Balance and the Behemoth: How Fox Hunting Taught Me to Be in the Moment

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and the perfect opportunity to take stock of work/life balance. Here's how one lawyer discovered the key to her joy.

Cary G.B. McWhorter & Tully (photo credit: Sarah Farnsworth)

At the time, it sounded like a good idea, as things tend to do over dinner, after a glass or two of wine. Now, at 7 am and 28 degrees, it seemed like a moderately bad idea. But I was here, and so I was about to go fox hunting for the first time.

I had struggled into my boots from high school, after cutting the leather at the top so that I had some blood flow. A black suit jacket stood in for a hunt coat. A kind member had lent me a proper riding helmet after realizing that mine was from high school, which meant at 38, it was definitely over 20 years old.

I had been on a horse exactly once since going to college. But it’s like riding a bike, right? (Spoiler alert, it isn’t.) As I stood beside my loaned horse, I signed the hunt waiver promising not to sue if I died. The horse rolled his eye at me, making no promises. I don’t remember his name, so for purposes of this article I shall call him The Behemoth as it should give you a reasonable visual. I took a breath, and committed to trying this insane new activity. I realized as I was looking up at The Behemoth’s shoulder that I might have gotten the boots on, but I wasn’t able to bend very well. I looked for a mounting block and climbed up.

Like any good lawyer, I had done my “homework” skimming a copy of “Riding to Hounds in America” online to understand what I was about to do. I greeted the field master - the person assigned to “keep the field” (AKA other people on horseback) where they could see the hounds work but out of the way of the staff (AKA the people doing all the work).

The biggest rule besides being quiet when the hounds are speaking was “do not pass the field master or you will be asked to leave.” So shut up and ride in the back. Got it! I can do that!

Gentle readers, I’m afraid I was not able to do these two simple things.

I was quiet all right, but my kindly loaned horse was NOT on board with riding behind anyone. I spent the next two hours with his head pulled to one side, trying not to fall off, while he was cantering backwards. I yelled to the field master (maybe I wasn’t too great at shutting up either), “I’m sorry, Suzie! I’m trying not to pass you!”

“Sit down!” she said.

“I’m trying!” The Behemoth’s stride was so big and I was so out of practice he bounced me up with every stride.

The hounds (28 couple or 56 hounds) were screaming across the field after a coyote. The huntsman was urging them on with his voice and horn. The grass was green, the sky was blue …and I did not think for one second about work.

When I slithered off The Behemoth’s back and onto the ground two hours later, I was hooked. I realized I was relaxed. I was happy. I couldn’t remember the last time I had had so much fun. That feeling lasted all week, as of course, did the soreness from the level of exercise riding a horse is. As I limped across the courtroom on Monday, I was more patient. As I limped across the courtroom on Tuesday, I didn’t get flustered when something went wrong. As I limped across the office on Wednesday for an unexpected client who showed up without an appointment, I was cheerful.

As I got back into riding, the soreness lasted less and less time, but the other good things remained. I realized quickly that riding was one thing I could do that was, for me, perfectly Zen. By that I mean I did not think about work at all while riding. There is a lot to be said for ruminating on cases while doing other things. Often letting things percolate in the back of one’s mind is a great way of working through them. It’s a habit though, that can lead to sleepless nights and never really being “in the moment” because you’re… always thinking about work.

What riding reminded me was there is so much strength and power in letting your mind rest by NOT thinking about something.

I find that riding takes all my focus in a way that watching TV, reading,  driving, or sitting on the beach does not. Even being with friends, I still feel the phantom vibration of my phone and the urge to check my email. How should I approach this argument? Did I call everyone back?

Today, 13 years after that first hunt, I am the field master. I take such joy in having people come for their first hunt and telling them what is going on. Guiding them to be where they can see the hounds work. Even, more than once, telling them “It’s ok” when their horses pass me cantering backwards. And I still don’t think about work AT ALL when I’m riding. I am happier, healthier, and more balanced because I found an activity that I love.

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Cary G.B. McWhorter, of McWhorter & McWhorter, focuses on general civil law, including representing the State for child support cases in Morgan County and water utility law. Cary is one of AIM's local advisory council members and can be reached at 256-355-5295 or carymcwhorter@bellsouth.net.