Great comments all! It is very revealing to be able to read all the different interpretations of what I was trying to say in the last post. I think Jennifer (JEN SKA) has the closest interpretation to what I was trying to convey.
I was at a talk tonight and heard the great line:
the heart trumps all
That is what this comes down to, being able to feel our own hearts and let them lead us. Our heart may lead us to find that master/mentor and then if that master/mentor is for real, they will be there only to help us to uncover our hearts more fully, to set us on our own paths.
I feel some creative juices flowing and am having some exciting ideas of what to create next.
Stay tuned!
Hi Stormy,
ReplyDeleteToday I received a wonderful email from a friend and it had a quote that said “Never be afraid to dive in.”
I think that best conveys my experience of discovering this Path. After reading your report on the long term effects of riding, an image came to me of King’s blood being squished (technical term, I know!) out of his muscles from underneath the saddle when I was riding. Graphic but true. So for me, it was an epiphany - a huge all-or-nothing shift and I never rode King again after the day I read that article.
The idea that by riding I was causing him pain for the first 10 or 15 minutes on his back was simply not acceptable. There was no easing into it for me. Hurting King for some of the time was just not an option. I love him, and his needs supersede mine since I am his caretaker. The heart trumps all! There are all kinds of other ways for me to find pleasure in life that don’t cause harm to others, including horses. To start, I will resume my yoga practice instead of taking riding lessons.
I dove in to the uncharted waters of being a non-rider. Of course, I feel like right now, all I’m doing is treading water. I don’t really know what to do with King, now that I won’t ride him anymore. But I’ll discover and learn. I am not a Master with horses. King is my first horse. I need some help along the path.
I think that’s another way of saying my experience was “all or nothing”. Finding a Master who doesn’t teach riding isn’t easy here in North Carolina. No one is teaching liberty “training” here. So I registered with NHE and will follow the rules. For me, it was a very simple clear choice and there wasn’t that much esoteric about it. Maybe I will sign-up for Carolyn Resnick’s “in the box” program. I can’t WAIT for an NHE workshop to be available on the east coast. Patience – I could use some now.
To me, a Master is someone who demonstrates mastery. It doesn’t need to be over their whole life, but something. I wouldn’t date or marry Tiger Woods, but I’d sure take golf lessons from him.
Not having met Alexander and only seeing him on video, I am willing to take a leap of faith and trust his way of being with horses. From what I’ve discovered in my short time with my access to NHE online, I’ve learned that NHE is a “do no harm” way of life applied to horsemanship. It does require taking a plunge, but so far, the water’s great.