|
|
|
|
|
|
Diary of Trail Ride on March 20th, 2005 at Cottonwood Creek Stables
Diary of Wakefield Workshop April 30th, 2005
Diary of American Legacy Workshop Aug. 27-28, 2005
Diary of American Legacy Workshop June 10-12, 2005
Diary of Lincoln Workshop June 13-14, 2005
Diary of Cottonwood Creek Stable Class Sept. 24, 2005
Diary of Madison Clinic November, 2005
Diary of High View Farms Workshop, September 10-11, 2005
Lessons Learned at Madison Jan. 2006
Diary of American Legacy Workshop Jan. 21-22, 2006
Diary of Holstein May 2006
Diary of Weeping Water and BKT Arena Spring 2006
Diary of Sioux City 2006
Diary of Chance Ridge 2006
Diary of Private Lesson Days Summer 2006
Diary of Calamus Women's Camp 2006
Diary of Calamus Youth Camp 2006
|
|
|
Diary of American Legacy Workshop Jan. 21-22 2006
|
|
This morning I spent 2 hours writing my reflection from the class at Amleg and then somehow I lost all of it into cyberspace. I have no idea what happened. So this is my second attempt at putting my thoughts in a form that may be of value to others in their horsemanship journey. I just hope that this second attempt is as heartfelt as the first one seemed to be. I was so discouraged when I lost all of it this morning that I decided to just forget about it for a while and go play with horses. I feel refreshed after a very peaceful afternoon of horse’ in around and I think I’m inspired for a second try.
I have been thinking about this weekend for three days. I can't seem to get it out of my mind. It was probably the most special clinic that I have every taught simply because it brought about the most changes in both the people and the horses. Perhaps I was just more aware of the changes because my powers of observation are improving with each class that I teach. I have been able to learn more than I ever expected through teaching!
I have taught classes where the students did a lot more spectacular things in the physical with their horses. However this class was really about the spiritual, emotional, & mental connection of building confidence & trust in the relationship between horse and human. It was uncomfortable and even frustrating at times for the students, yet they each had very special victories and transformations, which seemed almost magical.
I would like to share just a little of what one student had to say:
“Out of all 3 clinics that I have attended, this was the most moving and confidence building clinic I’ve been to. I am so glad that I went. What made this clinic so enjoyable was that all of us had fear/confidence issues. It was strange because I would have never guessed the others had confidence issues. While watching them with their horses I didn’t see confidence issues or a reason for fear. To my surprise they said the same thing to me.
What resulted from this clinic was that we all faced our fears, and we inspired each other. We all had our demons that we keep tucked away, but now it was safe to talk about them and start to work through them together.
What I learned in this clinic is that horses (like people) get into a pattern or routine. They are creatures of habit. After a while of the same old boring routine they feel a need to challenge or change the game. That’s exactly what was happening with my horse and I.
Once Sherry played with my horse and interrupted the pattern (circle game) and gave him something to think about and watch for (many direction changes) he was interested and soft, thinking, “What is she going to have me do next?” When he upped his energy she upped her energy (mirrored him). He respected her and it showed.
Colleen, my trainer, said something to me in an e-mail 2 weeks ago that really inspired me. I read it when I’m feeling down about my relationship with my horse. I also keep a copy in my tack room. I read this the morning before the clinic and it really helped me put things in perspective:
“Don’t be disappointed in yourself. This is just a little thing...especially when you think about how far you have come. These are the kinds of obstacles that make the journey worthwhile. If you don’t have a few difficulties along the way...then it's too easy and you have nothing to be proud of. “
All of the participants in this class certainly have a lot to be proud of. Each one made tremendous progress, faced all kinds of obstacles, challenges, & fears, and made significant changes in attitudes, thinking, & skills. It was touching the way they opened up to each other, encouraged, motivated, & supported each other the entire weekend.
During each class that I teach I am constantly faced with new situations involving horse personalities and people's skill & confidence levels. Instead of looking at the horse as "difficult" or the person as "untalented or insecure", I simply ask the question in my mind “How can I communicate in a way that they can understand what solutions & opportunities are available to them?” This is the thought process that allows me to "adjust to fit the situation". That is why no two classes are alike. The format may be similar but the content & context is dictated according to the individual needs.
I believe that the horse and person are perfectly capable of learning, when provided with a safe environment, time to discover, and encouragement that inspires & motivates. They also need freedom to be creative & make mistakes, and a visual reference of tools & techniques that work. The challenge for me is to present the information in a way that they can understand, internalize, and utilize it when they get home. I seek to empower each student with strategies that lead them to independence and abilities beyond what they thought was possible.
When I gathered the group to discuss fear issues and frustrations they were having with their horses, it seemed that people finally realized that they weren’t alone, and that there was no need to be embarrassed or ashamed of where they were in their horsemanship journey. When we are overcome with anxieties it is so easy to lose sight of the simplicity of what our original intent was. I realized that fears could cause us to focus on "what went wrong or what might go wrong" instead of "what went well". This can cause us to be pulled into the horse's drama and then we can loose our leadership position, which then leads to more insecurities. It becomes a cycle that can entrap us into inactivity and hinder our growth as well as our relationship with our horse.
Had I chose to reassure them or try to make them feel better about their negative feelings & experiences, it would only lead them to defending their weaknesses more! It is not useful to reinforce exactly what we don't need to focus on. Instead we came up with solutions to each one of their concerns. We focused on what they “could do” instead of what they “couldn’t do”.
The change was dramatic when we went back in the arena. As the students began to focus on what they “could do” instead of they “couldn’t do”, the results was a blossoming of confidence. I’m not saying that it was easy for them and that it happened without any frustrations, fears, or challenges. However by the end everyone started to see that his or her horse was trying. We were discovering that step-by-step things were getting better, not worse, even if it was not perfect yet.
What we focus on, we get more of. "How can I?" is far more empowering than the statement "I can't."
In Laura King's book, "The Power to Win" she teaches about the natural laws of the mind, which include:
1) Every thought or idea causes a physical reaction
2) What is expected tends to be realized
3) Imagination is more powerful than knowledge
4) Only one truth can be entertained at a time
5) An imagined emotionally induced condition tends to become organic if persisted in long enough.
6) A suggestion once followed or acted upon creates less and less opposition to successive suggestions.
Now you are probably thinking, I have been reading for 2 ½ pages and I still don’t know what exercises or tasks that they performed with their horses. I did not include them because it was the changes that occurred inside the horse and human this weekend that seemed to be more important than the raw physical performance.
As I think about the changes that I witnessed with my own eyes and felt in my heart this weekend I am reminded of what one of my instructors taught me:
“ In order to learn something new or make a real change in our lives, we have to change “WHO WE ARE” to a certain degree. This is a big challenge on our own because we simply don't know what we don't yet know. Sounds simple, but until we have new information it is very difficult to do what we have not yet done before! Pat Parelli used to always say, "If you always do what you have always done, then you will always get what you have always gotten." How true!” (By Kirsten)
So how do we make a change? How do we reach new goals? How do we become the leaders that our horses require? How do we let go of our fears & release our anxieties?
For the past 20 years I have been an avid reader of the power of positive thinking & faith type books. I truly believe that while learning anything new or trying to reach any goal that focusing the power of the mind is the key ingredient for success. This holds true from something as simple as getting on the back of your horse to building the life you first dreamed of with your horse. It is what we choose to focus on that makes the difference.
It was not so much the content or what we needed to learn this weekend (i.e. the techniques) but it was the context in which the learning occurred that made the miracles happen. I believe that some of us went away with a new perception of problems and opportunities that will ultimately make a difference between reaching for our original horse dreams, giving up on them, or getting stuck in a rut. Maybe now we have the power to allow our brain to seek creative solutions instead of just giving up in a tough situation. We can say “OH BOY!” or “HOW INTERSTING” when things go wrong or we make a mistake, thus activating the creative “right-side” of our brain to come up with solutions.
We all went away a little braver, a little smarter, and a little more compassionate. Our horses will recognize those changes in us and reward us for them greatly.
As I gave the students the freedom to ride their horses to music in anyway they chose at the end of the class I could barely see them through the tears as I sang the words of this song.
“I ride my spirit horse,
When I need to rise
High above it all
He helps me fly
To that place
Where my soul can soar
Gets me back on course
I ride my Spirit Horse
I ride my spirit horse
When I’m feelin’ down
And he lifts me up
Off the ground
To that place where my soul can soar
Gets me back on course
I ride my Spirit Horse.
(By MaryAnn Kennedy)
It was a very emotional and spiritual weekend that I will never forget.
Thanks again to the participants and their horses. You made my dreams come true!
Happy Trails,
Sherry Jarvis
|
|
|
