“Work is tiring” is the title of a well-known book.
Nothing is more true, but in some cases it is better to correct this statement, saying “work is tiring, but it makes you happy”.
Volunteering with the IHP is an example of this.
How many times returning home in the evening after a day’s work did I fall into bed, exhausted? Countless.
How many times did I complain about my aching arms and legs? Many.
How many times after having checked the horses, prepared endless hay bins and filled endless buckets of water did I sit down with no intention of getting back up? So very many.
But try to ask me, come the time to go back home “Despite all this, would you come back again?”
I would definitely answer you in the affirmative.
Because every moment passed doing volunteer work I say to myself “I want to stay here forever”.
Because the peace in which I find myself immersed is invaluable in its rarity.
Because the friendships made within the IHP are made to last even if we are
separated by enormous distances.
Because I learn every time to take on responsibilities, and I am provided with a path for personal growth which I follow in serenity.
Because the efforts I make are abundantly rewarded by the knowledge that they have been in aid of those creatures I love so much, that every gesture is necessary, even if seemingly it does not count for much.
Because it is explained to me that horses are big framed animals, but with even bigger hearts, capable of giving an immense amount of love, so much that is difficult to even match it.
I cannot do otherwise than to say a great and heartfelt “thank you” to all those (biped or otherwise) who have allowed me to have this experience and who will do so again, who will always be there to welcome me in what I consider to be a bit of a second home.