Little things matter...

There are those times in life where you are not sure if anyone notices the "little things" that you do.  For example, Mothers who cook and clean; Fathers who work and keep their families safe; people who always ask you how it's going, etc.  The list of "little things" can go on quite a ways.  I was reminded of this lesson this past weekend at work.  God knows how to get my attention and often gives me examples through working with horses.  At Alamar Acres, we recently acquired two foals, one filly (Hope) and one colt (Buster).  They were very shy and unsure of everything when they first came here.  Even though we only had them for about a month (donated them to His Ranch), they were beginning to calm down-I just didn't notice it so much.  Little by little by handling them gently and touching them all over to get them use to hands, I slowly worked on getting them to trust being touched by humans.  I really didn't think I was doing anything or getting anywhere as it seemed like they would always get to a point where they would shift and jump out of my hands reach.  I really didn't think we were connecting well.  Were these little methods even working?  On the day they left Alamar Acres, I got my answer.  Buster wouldn't load into the trailer, so they asked me if I would try to load the filly, Hope to see if Buster would follow her in if she went.  I talked to her gently as I did everyday and congratulated her when she stepped one foot into the trailer following me all the way in!  Wow!  Did she just follow me in here?  Meanwhile, Buster is still refusing to go in for Alan so Mary Ann suggested I give it a try.  Guess what?  He followed me right in too!  Haha!  I was amazed that they wanted to trust me after what seemed like I was doing nothing!  So, yes, the little things really matter.  I thought this experience was very cool and it made my day.  Now, I miss the little buggers since I know that they did really like me!  :)