Becoming ‘The Horse Girl’

Because… horses.

I am that girl. Everywhere I go, people introduce me with something along these lines, “This is Meagan. She rides horses.”

And we all know the clichés: people ask us how our latest horse race went when we are jumpers or team ropers and we just nod and smile because how do you even explain what we do to someone who has never seen us ride?

It’s not a stigma I will ever be able to escape and honestly, I don’t want to. I don’t mind the silly questions or the nicknames. My senior year in college I couldn’t go anywhere on campus without someone saying, “Oh! You are the jockey girl!” because I brought my horse on campus one day for a fundraiser hosted by our intercollegiate equestrian team. I have become the horse girl.

That one time I took my horse to campus… just forever dub me ‘jockey girl.’
Photo courtesy of the SEMO IHSA Equestrian Team.

Alas, that means I will constantly battle the great fight of being the horse girl. Everywhere I go, people ask me silly questions and are shocked when the answer is “ummm, because horses.”

“Why can’t you go out with us tonight?”
“I have a horse show in the morning.”

“Can you stay late tomorrow?”
“Oh sorry, I have a lesson scheduled for tomorrow.”

“What is that smell?”
“I may or may not have stopped by the barn to give Joey a treat.”

“What are you wearing?”
“These are breeches. I ride horses in them.”

“What is that book you are reading?”
“Unrelenting by George Morris. He’s a big deal in the horse world. Basically our king.”

“Your mom told me you started doing some freelance writing! What do you write about?”
“Horses.”

My dad joked in college that the only boy I could keep around was my horse Lance, because my obsession with horses drove the rest of them away…. Photo by Kellie Holman

“Why don’t you have kids yet?”
“Horses.”

“Why are you limping?”
“Horses.”

“What are you doing on the 1^st day of January 3 years from now?”
“Horses.”

“What do you do for fun?”
“Horses.”

“What about when you are not riding horses?”
“Ummm….ponies?”

And while I drive everyone crazy by consistently looking at sale ads, turning down football in exchange for live streaming the George Morris Horsemanship Sessions and starting every sentence with, “Well the last time I was at the barn…”, this is my life. I surround myself with what I love because I couldn’t imagine my life without it. So stand tall and be proud, fellow horse obsessed readers!

And be prepared for people to stop asking you for life updates at holidays because they already know the answer…

Photo by Wayne DeLisle. The most patient and tolerant horse show husband on the plant for listening to me carry on about horses 24/7.

… horses.

Go riding!