When I was asked to start blogging for this site (and btw, I don’t ‘blog’ I just write weird articles), I was advised to begin with some kind of introduction to who I was. Who am I? Good question. The older one becomes, if one is lucky and fills their lives with ‘stuff’ such as family, career and goals, the more difficult it becomes to define oneself in a neat and tidy manner.
When I was in my twenties, I could have summed myself up in one succinct sentence, “I am graduate student who will one day go to the Olympics for three-day eventing.” Back then I only had two goals: education and equestrianism. Sure, they were big goals, but at the end of the day, they numbered two and they only involved one human: me.
Now, in my thirties, I have a son, a husband, a relatively large business that I run with said husband and on top of that still, my riding. My tracks have grown from two to four and now encompass about 50 humans instead of one. So, now, having thought about whom I am today and how I would in one sentence introduce myself, I think it would be: “I am Lesley Grant-Law, a thirties-something individual who daily aims to be Superwoman, continually falls short, but wakes up the next day and with a smile on her face tries again.” Yes, that is how I would introduce myself and, please, don’t get me wrong, I do not think I am special, but a good example of modern women in our sport today.
I say ‘Superwoman’ because what I want every day is the following: to make sure I guide and direct my son to a successful and happy future, to help my husband be happy and continue his success in his riding and his work, to ensure our clients are truly satisfied, to have our business become more profitable, and all the while, continue the improvement of my own riding.
I no longer apply concrete goals to myself when it comes to my riding, as one thing I have failed to achieve is the economic level that is required of our sport to ensure viability at the top. However, what I can do without question is continue the improvement of myself.
True story: my horse did a leg four days before we should have left for Beijing Olympics. It was like a bad after school movie. There we were at training camp, horse in the cross ties, vet with ultrasound wand in hand, tears starting to fall from her eyes as she looks up at me and says “Not good.” David O’Connor asking vet if she can fix it, and then turning to me and saying “You were going you know.” It hit me like a religious vision: stop trying to do the ‘dream’ on a shoe string budget with one horse and instead make the dream into something you can do. Change your goal to become the best rider you can be and not a place or destination. Perhaps I am leaving out the wee detail that I cried like a pathetic girl for two weeks before this vision hit me, but nonetheless, that was the best thing to come out of that tendon, that and the fact that it was at that moment that I chose to get knocked up.
But anyways, back to Superwoman…. It’s a tall order this superhero stuff and it is something that most women I know right now are trying to pull off. Whether we be professional riders trying to have a family and business on top, or amateur riders trying to have a family, do their jobs and get to their goal of a one-star one day, it is very difficult to excel at it all. Ten years ago, I used to hero worship movie stars and sports legends. Now, I deeply admire my friends who can compete two horses, teach their students and still pull a roast out on a Sunday night before 9:00 p.m.
These superhero antics are tough, and despite how hard I try, every day I fall short in one department. Next time, I’ll share some examples.