Well, Jenny, June, and Monica... someone must have been listening to your request for pictures.
I nabbed a friend as she was passing by and got a picture of Patrik and I together today. Not the most stunning pose but his concentration is evident.
I hear what many of you are saying about Imke Spilker and I too love her words, but with the pictures of horses bridled and no discussion about the harmful effects of riding I can't believe that she has found a way which is completely pain-free. I would be very interested to meet her and the horses she has relations with, but until that happens I will withhold any further opinions either way.
I feel that I have a responsibility to bring more attention to those whom I have met in person and know are walking this path, not with their words but with their actions. It is far too easy to write and speak beautiful words and become known for those words. This is not part of what I will call the "return journey". On the return journey, we find our way back to the place and time when we were able to communicate with animals and words played no part in that, especially not written words.
Of course if you are reading closely you will see the irony in this, because most of the readers here only know me through my words or video. In the same way that I withhold opinions until I meet someone in person, I would hope that others will withhold opinions about me too. The world has become small enough that I, sitting here in California can enter your consciousness wherever in the world you may be through the magic of the Internet and the words I write, but please don't mistake that for truly knowing me. I hope to change this soon. I'm thinking up ways that I can get to meet some of you in person, and introduce you to Patrik, Sofi, and Sundance. They are the ones to listen to. Being in their presence can tell you much more than any words on a page.
I feel that I have a responsibility to bring more attention to those whom I have met in person and know are walking this path, not with their words but with their actions. It is far too easy to write and speak beautiful words and become known for those words. This is not part of what I will call the "return journey". On the return journey, we find our way back to the place and time when we were able to communicate with animals and words played no part in that, especially not written words.
Of course if you are reading closely you will see the irony in this, because most of the readers here only know me through my words or video. In the same way that I withhold opinions until I meet someone in person, I would hope that others will withhold opinions about me too. The world has become small enough that I, sitting here in California can enter your consciousness wherever in the world you may be through the magic of the Internet and the words I write, but please don't mistake that for truly knowing me. I hope to change this soon. I'm thinking up ways that I can get to meet some of you in person, and introduce you to Patrik, Sofi, and Sundance. They are the ones to listen to. Being in their presence can tell you much more than any words on a page.
The poems of the redbud, cedar and oaks are written in their own language. A picture can remind us of an experience we had in their presence, but it cannot be the poem itself. That poem includes the smells, the feel of the wind, the temperature, the texture of the ground, and the delicate changes one perceives while moving and watching the subjects move and grow and die. We are verbs, not nouns. Poems, not statements. Explorations, not destinations.
Thanks for the photo! Your connection is so well visible in it that it tells more than thousand words would.
ReplyDeleteI think it works from this angle too: try not to judge a person before you've met his/her horse/s. So both, judgement and admiration are easily given without even knowing so much.
Well it's not Spilker's words that I love sp much but the photos of her horses - I think they speak volumes.
ReplyDeleteThat's why I like your photo! Yup, he's thinking!
Hi Stormy,
ReplyDeleteI just recently watched "The Path of the Horse" and have almost finished "Horse as Teacher". So I guess you could say I'm a new convert.
Like many others the message of "The Path" resonated deeply with me, I think I already knew, at some level, that there is another way to be with a horse.
I'm not a professional horse person, a master of anything, nor do I hold any certificates of achievement. Like so many others, I love horses and always have.
I look forward to this new journey, although I'm not so sure how I'm gonna handle the "judgment of others" whether perceived or real. I suppose that will actually be a benefit...an opportunity to grow and evolve.
Where do I go from here and how can I begin to build a new relationship with my horses?
Thank you for what you have done!!
I would love to meet you someday.