Before every horse show, I prayed! I never prayed to win; never prayed anything specific, but, my prayer stayed the same: "Thank you Lord for an encouraging experience". That way, no matter what happened it turned into a positive experience. Can't get better then that, right?

The rest was history!

After 4 schooling shows where Carol & Shetan were Champion Carol said with surprise in her voice: "This is getting Serious!"

Then it became time to compete on the "A" Circuit; where only the high dollar horses have the best chance @ winning. The first show was encouraging with good ribbons, but no blue ribbon. I still had FAITH!

It was our 2nd "A" Circuit show that "Shetan" shocked everyone by wining the Championship! He competed against well over 35 well proven veteran "A" Circuit horses.

The icing on the cake was witnessing first hand the shocked expression on the faces of our previous Barn Landlords at the moment "Shetan's" name was announced over the loud speaker as CHAMPION of his division. You see, six {6} months earlier we were kicked out of their barn because "Shetan" was beating their student's horses. Somewhere in the Bible it says Revenge is of the Lord. SWEET!

Don't misunderstand, we were shocked too! In fact, the rest of the afternoon we sat in total silence on the show grounds hilside; both feeling numb and stunned. Carol, a non-believer, finally broke the silence: "Sharon, how do you pray?" I rolled over laughing!

You see when I first offered Carol "Shetan" to show she was very reluctant.

The story was funny: I arrived at the barn to find her crying at the barn entrance. It was her 18th birthday which meant she couldn't show ponies anymore but she couldn't afford an "A" circuit quality horse so she felt doomed. To lift her spirits I offered "Shetan" as a candidate for Carol's show horse & told her to take him to her trainer. I expected to see a smile. Her response {which later became a long running joke}"Sharon, I don't want to hurt your feelings, but "Shetan" is an Arabian! [note: the "A" Circuit shows usually turns up their noses at Arabians] If her trainer didn't like Shetan, I assured her it wouldn't hurt my feelings. I KNOW what I have. Yet, I suggested we not mention he's an Arabian.

However, if she liked him I'll ask if she'll barter for lessons. We took "Shetan" to Carolyn Krome of Persimmon Tree Farm; an incredibly effective classical trainer. She loved him right away!

What followed was a long fun adventure that shocked the entire "A" circuit! For the next couple of years Shetan and Carol were either Champion or Reserve Champion in most of the shows we entered. In Upperville, the oldest and most prestigious Horse Show in USA, in a division of well over 150 entries that lasted 3 hours, they were in the top 3. Not bad, huh? And once again, to the shock of everyone . . . except me!