Beginner's Mind, or Learning to Do Nothing
Published by Cari Zancanelli under empowered horse trainers, empowered horses, horse training, Imke Spilker on 4:43 PM
It's been a few weeks of my empowered horses experiment and things are going well. Let me explain: I wrote a letter to Imke Spilker, the woman who wrote Empowered Horses. I told her that I liked the book but after reading it, although I completely agreed with everything she said, I was now very lost. What do I do with my horses now? I mean what do we do together? I had this very profound realization that everything I had previously learned about horses meant nothing. The rug had been pulled out from under me completely.
She wrote back, which pleased and surprised me. She told me that the feelings I had were not only valid, but the first step towards empowerment. She said that the horses "needed this (my) emptiness, in order to actively express themselves". That this would give me time to find out what it's like on the other side. They need to figure out that I have cleared my mind of the past and that the future will be different, that it will include their input.
I understood what she meant and I also understood that horse people are just as empowered, in her view, as horses are. We simply need to listen to the horses and ask them what we can do to help them. This is very difficult for me, as you might imagine. Yet it's also compelling and secretly what I've always wanted to do.
So I've stopped all formal training, period. I may go to them with a halter and/or a whip, but I have tried a few different things (yeah, I know, not exactly "doing nothing") like going for a walk and letting the horse lead. Just scratching them and hanging out with them is also a favorite. Today I went out about 45 minutes before feeding time and Angel latched on to me. That doesn't happen very often, so I went into my training pen and she followed, of her own accord. She had no halter but I had my whip. I stood like I was lunging and she began to circle me of her own accord, staying a perfect distance away. I worked on the circling exercise (she doesn't call it that) from the book, encouraging Angel to move her inside hind leg further beneath her body. We moved at a walk, slowly, on both sides. At the end she was very affectionate, which she usually is not. She stayed close with me while I went to the others.
I went through the paddock and did the same little exercise with each one, all without a halter (except for Luna, who was nervous - I'll explain later) and all with the others right there. I only did this little exercise for a few circles each direction. I was slow, gentle, encouraging but not pushing.
It felt very different working this way. The horses all seemed to "get it", to understand that I was changed and was trying to help them. Am I dreaming that they were complicit or was I trying to fit my old way of working into the new way - was I cheating by asking them for something? In reality they were completely free (no halter, except Luna) to NOT do. In fact, Bella opted for dinner and a long hug rather than work. So I stopped asking immediately.
Here's the thing - as soon as the horses sensed that I was not going to force the issue (before today, even) and "make" them do things, they freely spoke up. They haven't been afraid to let me know what they want. Today I worked with them unhaltered and amongst the other horses, usually a situation that encourages them to ignore you. But they didn't.
As for Luna, she tends to get tense when I have trained her in the past (due to my own mistakes), so when she saw me with the whip, she didn't trust my intentions. I made the decision to use the halter and do the exercise with her so that we could start fresh. Seems counter intuitive, but that was how I chose to approach it. I wanted to let her know my intentions had changed and our "work" would be different. She seemed more relaxed afterwards, so I count it as a positive exchange.
Tonight I watched a documentary on OWN called "One Lucky Elephant". Everything in that movie feeds in to what I have just learned and reinforces to me that I am doing the right thing. More on that tomorrow) I need to let go even more, though, let go of "doing" and concentrate on being there, among them. I feel that they can sense my intentions (or any one's, for that matter) and know that I have changed somehow. I am now the one waiting, listening, with (hopefully) a beginner's mind and it's the horses' turn to take over and train me.
She wrote back, which pleased and surprised me. She told me that the feelings I had were not only valid, but the first step towards empowerment. She said that the horses "needed this (my) emptiness, in order to actively express themselves". That this would give me time to find out what it's like on the other side. They need to figure out that I have cleared my mind of the past and that the future will be different, that it will include their input.
I understood what she meant and I also understood that horse people are just as empowered, in her view, as horses are. We simply need to listen to the horses and ask them what we can do to help them. This is very difficult for me, as you might imagine. Yet it's also compelling and secretly what I've always wanted to do.
So I've stopped all formal training, period. I may go to them with a halter and/or a whip, but I have tried a few different things (yeah, I know, not exactly "doing nothing") like going for a walk and letting the horse lead. Just scratching them and hanging out with them is also a favorite. Today I went out about 45 minutes before feeding time and Angel latched on to me. That doesn't happen very often, so I went into my training pen and she followed, of her own accord. She had no halter but I had my whip. I stood like I was lunging and she began to circle me of her own accord, staying a perfect distance away. I worked on the circling exercise (she doesn't call it that) from the book, encouraging Angel to move her inside hind leg further beneath her body. We moved at a walk, slowly, on both sides. At the end she was very affectionate, which she usually is not. She stayed close with me while I went to the others.
Angel, before her evening shower...
I went through the paddock and did the same little exercise with each one, all without a halter (except for Luna, who was nervous - I'll explain later) and all with the others right there. I only did this little exercise for a few circles each direction. I was slow, gentle, encouraging but not pushing.
It felt very different working this way. The horses all seemed to "get it", to understand that I was changed and was trying to help them. Am I dreaming that they were complicit or was I trying to fit my old way of working into the new way - was I cheating by asking them for something? In reality they were completely free (no halter, except Luna) to NOT do. In fact, Bella opted for dinner and a long hug rather than work. So I stopped asking immediately.
Here's the thing - as soon as the horses sensed that I was not going to force the issue (before today, even) and "make" them do things, they freely spoke up. They haven't been afraid to let me know what they want. Today I worked with them unhaltered and amongst the other horses, usually a situation that encourages them to ignore you. But they didn't.
Tequila, always peeking from the back!
As for Luna, she tends to get tense when I have trained her in the past (due to my own mistakes), so when she saw me with the whip, she didn't trust my intentions. I made the decision to use the halter and do the exercise with her so that we could start fresh. Seems counter intuitive, but that was how I chose to approach it. I wanted to let her know my intentions had changed and our "work" would be different. She seemed more relaxed afterwards, so I count it as a positive exchange.
Tonight I watched a documentary on OWN called "One Lucky Elephant". Everything in that movie feeds in to what I have just learned and reinforces to me that I am doing the right thing. More on that tomorrow) I need to let go even more, though, let go of "doing" and concentrate on being there, among them. I feel that they can sense my intentions (or any one's, for that matter) and know that I have changed somehow. I am now the one waiting, listening, with (hopefully) a beginner's mind and it's the horses' turn to take over and train me.
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