Author: Stefanie

Eventing. Well, Manely

Posted on by Stefanie in Blog

Well. Well well well……….. 

The week has sailed past already following the Mane Event, and I find myself just really wanting to Thank everyone that stopped by and had a visit. Some old friends which were so cool to see, some new ones made, some surprises, and alot of familiar faces that have stuck with me on this crazy loop-de-loop path….:)I was taken aback with the enormous amount of interest in all things pertaining to the Bridle Horse, and the gear certainly drew folks attention.

   Funny thing is though that once the concept was explained to those who did not know of the journey, that it quickly became apparent that it is more the Time, Reverence and Patience, combined with a balanced understanding and communication through the ‘gear’ that gives this ancient, harmonious, “Signal” based ideology a truly remarkable place in the horse world. 

It is most simply put as  ” designed with the horse and the utmost respect for him in mind”. This is certainly not new, fast or a “program”. It demands Feel. It requires Balance. It is Fluid and it is Movement. It can be crazy making and brutally honest…..But, it creates Confidence, Softness, Grace and Empowerment in both horse and human. 

It encompasses all things I hold dear that I have come to cherish along my journey with horses and it is cultivating a finer, quieter, simpler, cleaner more aware rider of myself. This has been my private and personal exploration, something that has been my fascination since I was 8 and collected pictures of spade bits and yet had no comprehension of why. My passion for helping folks learn feel, I mean Feel (:), Awareness, Connection and Confidence dove-tails so effortlessly with what I now find myself faced with. All this curiosity and desire to explore the Art of the Bridle Horse from others who have felt the same pull and wondered…. And so what it is that I love to do really truly is becoming what I do……….

 

 I am constantly humbled and challenged and exalted…and my horses are my best feedback, as always. When I get it right, they fight for the halter and seem to take as much joy in the connection and dance as I do and this…..this is what I have longed for. 

 

A way to balance innumerable elements into a Grand Work of Art with the horses dignity and needs held in complete respect.  I do this simply and utterly because I love it and the way it allows me to feel…and I am honored and humbled to share the exploration.
There is a line in a song, a buckaroo song, that has captured my heart…
” What I do is an Art, not a Sport”.
    Indeed.

So, once again, thanks to you all who showed such keen interest and here’s to hoping I will get to spend time with you this Spring and Summer with your horses, cultivating a love for the Art…..oh!and the Gear….:)

A very, very special THANK YOU needs to go to Joan and Erin who’s dedication, kindness and wonderful support truly made the difference for me with set up, breaks and just being with me….Thanks, Girls!

Hackamore Y Garrocha La Isla…

Posted on by Stefanie in Blog

Well, after a week of -25 and high winds left little time for anything other then survival and keeping everything warm and working, I am finding myself finally back with more pictures and stories of last summer…and remembering T-shirt weather…Remember???????

So the next clinic was on Vancouver Island, at my long time friend Deborah Flynn’s Twin Creeks Facility. Twin Creeks is such a beautiful location and Deb the consummate hostess, and it just set the tone for a great three days of Hackamore and Garrocha fun.

Laurel and Fancy looking well….Fancy!

As you may know, the hackamore is the the first stage of Bridle Horse Development and very dear to my heart, and of late, there has been a substantial amount of interest in what on earth I am doing with all this gear and what my point is and where does it go and why….sooooooo in answer to all these questions and more, the first Hackamore clinic was put on. Ironic to me that it took place in my old back yard, put on by me yet, when I would have given my eye teeth (whatever they are….:) to have had this opportunity 20 yrs, or even 10 yrs ago…..so fitting somehow…
Vicki D and Falemma…cantering:)

With a Garrocha segment as well, and BOY! has this proven to be an unexpected big hit addition to clinics. (I actually decided that there will be an entire Camp up here devoted to Garrocha just to give it the time it deserves….but more on that later….:)

The first morning of the Hackamore Clinic was devoted to going through the gear…sizes, diameters, cores and fit of the hackamore and mane hair mecate, and why they are made of the materials that they are. This is a very fascinating part of Bridle Horse development and crucial to allowing the horse the time to develop the Feel necessary to eventually carry the spade. It is a SIGNAL based philosophy, and as such demands a great deal from us as horsemen. Timing, Feel, release, balance, position, and weight all crucial to having the horse understand what we are asking. For me, I think the biggest contribution that the hackamore does in its brilliant design is that we humans simply cannot make a horse do anything in the hackamore, as they very quickly can get dull to it, bracey like you can’t imagine.


Alexa and Diva…just look at that drive, collection and Alexa’s position….

So, happily this really compels us to become increasingly aware of their feedback…watching, feeling, sensing what they are doing and indeed releasing BEFORE the maneuver happens allows them to be willing participants and empowered in their learning as well. Think of the implications of connection, rapport and confidence building. Every time I ride, I find new places of softness, ways of being that are more in harmony with my horse and it is pure magic.
So, after a great am of show and tell with the gear, it was off to fit everyone and get started with experiencing some of this for themselves. All the participants were so curious and open to what was been offered and the horses responding in the typical way…Whoa! What’s this heavy thing on my nose? And seeking that place of least resistance, vertical with that full neck arch, not just at the poll. And of course, therein lies the challenge….how do we help keep this carriage and respect with our guiding and active riding, soft hands and body awareness, because they very quickly give us brace feedback if we get it wrong….aaahhhhh! LOL…!

That afternoon, I introduced the Garrocha…on the ground first, going over the basic ‘rules’, why and how it is is used and the extremely beneficial rewards of integrating this oh so simple tool into our regular riding program. Everyone was dead certain that they would not be cantering with it by day three…and of course, all were.

Laurel and Fancy sorting it out and looking fine…

This single wooden pole is almost magical in its abilities….and is the most effective way of encouraging correct equation and seat, connection and focus, softness and Purpose! Virtually every aspect that we strive for is compressed into this artistic and fluid art and it seems to happen all by itself with far less struggle and tension. Its like the Spanish music and the very act of dancing somehow distracts us from all the ‘technical’ stuff we always think we need to learn and just Let Go, Flow, become absorbed in the Moment and Movement and learn almost in spite of ourselves. And the Horses….? They LOVE this thing….!


Meredith and her Good mare…and only their first day! See how everything is just lined up?


All in all a simply marvelous three days, and as you can see from the pictures, everyone who rode achieved beautiful moments full of grace and togetherness with their mounts.

And again…This gives tremendous focus for both, having the rider stay centered and not over or under steering, gives a point of reference and just causes both to be in line and together…or its not going to work….

Add in an each participant’s individual routine performed for us all to Spanish music, perfect weather and I for one cannot wait to do this again….!

Vicki executing the Inside Turn…

Which reminds me, yes, there is another Hackamore y Garrocha planned for June 8-10 of this year, the location on the Island is not yet set, but please, feel free to contact myself, or better yet, Alexa Linton at alexa.balanceworks@gmail.com ,my Island Clinic Organizer.


Alexa and D. Wish you could have seen their routine to the Spanish Music…Muy Beuno, Girls ! ~




Begin Again

Posted on by Stefanie in Blog


Well, it been quite some time, hasn’t it?

If I could count the number of times I’ve signed into my Blog….….…....and then left it.




Only just today do i understand why. Writing this first entry after my Mom’s story has proven to be one of the most difficult and challenging transitions of my life. It’s like finally admitting that life does indeed go on….

Oh, and Life has been so unceasingly busy this year. Go Figure. That I have perhaps orchestrated it that way is not lost on me. With no time to pause and reflect, to sit with the pain and emptiness that comes on Sunday mornings when I call her to share… hand frozen on the phone as I remember. When I have to make trips back to the Island on that ferry and the pain crawls in close then as I usually miss a boat and am left with no choice but to sit quietly for 2 hrs surrounded with decades of memories. As randomly as grocery shopping…Chocolate….Lilacs…The screwy hour hand on the clock in my kitchen……my mohair hand knitted mittens.

Christmas………..



I have been for the most part able to carry on as if she may soon be coming back….But like her dear Soul Dog, Toby, I have finally begun to get that she is just not coming back.


Ever.

I had a visit with him last time on the Island, and he was just done waiting and so, off he went off to find her. Another piece of her goes as well for us, and yet, life goes on…

Don’t get me wrong….I love life and understand its ebb and flow and rhythms that color it and shape it and mold it to be always perfect, balanced and natural intellectually and spiritually. But Emotionally?

It hurts like hell and I miss my mom so much it staggers me sometimes.

I will heal. I will allow the pain to come in and pass thru. I will be still enough to feel. I know that she has never left me. I see her in every Red Tailed Hawk that flies so often in my path whenever I am unsure or question…..

This grieving process is a first timer for me and my compassion for those who have lost one so close knows no bounds now…I get it. Hiding in buckets of work is what we Travers’s like to do, and feeling the bad stuff sucks, but better out then in. So I learn a new ability. I feel the tender raw new sensations and the dirty, gritty, rotten old ones as well. The sweet taste of memories running down my face, the empty ache inside that I simply just need to allow myself to surrender to. Odd I suppose that it has taken so long for me to really feel this, but then again, I guess not. I am the past master at not feeling, and well well well…don’t old habits die hard when the chips are down.

The most beautiful thing about all this though? The only thing I need to do is also the hardest thing to do. Feel and feel and feel and feel and feel and then…


Let Go…

and begin again.


One Last Time.

Posted on by Stefanie in Blog


Mom…..

Ever since I was elected to write your obituary, I have squirmed under that name. It just makes me cry….

And I just cannot plunk your life in some stereotypical, generic box, some glanced over section in back of the local paper. From the moment you were born on October 12, 1935 to the day you left us on Feb. 22, 2011, you were anything and everything BUT!

One of my favorite things ever was writing you notes that would bring a smile and a lift to the heart…so that is what I am going to do one last time….

You were born to Hans and Elisabeth Wolf in Kassel, Germany on Sat, the 12th of October, 1935. Along with an older brother, Uwe Jens (now living in Alamo, Texas), the family of four survived WW2 in Germany, and immigrated in 1955. What you experienced in those dramatic years growing up, you only shared tiny amounts with us, enduring circumstances we could never imagine. It was the pressure and flame that tempered you into such a strong being, and yet you maintained that indefinable Grace and gentleness…

I remember being told that you had an apprenticeship on a big Oldenburg Stud Farm, and so did not want to move to Canada…we sure are glad you did, though! Raymond, Alberta sugar beet farm was where it all began here, then on to Vancouver and finally Victoria. Working in the Royal Bank as a Teller left you little escape from a devil-may-care deep sea tug sailor by the name of Richard Travers bound and determined to make you his wife. And so he did. On Aug. 16, 1965 you were married, and had us three kids. Chris first, followed quickly by me, Stefanie, and then Colin, every bit as determined as his father, came along as well. The next couple of decades were full! With Pop building houses as fast as you could decorate and landscape them in the South Island and your wish for your own farm finally coming true. With one of the few Commercial Goat Diaries in B.C., you gave us all so much. Some of the fondest memories and deepest friendships have come from your dedication to your dream. Avid supporter of 4-H, exhibitions and fairs (even if you did worry a bit too much sometimes:), raising us kids to have a deep abiding respect for the country life, morals and love of animals. To Chris you gave your crazy work ethic and deep well of care and devotion. To Colin, your dignity, determination and independence helped shape his life.To me, well, sometimes to your dismay, I took your love of animals to the next level, and certainly did with the horses. Your support, patience and interest allowed me to fully realize my hearts desire. Teaching me to never sell out, never give up my soul. Words will never be enough to Thank You for this very, very special link and gift we share….

Chris, together with Vicki, were the ones who brought you your two wonderful Grandchildren, Christie and Todd; the family still close by in the Cowichan Valley

With your opera’s playing in the barn, hanging baskets galore, those long skirts you adored, your grace, elegance and class that all who knew you admired. Iron lady when you needed to be, sensitive and deeply caring for her family and friends. Watching the farm, your incredible flowers and yard bring you such peace and joy right up to the end was such a thrill.

Sitting on the back deck with coffee and you in the early mornings, the scent of all those spring flowers and our easy conversations is one of my most treasured memories…Fresia’s your favorite flower, coffee black with a dab of sugar, your Value Village excursions with Shirley and the dogs, Vivaldi and Giselle, Christmas rolladen….and how am I ever to make your special French Toast?. Our shared love for potato pancakes, you cursing the smell in the house for hours after…:) Oh but they were soooooo good.

Watching how Chris and Shirley’s tender care gave us all so much more time, at home where we all wanted you. Even at the very end, mom, you had us all gathered together, our family…..what a gift.

Now, we all know you wanted no ceremony, but we just can’t help having a gathering, at home at 1770 Koksilah Rd., on the Saturday, the 26th of March.…It’ll be spring then, and some time will have passed, so we can maybe smile again and remember the joy with a little less of the ache of losing you. Nothing fancy, I promise, but you touched so many lives we would love to share.

I love you so much, Mom….for Everything….Thank You.

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am in a thousand winds that blow,
I am the softly falling snow.
I am the gentle showers of rain,
I am the fields of ripening grain.
I am in the morning hush,
I am in the graceful rush
Of beautiful birds in circling flight,
I am the starshine of the night.
I am in the flowers that bloom,
I am in a quiet room.
I am in the birds that sing,
I am in each lovely thing.
Do not stand at my grave bereft
I am not there. I have not left. ~ Mary Frye

I have been overwhelmed with all your gentle words shoulders- to- lean on and support for myself and my family over the last few months, weeks and especially days……a Million Thank Yous and Hugs….:) I couldn’t have done it without you…