Ok, so I skipped a year. My three year old paint filly managed to flip me off her back which resulted in a very sexy rescue by the Los Angeles paramedics who swooped me up into their little ambulance (I was hoping for a helicopter) and stuck an IV in my arm and bumped and jostled me down the hills of Griffith Park to the trauma unit at City of Angels Hospital. How many times do I have to remind you… always ride in your best underwear. You just never know.

What can I say about style in the spring of 2007? Ranch style is in a flux. We know it because at our recent Saddle Up for St. Jude fund raiser, we all showed up in different versions of our various Hollywood Doll costumes. Maybe the idea of synchronicity is wearing thin, the whole idea of uniforms, matching costumes... we seem to be in a phase of soul baring independence in our dressing. And now I’m talking about the streets of Los Angles. Dare I predict a comeback of the bohemia of the ‘6o’s? It would suit us at the ranch just fine.

Of course the beauty of being a California cowgirl is the weather; out here it is all about layering. With the first burst of pink and white blossoms on my Japanese Magnolia, I want to dig out the fake tan and go to the ranch with bare arms and legs. This year I have a new favorite, Olay "Touch of Sun," that has an SPF 15 as well as a touch of sunless tanner. For most of you, that should be all you need to glow on horseback and let it all hang out.

I recently saw a new Jet Li film, Fearless, and there was a scene where the farmers tilling the soil all stop in unison to lift their faces, eyes gently closed, smiling, feeling a gentle breeze. It was a rare moment of pleasure and they accepted it as a gift. Lately at the ranch, we have been stopping to “smell the roses” as well.

Medical news now tells us that too much sun block is also blocking the precious vitamins we get from the sun. Based on that snippet of information, we have started gathering around four o’clock, when the sun is less brutal, and pulling up our white plastic chairs to face the late afternoon sun, our horses happily playing in the turn-out arena. We allow the sun to bake arms, legs and faces for a few glorious minutes and face it with closed eyes and smiles, as the gift that it is… and if there is a gentle breeze blowing at the same moment, well, life is good.

By five o’clock, back on our horses, it is probably now time to layer a "hoodie" over our tank tops for a sunset ride. Check out the Gap for extra thin, long sleeve hooded t-shirts that are roomy and stretchy (and now on sale) and perfect for summer evening rides in California.

Fashion is in a flux everywhere. Our country is at war, even though sometimes we tend to forget it in our every day striving. Americans are fighting and dying, yet life here goes on. It is a dark cloud that is every present, even on the most beautiful of days. But the anise field and the nightshade still bloom out on trail. We take our small comforts where we can find them. We accept the gift of riding our horses on top of the world, awa
y from the stress. Ranch style is about finding the beauty and finding the simplicity that will always be there if you strip away the excess.

This year there is no conscious style, no uniform, no new trend that can compete with the fatigues and battle armor of our fighting men and women, but I do not think it would be disrespectful if you added one bit of hope that I am sure they must share: If you have a Peace sign,
wear it. If you don’t have one, buy one. It can be a t-shirt or earrings, a bracelet, or a little silver charm dangling on a chain around your neck. But it is all the style we need this year.

Signing off and facing a new spring, this is your ever style conscious cowgirl, Cynthia Ward Walker, saying ride on, be brave, and still wear sunscreen, but remember to salute the sun as well as our brave troops. Namaste.

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