Walking on Sunshine--or Maybe Flying Through Clouds

Have you ever met someone so happy and upbeat and energetic that just being around them makes you feel like the sun is shining, even if there are dark clouds in the sky?

I have. Her name is Aubrey.

Even though Aubrey doesn't have her own horse, there is no doubt that she is an important part of the Forever Sky Family. When she walks into the barn, it really is like someone turned on the lights--or flipped the radio station to some kind of awesome dance music.

Don't stop, make it rock, DJ blow my speakers up. Tonight, I'mma fight, till I see the sunlight...

(Yes, Aubrey, I know Annie doesn't like the Tik Tok song.)

We can actually thank Google for bringing Aubrey into our life at Forever Sky. She was looking for a good trainer in the area. So she googled (I still can't belive that's a verb now) and that's how she found Alexis. "After our first lesson," says Aubrey, "I knew I'd be coming back. I didn't even go ride with anyone else. I called up and canceled the other intro lessons I had scheduled."

Yes, it's true. Alexis really is THAT good.

Aubrey is from Enumclaw, Washington, a city built on a plateau formed by volcanic mudflow. "It sits right at the base of Mt. Rainier, an active volcano," says Aubrey, "which is pretty cool, well, y'know, till it explodes!" The name Enumclaw is derived from a local Native American word meaning "strong wind" or "thundering noise." Aubrey definately lives up to her city's name. She may not make a lot of noise (okay, well, sometimes) but she has such a powerful personality that she enters the barn like a strong wind. Or maybe like Twilight's Alice...she DOES come from Washington after all, with all that rain and greenery.

You can find Aubrey at the barn with Sky or Cymba or Bingo or Tucker...she was even going to groom Naysa the other day, but I took off on a trail ride about the time she pulled up to the barn. She loves being around the horses. She loves riding. "It's challenging, and it's frustrating, and it's relaxing, and it's a thrill all at the same time," says Aubrey. "It doesn't matter what day I've had, how I'm feeling, or how other people are feeling about me, riding makes me focus in the moment. And I like working with the horse, whether we're in the arena, out on the trail, or it's just a grooming session. I take care of and trust them, and they take care of and trust me. It also fulfills the adrenaline junkie in me, as if flight school doesn't take care of that!"

Yes, she said "flight school." Aubrey is in the Navy, training to be a pilot. Okay, you can close your mouth now. It's true. She's a gorgeous, funny, magnetic horsewoman who also flys planes.

Settle down guys. She's taken.

Aubrey is almost finished with her primary training, at which point she will go on to specialize in a certain type of aircraft. "Hopefully I'll be staying in Milton and learning to fly helicopters," says Aubrey. "Which is good, because it means I can stay at Forever Sky."

And we DO want her to stay.

She's family.