Tag: Horses

Creating Magic

“Magic shows up when the horse knows his job, when we let go and allow them to be the best they can be. When we set the intention, give them just enough information so they know what to do next and then let go and let them show us how fantastic they are.”
I found this quote on the ThinLine blog a year or so ago. Horses teach us so many life lessons. The other day, I got an email from my daughter’s school about a dance club she and a classmate started. The first meeting had been a disaster! 
As soon as I read it, that quote popped in my head. We had failed these children. In an effort to accommodate their excitement and leadership initiative, we did not slow down and set clear goals and intentions. The girls weren’t able to lead and show us their awesome. There were tears. Lots of tears. 

How do we as parents know when we’ve given our children enough information to succeed? When things haven’t gone well, when do we step in and set them on a better course? 

Borrowing from the wisdom behind that quote, I jumped in and set up a very basic plan with clear goals and steps. By scaffolding, my hope was to give them the necessary structure and information to grow from their experience and shine. 

Now, I step back and let go. It’s up to them. 

Here’s to creating magic. 

Four Words

Bitten, kicked, and trampled three years ago. She had no permanent scars, but her ego was bruised and her fear was controlling her ability to enjoy her favorite activity. 

A month ago, I took her out to my childhood barn, a kid-friendly and horsemanship barn, in search of confidence. Before her first lesson, I told her that we would go week-to-week. We would rate her confidence on a 1-10 scale. If she wanted to stop the lessons or if her comfort level was below 5, she could. But, this was her final opportunity to “earn her stirrups.” 

The first three lessons went well; her confidence level was around 7-8.  She was still afraid to pick her horse’s hooves. But, she had one lesson left and lots of determination. 

Here she is beaming after her last lesson. She earned her stirrups! 

  

She untacked Margo in record time. A few minutes later, she was helping a friend groom her pony. I peaked into the stall and congratulated them both. She struggled a couple times getting Tony’s hoof up. “It’s okay if you can’t get it, B. I’ve loved watching you have fun. You’ll get that hoof up sometime. I believe in you.” 

I turned around to walk back to the car. My momtuition told me to turn backaround. And, I caught her:
  
SHE DID IT!!!! Tony pony’s hoof is up! 

On our way home, I asked her how she did it. “You believed in me, Mom, and I knew I could.”

Thatwaseasy!

I think I will use those words more often.