
And that's how Sonny and I came to be on the road to Reddick, Florida. Because I don't own a horse trailer, Sonny is being moved by Brook Ledge transportation. When the Brook Ledge tractor trailer pulled down Rowan Farm's driveway this morning, I realized that Sonny was going to have a more comfortable ride to Florida than I was. Sonny's been in stock trailers and two horse trailers but he had never seen anything like the Brook Ledge 18 wheel tractor trailer with it steep, wooden paneled ramp. But being the good Parelli partner that he is, he walked right up the ramp and settled into his box stall without any hesitation. I slipped him a horse cookie and patted him on the nose before surrendering him to the care of the very nice Brook Ledge employees. Then I jumped into my car and headed south.
As I write this, I am sitting in an hotel room in Emporia, Virginia, just a few miles north of the North Carolina boarder. According to MapQuest, it is an 11 hour drive from Emporia to Reddick. I should be reunited with Sonny in Reddick by Friday. And on Saturday, I hope to attend an open house at the Parelli Center to get an idea of what the campus is like. We start our adventure on Monday and I plan to keep a journal of our progress. So if you would like to join Sonny and I on our journey, keep an eye on my blog and I will be posting regular reports.