As I write this my emotions battle between excitement for the adventure ahead, and sadness for that which I'm leaving behind. This work meant so much to me the past few months, and to say I'm ready to leave is a tremendously false statement--I'm not ready at all.
As I write this I'm listening to 'Caves' by Noah Kahn, and it kind of fits. Give it a listen while you read if you want, I feel like especially if you worked alongside me, it makes sense for the summer we all had. We struggled each day, all of us, in different ways, from our perspective and the company's perspective. It's like a relationship that started so incredible, but matured into a lot of upkeep, with the need to constantly remind yourself why you're here and what you hoped it'd be, and why that's worth it to keep going. Its beautiful in a way like that, and almost makes the whole experience something to be able to look back nostalgically on. It made us grow so much, and although there's parts that we'll look back on and list out as our greatest frustrations, or become infuriated remembering what we saw and experienced, there were also parts that made it worth it for us to keep at it--because at the end of the day, it was so much bigger than a collection of singular moments compiled into a notes app list. At the end of the day, it was our story. Sure it eventually crumbled how it did for each of us, but we each get to look back and work through that for ourselves in our own time--and in the meantime, appreciate how our determination to be there for each other created one of the most defining moments of our lives...whether we're ready to admit that yet or not.
In regards to my last day: It was truly a happenstance last day because I wasn't sure if I would get the day off or not--turns out not. We had a 2hr tour booking for the morning that Sabira and I took, and then a private afternoon tour that grew beyond what we probably should have been taking. This meant we had to herd in the morning--both the close grass field and the further bumpy field. The bonus of it all--I got to ride Gáski all day :)
Despite him having an off-day with spooks, he was the cutest boy and still listening to me everytime I talked to him. He really struggled at the end of the first tour when we had to go alone (I opted to take the group wanting to speed up to give Gaski some lead guide experience), but luckily I was with 3 experienced riders (one of whom had her own Icelandic) so it was an amazing situation for him to learn in without me having to worry about freaking out the customers. They completely understood and were not bothered by him learning at all…but when we had just reached the driveway the private tour was leaving and I had to immediately turn Gáski around to join (he did not like). Overall he was very alert and still listened to me, but struggled on the riding way, and the 2 hr turn. Every time he leads or walks too apart on the side for the 2hr turn he struggles…I haven’t figured out yet if its the construction gravel, or the extra long grass, or super empty field, or what. I really need to talk to Elisa about that. He spooked a handful of times, and tried to brace himself to bolt off once (did not get away with it though. I wasn't bothered by it as I feel like I know him like the back of my hand at this point and it definitely scared the customers more. I spent more time assuring them it was fine and he was just young than calming him down.). Once we got on the mountain, he was an ANGEL. He was so happy and relaxed climbing all over the hillside and over rocks. My little mountain goat :) If you talk to him during the ride, AND give him a chore to focus on, he’s a horse anyone would kill for. I wish this was a different world and I could buy him. The girls right now don't want to ride him, and I'm all but begging the Rvk girls to ride him when he gets inevitably sent to Rvk again. He really deserves all the hugs and loves. I took some iconic self timer photos with him before it was time to untack him for the final time, and give him one last kiss...for real this time.
After the tour we had to herd the horses back, as well as the extra group of Disney horses from Reykjavik since the farrier couldn't make it as he'd hoped yesterday. The first group (of which Gaski was a part of) going to the close grass field we had fun with. Elisa took Angus bareback, and the jr guide and I decided we'd run behind them on foot. It didn't feel like that field was that far away, and tölt really couldn't be faster than a human jog. I wasn't disasterously wrong on both accounts. I barely made it halfway before I gave up and just laid in the road. For the herd going to the bumpy field I took an old, fat, kid horse. I really wanted to take Jordan but we couldn't catch him (go figure), so I tacked up my kid horse begrudgingly and we were off. Not only was my horse surprisingly speedy, she was the most surefooted over the bumpy field out of any that I rode--huh.
We went and got ice cream after we got back and finished cleaning--for one last obligatory time. It would be sinful not to. With riding on our minds as we headed back, we tacked up some fun ride horses--I picked Eldey (she also came to Ölfus with the Rvk horses, woohoo!), Elisa took Ófeigur, Sabira took her Nasi, and the jr guide took her Nota (her now-personal-horse) riding after the day was done, and the horses were herded, for one last family run. We went across the main road and tölted and galloped along the breeding fields full of foals, and watched the sun burn through the horizon line. We rode for about an hour or so, but it felt sweet enough to remember forever. We galloped on the riding way home, and were very spaced out, so I sat back and reached my arms out and took in everything around me one last time as Eldey and I charged down the riding way. The Ölfus mountain with its cloudy bangs, the baby sheep jumping over each other, the foals spread out in deep sleeps, the birds swooping overhead, and my coworkers racing in front of me. It's a scene that will be burned into my mind forever. The memory is so thick I feel like I could reach inside my mind and grasp hold of it.
Please enjoy this cinematic masterpiece that is Sabira & Elisa's interaction style and my favorite form of entertainment and humor:
Of course it wouldn't be my true last day if I didn't make pasta, and we didn't get a call from the manager saying a new girl was arriving. Yep! In the middle of cooking and my packing, we had to hurriedly clean our house again just as (I guess thinking about it now, my replacement) Emily from the Netherlands arrived on our doorstep. We gave her a plate, grilled her on some basic get-to-know-yous, and she joined us for the finale of Euphoria before well all tucked in at about 1:00am. I'm riding with Elisa to Reykjavik tomorrow morning as she's working a private tour there in the morning, then the manager is giving Axelle and I a ride to the BSI so we can go to the car rental and pick up our ride for the next 12 days. I've generally packed my last few things so when Axelle and I come by Ölfus with the car tomorrow I can load up easily, but I can't seem to rest my mind knowing that truly, this is it.
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