This summer, I was featured on what turned out to be a famous YouTube channel — H3 Podcast — which has north of 2.6 million subscribers!

At the time, I didn't realize the emotional ride this seemingly random booking would catapult me toward.

It turns out the host, Ethan Klein, is fascinated by farrier videos. His producer told me that Ethan plays endless farrier videos for his staff, so much so that they decided to retaliate by booking him an up-close session with a real-life farrier.

The result was a short, quick-paced, goofy video, which has so far received over 185 thousand views. They released the video for free, so everyone can watch it.

What?

Since the team is located near Hollywood, Calif., they were looking for a Los Angeles-area farrier to let Ethan do some hoof preparation maneuvers.

In their search, they found me, a barefoot trimmer and therapeutic farrier. My career has spanned 4 decades, from California to Hawaii. The producer discovered me through my website, LoveToHoof.com, which links to my horse blog, SoulHorseRide. I also go by the moniker, DawnHoof.

They first reached out to me in early June. We talked a bit, and then I didn't hear back, feeling somewhat relieved. After all, how would it go? What would I do? To my surprise, they called me about a month later, stating that they would like to come up to the ranch the following week.

Suddenly, we were on!

Why Me?

"We choose you because of your poetry," the producer said, having read some of my SoulHorseRide blog. Turns out Ethan was a poetry major in college. How cool, I thought. We set the date and a time window of about 2 hours of filming. I asked if they had a contract. To my surprise, they didn't, so I electronically sent them my liability form for their cast and crew to sign.

I wanted to speak with Ethan, so I could get a feel for his personality and his expectations. His response was brief. He said he'd rather have our interaction fresh and "caught in front of the camera." So, taking his lead, I watched only about five minutes of one of H3's previous videos to get a flavor of who Ethan was and what to expect. In the video, Ethan seemed a bit comical — I figured I could handle that.

How?

My biggest concern was safe interactions with the horses, as well as providing lighthearted fun — no worries, no stress. I'm fortunate to be a lifelong horse gal, in addition to being a second-generation farrier. My home-bred horses are well-behaved, and since I do educational programs with them, they are accustomed to interacting with new people and situations. So, I began to formulate a plan. I figured if Ethan wanted to work on a hoof, he'd have to learn a bit about horse behavior first. I'd start with the basics: How to win over and communicate with a horse.

Yet as the filming day drew closer, I started feeling a bit nervous. I called a close friend, who is also an actress, for advice. She assured me I would do well.

"Let the Lord speak through you," she said. And then we prayed.

Several friends also agreed to pray for me regarding that day. I told myself: Dawn! Slow down, stand tall — breathe and be present. Read the energy in the same way that you read the horse. Yet, the night before, I didn't quite know what I would do. In earnest, I wrote in my "Dear God" journal — thanking Him in advance for making the upcoming day successful. "May You show me the format that works best for tomorrow."

Then I went to sleep.

It Worked!

"Best day ever!" one of the gals exclaimed, cheering and waving as she walked away once our session was over.

Wow! Awesome! It worked!

The crew of nine (which included sound, camera, producers and staff), dressed in cowboy hats and boots, arrived in a gray rental van. They were filled with energy, like a group of campers on a much-awaited field trip. The two cowboy-costumed stars, Ethan and his lovely wife, Hila, drove separately. They all seemed happy to get away from the city and breathe the fresh mountain air at my horses' rural ranch.

Thanks to my time spent training them, my horses were saints! They behaved perfectly in all interactions. I had no horse handler, just myself. Laddie stood tied to a tree with no one at his head, while eight different greenhorns tried picking up his hind leg and holding it in farrier position!

I praised him, "Good boy, Lad! Here's another cookie!"

After all was done and I got home that night, I wrote in my journal, thanking God, "I can't think of a single glitch or way to improve." Hallelujah! Fancy that!

Logistics

The weather was great. I set up a couple of staging areas in the shade of a cottonwood tree, with chairs and a few props for filming, which worked well. The crew arrived in the van and parked away from the staging area. Good thing I mentioned they needed to bring their own folding chairs, as there is no extra seating at the ranch.

I had time to get to know some of the crew — young, happy and engaging — while waiting for the hosts to arrive. The sound man clipped a microphone on me while the crew was settling in. The crew used several small cameras from many angles to help capture the footage, including some of their own reactions. They were a tight family-like group and worked together with great camaraderie.

The filming took about an hour and a half, which was edited down to the fifteen-minute video.

Really, there was no way of knowing what would be included in the final edit or what angle they were going for. In a way, I was directing the storyline toward learning about horses, while Ethan inserted his own personal style and humor. Happily, the chemistry seemed to work.

(The very next day, I drove over 200 miles and trimmed ten miniature horses. It was quite a contrast to have gone from a star one day to sweat and schlep the next! The life of a farrier!)

Emotional Ride

Two weeks later, on August 6, the producer texted me that the video had been released. Search "H3" on YouTube and look for the guy wearing a cowboy hat entitled: “Ethan Becomes A Cowboy!” That's it!

"Our audience is obsessed with you!" she announced the next day, inviting me to join Ethan in an impromptu "live chat" that afternoon. My blog traffic soared as a result. My emotions did too! The prolific positive audience response to the video blew my mind! I've never received so many compliments in my entire life! (As of now, it has received over 2,000 comments and 18 thousand likes!)

"They found the perfect horse lady," one admirer wrote. "This is the longest I've laughed in years, :)) :))" "Cheers to Dawn!" (The list goes on…)

Overwhelmed, I decided to hand-copy many of the lovely comments in my own special journal to savor and reflect on in moments when I might be feeling down.

Conclusion

Marveling at the emotions all this attention evoked, I concluded that we could all use some positive compliments as we go through our busy, day-to-day lives!

As a result, I'm upping my efforts to share, smile, open a door and banter with those I meet. Rather than assume people will be annoyed by me, maybe, just maybe, I'll brighten someone's day. It's a good reminder to share joy in little everyday interactions. Compose a small statement of kindness or gratitude and give of ourselves. Thus, our heartfelt community will have even more reason to celebrate and be proud of ourselves.

They did offer to compensate me. I ended up with $1,200 for the day, as well as one of the kindest handwritten thank-you notes from hosts Ethan and Hila that I've ever received. "Give a hug to Laddie. We miss him already!"

For the typical farrier, I can see how filming would have been particularly challenging. I am fortunate to have my own horses and an agreeable ranch as a venue. It would have been difficult to arrange all the moving parts with a horse or property that I did not own or have welcome access to.

(It likely helps, too, that I grew up in a Hollywood film industry family, and I'm not camera shy.)

But if someone asks to film you, you might consider giving it a go!