SHLEP: Discovering Therapeutic on Horseback within the Decrease 48

When Kathy decides to go away her abusive marriage, she is 59 years outdated. She’s unprepared to reside on a diminished earnings when her estranged husband hides his property from the court docket. She’s shocked by the price of leases in Southern California. She didn’t understand how unattainable it might be to land a job at her age and after being out of the marketplace for 20 years whereas she raised her youngsters. She hasn’t anticipated that her practically grown youngsters can be mad at her for lastly standing up for herself. And she or he actually hasn’t anticipated the way in which that the extended stress of her marriage would fragment her psyche, making her lengthy to not get up within the morning.The one time she feels midway sane is when she is using her horses and so, with a truck and horse trailer paid for with cash borrowed from her Dad, Kathy decides to hit the highway, using in every of the decrease 48 states till she finds a brand new place to name residence and finds a peaceful inside herself once more. She names the journey SHLEP: Soul-searching, Residence in search of, Liberating, Equestrian Occasion.On her 13-month journey, most of it solo, she confronts bodily challenges and emotional demons. She offers with the dying of each her dad and mom, re-bonding along with her sister, and making peace along with her three youngsters. She meets so many ladies who’re within the technique of re-making their lives after their plans and goals have been shattered; these girls are impressed by Kathy’s journey and in flip, present her with help and sustenance. Maybe most significantly, she re-establishes her relationship with God and begins to depend on His grace to maintain her. Within the course of, she makes peace with the “mess of her life” and beneficial properties a deeper confidence than she has ever identified.