The Trail Keeps Score

Not in numbers. In what you did out there when you thought nobody was watching.

It remembers the butterfly that made you scream. It remembers the stick you swore was a snake. It remembers you saying "whoa" fourteen times in a row at a horse who was already standing still.

It remembers the dismount that wasn't a dismount. The hat you said was fine, that wasn't fine. The shortcut. The other shortcut. The third shortcut, where you finally admitted you were lost.

It remembers the part where you told the horse to stop, and then bargained, and then explained your reasoning, like she'd be persuaded by the merits of your argument.

The trail remembers all of it. And it tells nobody.

That's why you keep coming back. The trail is the only thing in your life that's seen you at your worst and decided not to bring it up.

See you out there.

— Glytja