From Finish to Start

What is it about the end of one year and the beginning of the next that inspires us to make resolutions and change things in our lives? Is it tradition? Or is it something energetic?

February 16, 2026, ends the year of the Wood Snake in Chinese astrology. As we leave 2025, we have a choice to leave the past behind us, like a snake shedding its skin. In numerology, 2025 was a “9” year (2+0+2+5=9), which signifies endings. Now we are moving into 2026, which will be the year of the Fire Horse; a “1” year, which signifies new beginnings.

Photo Credit: A Sharper Image Photography 2016

Year End and New Years typically represent endings and beginnings, but this year even more so as we move from a 9 to a 1. If you’ve never read up on numerology, it is a highly fascinating subject that might pique your interest. This is a time to let go of the old, to make way for the new. The Fire Horse signifies action, enthusiasm, drive. In both numerology and Chinese astrology, this is a year to start something new.

How do you respond to inspiration? Some of us are planners; we make lists, map things out on paper, put goals on a calendar or app. Others just “wing it” and go with the flow. With horses, I’ve found the middle ground to be the road to take. Setting loose goals is fabulous to inspire action and help create a training plan, but horses are the best at throwing curve balls, so we always have to be adaptable.

You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make them drink. Anyone who’s ever tried to get a horse to drink knows how factual this famous old cliche is! Quite often the things we think will be the easiest end up being the hardest, and vice versa.

Let’s say you set a goal of showing Second Level, and you teach your horse shoulder in and travers. Those seem like two of the big steps up for the second level trot work. Your horse is a smart cookie and figures out the bend and angle faster than you expect. You excitedly think “We’re ready to show!” Then you get your test back and the judge says “Needs to develop collection for this level.” You realize you missed the most important part, because it was so basic: the trot itself.

How often does this happen, that we get so focused on the big picture that we miss the details? One of my favorite memes says “Beginner riders want to work on intermediate things, intermediate riders want to work on advanced things, and advanced riders work on the basics.” Ironically, the basics are actually the hardest part of riding. Horses can learn all sorts of “tricks” such as lateral work, piaffe, and tempi changes. It’s executing them well that is hard.

Too often we get focused on the big goals with our horses and miss some of the details that will get us there. Or, we think the tricks are the key to moving up the levels, when really it’s improving the basics at each step along the way.

Every time you move up a level, your horse needs to improve its foundational skills at that new level. For example, the degree of collection required at Second Level is far lower than it is at PSG. The steepness of the half pass at Third Level is nothing compared to Grand Prix, therefore the Grand Prix horse needs to develop far more suppleness to have the increased degree of bend and engagement required for the steeper half pass.

How does this relate to setting goals? We need to break our goals down into the steps that will take us to them. Then along the way, we need to keep checking in and make sure we aren’t skipping any steps. Otherwise, we end up confusing and frustrating our horses.

Imagine being asked to do multiplication in school before learning how to count. If your teacher tried to jump ahead to multiplication as soon as you could read numbers, you would likely feel extremely overwhelmed. This is how our horses feel if we miss foundational steps in the training process. Just because a horse has learned a step at one level doesn’t mean they won’t have to go back and relearn it again at a higher level once the demands increase.

The best way we can help our horses learn is by breaking things down into steps, and if they’re struggling to understand something, break it down even further. I’ve had to do this for Lacey with piaffe, as it does not come naturally to her at all. Training techniques that work for many horses have not helped her to grasp the concept. I had to get creative and change my approach for her to understand what I was asking, and it’s still a work in progress. She continues to teach me how to change my approach and different ways to achieve my goals.

Goals don’t have to be big, nor do they have to be specific. They can be anything you want them to be. A goal can be as simple as taking one day at a time and seeing where the universe leads you, or spending time in the now and building a better connection with your horse.

As a 1 year, 2026 is the perfect time to make changes and start something new. To take our inspirations and turn them into something for the future. My goals for 2026 are to stay open minded and let the horses teach me how to get to new places. To follow my intuition and inspiration; to launch new ideas and take them toward completion. To live in the moment and enjoy the process of creation. To go with the flow and see what new adventures life takes me on. What are yours?