Why do I love to Ride
That was the question I was asked this week.
Why do I love to ride? My initial response was 2 things.
1. There simply isn't time to answer that
2. I don't
I love my horse.
I love having a 1000 lb best friend.
I love the people I have met because of my horse.
I love how all parts of me grow and strengthen every time I go to the barn.
I love the smells, sounds, activities of the barn.
Riding, is actually the last thing, on the list of things I love about horsey time.
I mean given the option of sitting in a chair or being in a saddle all day, I would always pick the saddle.
But riding is not my motivator.
What keeps me engaged are all the things that I didn't know in the beginning.
When I started this journey, all I knew was that, I desperately wanted to be around horses. It wasn't a specific need to ride.
At that time:
I didn't know that, this was what I was missing in my life.
I didn't know that, somehow having a horse was going to change me and my world view in such fundamental ways.
And
I didn't know that, having a horse was going to make me feel grounded, whole and centered.
Now, though it's all so clear, my perspective is no longer fuzzy.
Life is about relationships - all the rest is just white noise and distraction.
My horse taught me that.
Pistol doesn't care what I look like, he doesn't care how successful I am at my day job, he doesn't care about the billion little worries I have, that all seem so made up, he cares about the space and time between us.
This is what makes horses great companions.
They are not like dogs, who want to please us.
They are not like cats, who want us to please them.
They are horses, and they live in a state of constant
The concept sounds strange if you haven't spent ample time with them, and when you hear someone talk about it, it sounds hokey as hell, but I'm hear to tell you that it's 100% true.
I know when I'm being my best self, because it is reflected back to me through Pistol, if I'm anxious he is anxious, if I'm confident, he is confident.
This is not to say that we do not live within our own parameters and confines, we do, we are two separate beings spending time together.
There will always be things he will not be comfortable doing, even if I tell him it's ok - for instance he might not like walking through running water, but with time and relationship building he would do it because I asked. Just as there are things that will always make me feel uncomfortable, that he will be fine with, like me trudging through ankle deep mud to get to him, and then trusting him, to help get us back to the barn.
We get over our fears to be with them and they get over their fears to be with us. It is a pure form of relationship building that I am still finding words for.
I see it, plain as day that we flow from one to the other, but I am still working through how to explain it to those who don't see it, who are not fortunate enough to be in it.
Unfortunately for those people, who not lucky enough to be around equine friends all the time, a few quick interactions with horses will not show them any of the things that these majestic creatures can bring. As with all things that are worth experiencing, it takes time and focus.
When you open yourself to be in the moment with a horse, it changes you in a way that no other interaction does.
With a human you need words to know how they feel.
With a dog you need to look at them to know them.
With a horse you need only be in the same space with them and you can feel a connection.
I don't mean in some oogity boogity, magical way. There is no magic to it, it's nature.
It is a dance of balance and response.
We are predators, they are prey and we are living every moment together in a truce of those roles, in a balanced agreement that we will be less predator and they will be less prey so that we can exist in harmony.
No other creature gives up it's nature for us like that, horses tune in to us to respond to what we project.
Interacting with them is a gift we can never repay.
They are not disposable tools or replaceable pets, they are long lived unique partners, each with their own story to tell.
Thankfully, how society regards them is starting to slowly change, and little by little we are showing them more respect, at least in the ways we know how to.
Examples:
I will continue to try to illustrate, the power and importance of the relationship with horses, through this blog. I hope that as I do, it becomes clearer for you as the reader to feel what I am describing. Because as a writer, I can think of few things harder to put into words than the connection that can exist between horse and human.
Pistol thinks selfies are stupid - can't you tell?
Why do I love to ride? My initial response was 2 things.
1. There simply isn't time to answer that
2. I don't
I love my horse.
I love having a 1000 lb best friend.
I love the people I have met because of my horse.
I love how all parts of me grow and strengthen every time I go to the barn.
I love the smells, sounds, activities of the barn.
Riding, is actually the last thing, on the list of things I love about horsey time.
I mean given the option of sitting in a chair or being in a saddle all day, I would always pick the saddle.
But riding is not my motivator.
What keeps me engaged are all the things that I didn't know in the beginning.
When I started this journey, all I knew was that, I desperately wanted to be around horses. It wasn't a specific need to ride.
At that time:
I didn't know that, this was what I was missing in my life.
I didn't know that, somehow having a horse was going to change me and my world view in such fundamental ways.
And
I didn't know that, having a horse was going to make me feel grounded, whole and centered.
Now, though it's all so clear, my perspective is no longer fuzzy.
Life is about relationships - all the rest is just white noise and distraction.
My horse taught me that.
Pistol doesn't care what I look like, he doesn't care how successful I am at my day job, he doesn't care about the billion little worries I have, that all seem so made up, he cares about the space and time between us.
This is what makes horses great companions.
They are not like dogs, who want to please us.
They are not like cats, who want us to please them.
They are horses, and they live in a state of constant
- cause and effect,
- action and reaction,
- give and take,
- ebb and flow,
- pressure and release.
The concept sounds strange if you haven't spent ample time with them, and when you hear someone talk about it, it sounds hokey as hell, but I'm hear to tell you that it's 100% true.
I know when I'm being my best self, because it is reflected back to me through Pistol, if I'm anxious he is anxious, if I'm confident, he is confident.
This is not to say that we do not live within our own parameters and confines, we do, we are two separate beings spending time together.
There will always be things he will not be comfortable doing, even if I tell him it's ok - for instance he might not like walking through running water, but with time and relationship building he would do it because I asked. Just as there are things that will always make me feel uncomfortable, that he will be fine with, like me trudging through ankle deep mud to get to him, and then trusting him, to help get us back to the barn.
We get over our fears to be with them and they get over their fears to be with us. It is a pure form of relationship building that I am still finding words for.
I see it, plain as day that we flow from one to the other, but I am still working through how to explain it to those who don't see it, who are not fortunate enough to be in it.
Unfortunately for those people, who not lucky enough to be around equine friends all the time, a few quick interactions with horses will not show them any of the things that these majestic creatures can bring. As with all things that are worth experiencing, it takes time and focus.
When you open yourself to be in the moment with a horse, it changes you in a way that no other interaction does.
With a human you need words to know how they feel.
With a dog you need to look at them to know them.
With a horse you need only be in the same space with them and you can feel a connection.
I don't mean in some oogity boogity, magical way. There is no magic to it, it's nature.
It is a dance of balance and response.
We are predators, they are prey and we are living every moment together in a truce of those roles, in a balanced agreement that we will be less predator and they will be less prey so that we can exist in harmony.
No other creature gives up it's nature for us like that, horses tune in to us to respond to what we project.
Interacting with them is a gift we can never repay.
They are not disposable tools or replaceable pets, they are long lived unique partners, each with their own story to tell.
Thankfully, how society regards them is starting to slowly change, and little by little we are showing them more respect, at least in the ways we know how to.
Examples:
- Lobbying for them to be considered companion animals vs livestock
- Pushing for laws to protect them from slaughter
- Cracking down on animal abuse
- Adoptions of wild horse vs indiscriminate mass euthanasia
- Funding and grants for horse therapy programs
- Changes in standards of competition, for the betterment of their health and well being
I will continue to try to illustrate, the power and importance of the relationship with horses, through this blog. I hope that as I do, it becomes clearer for you as the reader to feel what I am describing. Because as a writer, I can think of few things harder to put into words than the connection that can exist between horse and human.
Pistol thinks selfies are stupid - can't you tell?
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