Anyone who has perfectionistic tendencies knows you have to curb them. The desire to get it right often gets in the way of getting it done. I had been thinking about that as I was outlining my projects and plans for the next several weeks, which include some travel. I was forcing myself to determine what I was really going to get done, and what was wishful thinking.

It's early fall here in North Carolina, which means we have some nearly summer days. We are fortunate in having a pool, and my husband keeps it sparkly clean. I was thinking that we didn't have many more days to swim, so I headed out to take advantage of this beautiful, sunny afternoon.

I stepped down on the first step and commented to myself that the recent cool nights and rain have cooled the water. I confirmed those thoughts as I stepped down to the second step, and of course, stood there a minute, procrastinating. By the time I ventured to the bottom step, I was having second thoughts about the swim.

For some reason, I short-circuited the conversation with myself and headed for the deep end. The water felt really great. Cool but not cold. Refreshing but not chilling.

If I had waited until I thought the water was perfect, it would be next summer before I swam again.  I hadn't realized the water was actually perfect -- today! It took getting fully in the water to know how good it was.

I enjoyed time with my husband, hanging out in the sun, watching the dogs run around the pool, and having what was probably a last splash of the year.

I dried off and revisited my list with a sightly different attitude. I looked at several of the projects I have in the works and realized they are good — just as they are — and they don't need more time to stew. I had been, so to speak, on the top step looking down, perhaps fearing the water would be outside my comfort zone.

I often learn things the hard way, but this was a refreshing lesson. Maybe I have to throw cool water on my apprehensions more often.

We’ll meet at Asbury College on Sept 11. Asbury has a great equine program, including  a police horse training program conducted by students, and they’ll demonstrate the police-horse training at our meeting. The students work with PMU yearlings and as the horses mature, the students teach them all sorts of skills that they will need in a future job — as a police horse.

It’s been thrilling for me to see the changes in these horses on my visits there. On my last trip, I was so excited that I had to jump out of the car as we drove down the long driveway to the barn. A student was taking Aden out on a trail ride. He had been a big, goofy-looking colt — very sweet, but not what you might think of as police-horse material. Now here he was, all tacked up and looking very grown up and proud of himself. After their ride, the students gave me a sneak peak at some of the exercises — walking horses under a tarp, over a bridge, and through some scary stuff. I was impressed.

September 12 will be at the Kentucky Horse Park — the location of the 2010 World Equestrian Games and a must-do destination (http://www.kyhorsepark.com) for horse lovers.

At this gathering, we’ll learn about the many volunteer opportunities in conjunction with the games. I’m excited about the World Equestrian Games, not just because it’s a big competition, but because it will involve 9 different horse sports — so horsemen of all kinds and nationalities will come together for 16 days.

If there’s any chance you can join us at the Equestrian Ministries Meeting (http://www.equestrianministries.org/fall09.html), you are really welcome. If not, hope you take a few minutes to do something fun and inspiring this next week.