Why is the Why important?
Why is the why so important?
This is a topic I seem to have frequently with students, my mentors and myself. Before I dive in to this question I will first ask if you have ever said or heard any of the following. Be honest folks, no judgement here. I certainly have said some of them at different times in my journey.
1. I don't need arena work, I just trail ride.
2. I don't need to learn healthy movement I don't plan to compete.
3. That takes too long I just want to ride.
4. If me and my horse are sweating we haven't accomplished anything.
5. Oh that saddle is fine, it fits me.
6. Dentist for my horse, why would I spend that money?
7. Oh I just get their feet done on a 6 week cycle, cheaper that way.
8. I don't need to learn that stuff, I ride western.
9. My trainer said that wasn't important to learn about body awareness.
10. Why do I need to learn about feet, I have a farrier/trimmer?
11. Biomechanics for horse and rider is just a fad.
First let me say, things were a lot easier before I became such a learnaholic where horses are concerned. We don't know what we don't know until we know it. Ignorance is bliss right, pretty darn comfortable place to be . Trying to become a better learner has not been an easy road for me. Knowing that I have gone out of my way to be uncomfortable with learning. Embrace the suck as Brene' Brown would say. We know when we are comfortable something is wrong, we are stuck in a rut of familiarity. To increase brain activity we have to make changes. Tom Brown Jr. once spoke to a group of horse people about awareness. One of the topics was when you are stuck in a rut there is no growth, it's like being on auto pilot. Even if we change our route to work, our morning routine etc. that can be enough to create more thought. Do you see the horizon or just the tunnel vision in front of you. My tag line is "Optimize the Journey, Increase your Awareness" I do my best to carry that in to my everyday life. Not always successful but A for effort right. I kid with my students about my morning awareness jaunt to the barn. It is something I started doing after listening to one of my favorite people Ester Hicks. As I walk out I pay attention to the little things, acknowledge them and let them know they are my favorites. Just observing and soaking in the tiny things can bring so much joy. The key is only observe, refrain from making stories. Kind of goes like this........
"You are my favorite tabby cat, you are my favorite butterfly bush, you are my favorite little Grulla Pony, you are my favorite little toad and so on and so on." Oh and by the way my voice gets really high when I state them. You get the idea. What I am doing is practicing being in the moment, enjoying the simple things and milking the moment. How this makes me feel inside is the energy I want to carry to my horses. I don't want to wake up one day and wish I had spent more time enjoying the small stuff. The small stuff is learning too, it is what leads to the big stuff. To be big we were once small, to know love is to know hate, to be empty we must know full, to know softness we must know hard, to know being we must know doing. Without contrast there would not be clarity.
So back to the topic at hand, Why is why so important. When it comes to horses for me it is pretty simple. I see them as beautiful, amazing, sentient beings and I want to support them in any way I can. Share space, share knowledge, share understanding. Every moment with them is like having a dialog as I would with any living being. Even though they are not verbal I can still learn to understand their response to my suggestions. Sound like a relationship? To me it is and the most incredible relationship two unlikely beings can have. To know the why's in horsemanship help me seek the how's. I believe we are all doing the very best that we can. If I can even change simple things I do with horses to create more comfort in them mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually why not? Sometimes I have to just stop and get out of my head because the flood gates have opened and I get overwhelmed with all I need to learn. I stop, breathe, soften, get curious about the feeling and move on. Don't ignore because it is too hard, don't put a bandaid on it either. Just feel it, get curious and then let it go.
When I started diving deeper in to understanding how these amazing creatures tick, it was like a whole new world just opened up. If I can change the way I do a task, a technique, share space, hold space or simply how I show up in a way that it benefits their wellbeing that's a good day. I have learned a lot of really effective ways of getting horses to do things I wanted. They worked and seemed successful for the knowledge I had at that point in my life. I truly believe horses just want to get along and will do a lot in spite of our limitations. Just because a horse can do something doesn't mean they should. It wasn't until I really paid attention to how the things I was doing was affecting their posture, their emotions and their over all wellbeing that I came to realize I needed more knowledge. More empathy, more presence, more awareness, more feel, more listening and most of all more realization of why I even want the relationships I have with horses. I also keep reminding myself that these horses did not ask to be domesticated, it is my responsibility to do the best I can to keep them comfortable and content.
So let's look at the statements from above once more.
1. I don't need arena work, I just trail ride.
Whether you are trail riding, cutting cows, dressage, eventing etc., how a horse feels in their body is paramount. Strengthening their balancing muscles as well as global muscles is pre-maintenance. Less chance of injury because we are protecting the joints. Better weight bearing posture so your beautiful steed can do what is asked of him. Feeling good in the body means preforming well and without discomfort.
2. I don't need to learn healthy movement I don't plan to compete.
All horses are athletes no matter what your are doing with them. Competing is a very difficult thing for a horse to do, Mentally, emotionally and physically . All really good athletes prepare for competition by not just training for the work but training in a way where they are not jeopardizing their bodies to complete the task. Training with more mindfulness will separate the good from the great. Our horses are athletes, competing or not. We are their life coach, their personal trainer and their therapist.
3. That takes too long I just want to ride.
And that's okay, yet there are simple warm ups and small mindful things we can do that will increase your horse's health and longevity.
4. If me and my horse are not sweating we haven't accomplished anything.
I think this statement applies not just with horses but with how society has created this mentality. Less is more, by understanding the functional anatomy of the horse gives you the science behind it. I don't believe to be successful you have to work hard. I believe you work smart.
5. Oh that saddle is fine, it fits me.
I have come to learn how critical saddle fit is for the healthy movement of the horse. It doesn't take much for a horse to want to escape that feel. That turns in to yucky posture that eventually leads to break down in the body. No brainer on this one folks.
6. Dentist for my horse, why would I spend that money?
Even the simplest of imbalances in the mouth can lead to a domino effect of imbalances in the body. Finding a good natural balance dentist again is a pre-maintenance for your horse's wellbeing.
7. Oh I just get their feet done on a 6 week cycle, cheaper that way.
No hoof no horse!! Horses in the wild do not go six weeks without balancing their feet. They do it daily because of the miles they travel. There is a intricate connection from feet to the rest of the body. Again this is a whole body approach to caring for horses.
8. I don't need to learn that stuff, I ride western.
Good horsemanship is good horsemanship, what you choose to wear is up to you.
9. My trainer didn't see body awareness as an important piece of horsemanship.
I do my best to surround myself with those that are more aware and have more knowledge than me. Qualities I look for in a trainer. Humility, knowledge, People-man-ship and teacher-man-ship. Enough said.
10. Why do I need to learn about feet, I have a farrier/trimmer?
Don't believe everything you hear, educate yourself so you can have the most educated conversation possible with your hoof care provider. We are all learning and will continue to learn about feet for a very long time. A good professional will embrace conversation and questions concerning your horses welfare.
11. Biomechanics for horse and rider is just a fad.
I can see why someone would say that. Any time something is having more and more light shed on it is sometimes perceived as a fad. To me I see it as more and more awareness being shed on understanding the horse and how they function. Call it fad, call it awareness or just plain information. There is much to be learned from educating ourselves to how these beautiful sentient beings tick.
So here is the deal, we are either working with our horses to build them up or we are participating in breaking them down. So the why's help you find the how's and the how's help you be the best you can be for your horse! Simple but most definitely not easy, embrace discomfort and vulnerability so we can continue to grow for our horse's sake. We don't have to jump in to the deep end and become overwhelmed with too much information. Let's just get our feet wet and try to learn even some little things that will benefit our horse and our relationship with them. There is a time for learning and there is a time for play. It is the balance of the two that are the most challenging to do. Everything in life is about balance. How can we be more balanced in our thoughts, our actions and balance our intake of knowledge? I Respect that, we are all on our own journeys and have a right to be where we are. When the student is ready to learn the teacher will show up. No truer statement. Thanks for listening to thoughts from a crazy horse lady.
For the love of horses,
Marie
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