The Roller Coaster

My friend, Tim, suggested to me once that training a horse was like riding a roller coaster. There were ups and downs. You also needed to put up with the slow climb up so you could enjoy the fast, thrill-filled, ride down.

Well, that analogy had more meaning to me lately. After spending several sessions with Braveheart where we connected, I asked, he gave, we bonded, a session came that made me feel like I would be starting all over again. See, summer is almost over and with that comes the start of work. I am a college professor and have been in several meetings held prior to the beginning of classes next week. With those meetings come agendas and with agendas come timetables, due dates, and the inkling of stress. So I came from one of those meetings straight to the barn where I hoped to get in some time with Braveheart.

The arena was full with lessons so I headed for the pasture, feeling confident in my progress that I would be able to halter Braveheart and get him to the barn. Well, the "agenda" mindset had yet to leave my psyche, obviously, because when I got to Braveheart, I could rub him, but as I just thought about raising the halter, he would walk away. After about 15 minutes of pasture tag, with me always being IT, I realized that I had an agenda and he could read that. So, I just sat down, yep, right in the middle of the pasture. The horses looked at me as if to wonder, "what's that crazy predator doing?" I worked at releasing the agendas and went back to Braveheart, still with halter in hand but without haltering in mind. I rubbed him, scratched his chest and withers, and simply walked away. Because the indoor arena was occupied, I entered the barn from the side. When I got to a place where I could see the back entrance, there stood Braveheart watching for me. I looked in his direction, acknowledged him but simply went to the front porch to sit and process what had happened there in the pasture. What part of this was me, my attitude, and what part was his apprehension? See, it isn't all one or the other but, usually, a mix of the two. Certainly, the larger part of the whole belongs to the human. We get greedy and want it on our time. Horses feel that pressure and react, because of their prey nature, by fleeing. We need to assume the role of leader of the herd but also that of protector. They need to see us as on their side.

Lessons ended and I went back to the gate. There stood Braveheart, waiting for me. I opened the gate and in he walked. I haltered him, worked for about 10 minutes on our lessons, then walked him to the pasture. A few minutes later, after helping feed the herd, I left the barn, reflecting on what I had experienced while on the roller coaster. Yes, I endured the slow ride up, but I was rewarded with a brief moment of exhilaration as Braveheart and I were a team, our spirits had connected and we were able to lean on, and learn from, each other.