Leo Clement

Somedays, you have to take the bull by the horns. (Or cat..by the tail?) Give it a good shake, maybe lay it down in the grass and brand it with whatever sign means courage to you. Something that burns, stings, and fries all that junk clogging up the pathways in your brain and heart. It's about taking that final plunge, everyday, over and over, especially when it doesn't get easier with frequency. And then somedays it's about letting all the worry, anxiety, fear, and just plain ole tiredness be what it is, but gently, every lightly, rising above it. Sometimes it takes violence and sometimes, just a gentle bump, to get all that stuff away. Which approach on which day? How can I discern what needs to be done, and how? You gotta be your own EMT. You have to triage your heart; your brain, and probably your soul too. Because if you don't who will? Who is better equipped with the inner workings of yourself then you?  And then when you get do

Another day, and all is well at Camp Leo. Our days are busy and slow all at the same time. School has started up for Sister Bear (1st grade, what the wha?!), and it feels like summer is coming to a close. Although Justin keeps telling me September isn't winter yet, I shouldn't freak, yet every changing leaf that falls is blown down by a bittersweet wind. Vermont summers are a flash in the pan. Brief, sometimes stormy, always glorious, and every second must be savored. The horses know it. The grass gets sparse, and they slow down, picking and choosing their favorite patch, trying to make it last a little longer. They also look to us humans more, knowing that as winter rolls in, they will depend on us to keep them safe and warm. I can almost see them re-evaluate their relationships with each other, and with me. I like to call it the process of centering. It is a process of gathering all your bits and ends that got stretched out and forgotten during the often hectic su