[Phase 3] Glimpse Into The Future

To say the Loshenka Makeover was easy would be a lie. Eliza had her ups and downs like everybody else. The rescue palomino received from the group had proven to be difficult. But at the same time, she was the most loving mare that Eliza had ever received. It was enough to push Eliza to make this mare the best version of herself. There were bumps in the road, like most things in Eliza's life. Nothing could ever go smoothly for the Caldwells, it seemed like.

But for once in her life, something was going smoothly.. The training on the makeover mare was going better than she had honestly expected it would've gone. It had taken some time for Eliza to get the burrs out of the cream colored tail. Something that was once so beautiful. The mare had snorted and pawed the ground so many times, telling Eliza off every chance she got. Eventually, Eliza got her tail fully brushed and back to its old glory. It was roughly after phase 2 when she finally got it brushed out.  Eliza had taken her time with the mare, going slow when she needed to. Near the end of her tail, Eliza was able to brush the palomino mare's tail quickly.

If you asked Eliza herself, the thing that gave her the most trouble with the mare had to be the face shyness. When they have that issue, it's challenging to work with them. You can't halter or bridle them when they get that way, making their life at the stables difficult. This problem of the makeover mare was the bigger issue of the two to work through. Eliza had been butted at least a handful of times. You would've thought at some point she would learn to move her head and avoid the mares, right? That wasn't the case for Eliza, it had seemed. There was one time that Eliza thought her nose was broken, and at that moment, she wanted to give the mare back to the rescue. She was ready to call it quits and give up. But no, she pushed through, telling herself it wasn't the mare's fault. None of this was the mare's fault; no, it was the lesson barn's fault. For never giving the time to groom the lesson horses, and the children rushing through everything.

It took time, like everything else; if you're patient enough, you'll work through any issue. That was the motto Eliza kept repeating in her mind day in and day out. Beating the issue of being head shy was the hardest problem Eliza had dealt with. Heck, she got the mare's tail cleaned and burr free before the head shyness. It was cutting close to the deadline before we got that issue fixed. But there wasn't much Eliza backed away from; she was just too stubborn to walk away from the mare. While it may have taken some time, the 'little' Palomino tobanio mare was issue-free. She was able to be haltered, bridled, and scratched under the chin with no issues.

Once the makeover was completed, it came down to where the mare would go and what her future would be like. Would Eliza keep the mare, sell her, or something along those lines? It was something that was eating up Eliza, considering how much the pair had bonded through fixing her issues. On top of that, she had done so well adjusting to her new surroundings in Eliza's barn, Shady Grove Stables. The mare had fit into Eliza's herd while bonding with one of Eliza's favorite mares, Feya. It wouldn't make sense to do anything with the mare but keep her. So, that is what Eliza decided to do: keep the Palomino mare.

Some time had passed after the makeover, and it was a dewy morning that day in late summer. Eliza had rolled out of bed earlier than normal, so she decided to tack one of the horses up for a ride. After letting the horses eat their breakfast, she scanned the stalls in the mare's barn. Who was she going to tack up for a small trail ride in the morning? A few of her mares had popped their heads out to see what the commotion was after eating. Then the palomino stuck her head out, giving Eliza a soft little nicker. That little noise had settled it for Eliza, and she walked up to her stall with a halter. Something that would've sent the mare to the back of her stall instead, she was watching the rider with such gentle eyes.

Sliding open the stall door, Eliza stepped into the mare's space, whispering sweet nothings to the mare. "Hey girl, you wanna go for a ride?" Eliza said, patting the mare's neck as she walked up to her.

The mare turned her head and gently sniffed Eliza's hand that held the halter. Instead of freaking out, she just ignored the object that she knew would eventually rest on her face. Eliza gently placed the halter on the mare and led her out of the stall. Tying her up at a hook so she could groom her and tack her up at some point. Grabbing her grooming box, Eliza grabbed her curry brush and ran it slowly down the mare's body. Breaking up the mud that had accumulated from the rain that had fallen in the last few days. Once it was broken up enough, she took the bristle brush to get the dry mud off the coat. A few absent-minded brushes later, she was done with her body. Now came the task of her face, which wasn't a problem. Eliza grabbed the brush she used for her horses' faces, the bristles were extremely soft so as not to bother them.

It went as well as Eliza had thought it would, as the mare was gentle now with her face. "There you go, girl," Eliza whispered as she ran the brush over the mare's cheekbone. Not even a flinch from the mare while her face was being messed with. A gentle pat on the palomino mare's nose as Eliza finished up. Next, she grabbed some detangler and a hairbrush for the mare's tail. After a few quick spritzes, Eliza ran the hairbrush through the mare's tail. Taking a step back, she observed the mare in front of her. One that you couldn't even approach with a halter was now standing still like a good citizen while being groomed. There was a time when you couldn't even brush her tail from how tangled it was with burrs.  Now the mare stood there and allowed her tail to be brushed even while it was clean.

After a quick tacking up, Eliza and the mare were ready to head off on the trials. Stepping up on the mounting box, Eliza swung up into the western saddle with a gentle plop in the seat. Gathering up her reins, she walked past her turnouts towards the weeping willows she had on her property. The patch of them was further back in her property, versus the ones lining her driveway. Eliza enjoyed sitting under the willows in the back while reading a book. Which is what she had planned on doing while she had the mare grazed with her.

Glancing around, Eliza sighed softly at the sunrise and morning fog while the pair of them gently walked towards the back of the property. Looking down at the mare's bare neck, she patted it softly with a smile. "This is the life, isn't it, girl?" Even though her voice was soft, the mare's ears swiveled listening to the rider on her back.

As the pair walked down the dirt path leading to the willows, Eliza observed her surroundings. The soft creaking of the leather saddle, the songs the birds were singing, and then finally her riding the mare she could barely halter at one point. Keeping a soft grip on the reins, Eliza chuckled to herself.

"I guess this means I need to name you now, doesn't it, girl. If I'm going to keep you and all," Eliza softly smiled while patting the mare once more as they rode up to the willows.