Wow did this ring familiar when I read it, having raised - and not finished
yet - two teenaged daughters! From the perspective of rules being applied evenly
and fairly, I would take exception to any one BEING an exception, especially
since the rules like thsi are in place to protect individuals with either
limited experience or maturity. In addition, as my own youth and that of our
daughters have demonstrated, truly, 16 or 18 or even 20 years of age are not
exactly the best years to make decisions borne of wisdom. As I have tried to
teach our daughters, independence is the flip side of repsonisbility, and as a
MOTHER, the responsibility for the safety - physical and otherwise - is still
mine. And you need to hear thisCourtney - I know in MY heart that I would NEVEr
forgive myself if something happened to one of my daughters because I indulged
either my tremendous pride in them or indulged their own desire for autonomy in
their decision-making. There WILL come a day but the day is not now. My 17 year
old has ridden unsponsored for the better part of 2 years now, after having
competed with a sponsor since she was 9; in addition, she has attended and done
well at shows since she was 8. None of that leads me to believe that an endeavor
such as Tevis shoud be taken on by a minor person, no matter the experience, if
those who are in charge and are purported to know best feel it is not
appropriate.
In the end, I personally get uncomfortable when
people feel they should be the exception, whether it is stopping at a stop sign
or a situation like this. Los Angeles county does not allow juniors to ride
stallions in public places for organized events, and so our daughter did not
ride our docile and well trained stallion at a handful of rides that she could
have. She skipped the rides. The poster who commented on learning patience is
correct - if there is one lesson to learn in life (and some of us take longer
than others to learn it:)) it is patience, most certainly where animals and
children are concerned. And remember to be a 17 year old - each young person -
be who you are now, because you will never get to give it a rewind. Enjoy how
old you are now so you don't look back wistfully later.
