Apparently there was a big storm last night but I slept through it and woke to a perfect morning. It was a very hot day and is still quite warm out with no wind (usually the winds whip up late afternoon and it cools down).
Started out with my usual breakfast of yogurt. Class was very good this morning. Although I was still a bit sore I wasn't as stiff. John did another inspiring introduction working through some basic ideas about mobility and based on the way that children learn to move and use their feet and hands and develop their muscle strength. All very interesting. Yesterday, John had pointed out that I need, among many other things, to work on my squatting so that I can put my heels down and stay balanced. Working with some of his tips I made some progress on this today and was able to do a modifiied and assisted Bhujapidasana -- very cool. And I think I now have a handle on Marichyasana A and can see myself being able to bind on my own sometime in the near future. John gave me a good instruction yesterday on focusing on my navel/midline that allowed me to get the depth I needed to begin to wrap my arm around my bent leg -- very very cool.
After class and a shower I had my usual toast and tea and settled in one of the lounge chairs to read and enjoy the weather.
Later in the afternoon I had a snack of carrots and celery and made a sauce with fresh boysenberries, lemons and a bit of sugar and had that with some yogurt.
At 5:30 Mayo, Hadie and I headed out in the car to find the horseback riding place where we had booked for a two hour "Sundowner" ride. (Mum -- you might want to shut down your email now!)
Mayo has been riding in Tokyo for 15 years but neither Hadie or I had been on a horse in many a year (nor am I likely to for many a year again).
Mayo was to ride Franke, Hadie to ride Dinky and I was to mount my trusted steed named Lawrie.We headed out passing distant hills with cashmere goats and fields of horses. Two of the equine stars of the "Lord of the Rings" movies were pasturing. A white one that was the horse ridden by the wizardy guy who was all in white (sorry Lord of the Rings fans for my lack of remembrance of names -- I will blame my loss of memory on Lawrie, but more on that in a bit) and a black one that was one of the horses for, you guessed it, the dark side.
Then we went down a path through the woods with eucalyptus trees and the native New Zealand tree that the Maori use for their reddish wood carvings (sorry have forgotten the name) and had a lovely ride down the river on the horses. That was cool.
Then we went up a path back to the lane that follows the river where things became not so cool for this rider. A car came along and instead of stopping to allow the horses to get up the path and on to the lane it decided to pass which spooked Lawrie and he turned and bolted down the gravel lane throwing me up and off. Luckily it happened so fast and I was so startled that I easily flew off and landed loosely, rather than being tense, on my right hip and did a specatular stuntman role down the gravel lane behind my fleeing steed. (Mum -- if you are still reading I did warn you!). I didn't even lose my glasses (thank god). The girl in the car was the teenaged daughter of the farm's owner and our guide was not best pleased at all. They patched me up with some bandages and antiseptic -- bit of a deep gash on the elbow, a large scrape up the forearm and a big scrape above my hip. Anyway, the owner's son, Hamish, came in the truck to take me back to the main office where I could sit in the garden while Hadie and Mayo finished the ride (albeit a shorter one) and I could hang out with some funny black bantams wearing yellow feather suits.
When Mayo and Hadie returned Mayo did about 10 more minutes of cantering -- she looked so at ease on her horse and smiling like crazy so that was nice to see.
Anyway we will see how stiff and sore and bruised I am in the morning. Lucy has give me some homeopathic medication to help bruising.
I think I will stick to dolphins, cats and black Labs from here on in. Although there is some paragliding and motor speedway action in the area (just kidding, mum).
Battered but not beaten in Upper Moutere...
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