Tag: gratitude

Fun….!.It isn’t a four-letter word

Posted on by Stefanie in Uncategorized


Lauren and I were yackin’ on the phone the other day ( something we are quite good at, truth be known…) and she was telling me about her ride the other day with a friend and how it was just a side show comedy act. The two horses were basically galloping down the trail with a vague level of direction maintained, bareback, halters and big Sugar Eatin’ Grins on their faces, laughing all the way home…I loved it! What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon! No proper
flexion, probably no collection, more then likely not a shred of roundness.………….But were the horses having fun??????? And were they having fun together????? Hmmmmmmm…

I think we all to often seem to forget about actually having FUN with our horses….forgetting about ‘proper’ form and function. As well and fine as it is to have our higher horsemanship goals, places we aspire to go, and activities we participate in from showing to trail riding, I believe it is vital to just have fun and be with our horse friends in a silly, casual and non-structured way. Whether it was as Lauren and her pal were doing, madly galloping bareback, howling with laughter at the freedom of it, swimming at a great spot on the river on a HOT summer day, or maybe just sitting and hanging out with your horse, soaking up the moments of stillness and peace, without trying to make (!) anything happen…just allowing each other to be together…….


Part of the slippery deal about having fun as a grown-up is remembering how to be like a kid again and it can take a conscious effort on our part to Let Go of control, be in the Moment, let loose the child in us, Let Go of our fears, and just allow ourselves to relax! We so often want this for our horses, to relax and trust us, so imagine that! We have to be willing to do the same thing….and often we have to be the one that does it first…..

Be creative, be off the wall, be zany, be curious, be INTERESTING to yourself and your horse! Take your buddy for a walk or bike ride and actually allow them to graze to their hearts content ( ok, maybe not THAT long……:) Sitting around with your friends in the field, or in the evening at a clinic while you unwind, hanging out with your horse….and watch them become engaged with your ridiculous and highly unusual behavior…They love it! My horses and dogs share a very special relationship, and Indy and Sage totally have a rapport….they tease and taunt one another, and nuzzle and completely enjoy one another’s company. Sage will bark at Indy’s face while he is trying to catch one of her exposed body bits, both loving the game. At camps, to help people slow down and just be with their horses as well as actually allowing their horse to be the one that decides to connect, and do something completely different. I have people sit at the end of their 22ft. ropes, with their backs to the horse and……………wait. Always, always, always this is an amazing thing to do. What crazy thoughts go thru our heads, and how it teats our patience (hmmmmmm maybe it is like mediation…..) but the gift of connection it brings is sooooooooo worth it. (I also do this with the training horses, to help establish rapport and trust...both ways!) I do suggest good weather for this little experiment, or fun it may not be……

So. Maybe play (!) around with having some silly, non-structured fun……go ahead! embarss yourself! Be a silly-ass and laugh til your belly hurts! Do something so off the wall, your neighbors stare and then look the other way, the cat hinds under the stairs, the dog thinks you are the wackiest, coolest thing ever (well, he probably already does, so your off the hook there……….) and your horse just might get to thinking he wants to be with you, too. Not because you made him , but because you guys are having FUN !

And besides, its just darn near impossible to have a bad day when you lay backwards, bareback on your horse, with your arms folded across his beautiful bum, eyes closed while the rhythm of his eating lulls your worries away and peace and bliss enfold you………..

….My Favorite Part !

Posted on by Stefanie in Uncategorized

At five to ten this morning, I honked good-bye to a very dear friend as she got on the bus for home. Becca has become a great source of joy in my life, and I am honored to be a small part of it. She is kinda my pseudo-niece, since I have known her since she was a baby, and her mom is every bit as special to me as well, and it has been such great fun to have had her working with me for the last two summer’s, not to mention incredibly helpful….in so many ways. You see, not only is she a young, gifted horsewoman, truly talented photographer ( most summer pics I have were hers), very self motivated and tireless worker, but she possesses a fine gift for hearing. Now I don’t mean in the normal sense of the word, but in the sense that she has an ability to listen and absorb what is being said. She can then reflect back some very startling truths and perceptions, that apply to life, horses and relationships of all kinds. How this talent for being empathic, thoughtful, caring, wise beyond her years and bright as hell will unfold and develop will be very special I am sure.
So she came up to visit her Merritt home for a few days with my brother, Chris as he came with his Semi to pick up another load of good Interior hay. In December, Chris (in true Big Brother form:) made a special delivery for me. -25 and an impatient horse wrecked havoc on my unassuming wheelbarrow, which had been minding its own business in the doorway, and got shattered into a million small, green plastic splinters. As you can see in the picture, overloaded he wasn’t! I can only imagine what the other truckers said about his ‘payload’, but it’s safe to say he would do about anything for his sister! Course I DID help load 31 odd tons of alfalfa in exchange, so maybe he has this all figured out better then I think……hmmmmmm.

So Becca is one of those people who ‘get’ why this place is so very darn cool….its the Rocks! And the clay banks and the rocks and the sage and the rocks and the river and the rocks……...We had a pathetic covering of snow while she was here…Coast snow, truth be known….:(, but we made the best of it, and got some good riding in. Becca took Ivy for a spin (sorry Lauren…..to bad you couldn’t make it the winter Cowgirl Reunion…..:) and got to experience some foot-stompin’ hair tossin’ cussin’ Ivy-isms…..hahahaha! Helped ride a couple training horses, catch up my training logs, solve the worlds problems, and of course get heaps of attention from her best face lickin’ buddy, Griffy. We finally got over to check out this crazy deserted homestead on the other side of the river, and I decided that it was the most amazing piece of property ever….now how to get it out of the Reserve? The view from the top of the plateau was crazy, seeing the Swimming Hole from a new perspective with the entire valley stretching behind it and slip sliding on the sneaky clay, pushing/dragging/carrying Griffin across the trestle,and then hopping up, down and on Cita’s Back for her third time with a human on her back, all made for a thoroughly well rounded day…….

The dogs are snoring and chasing Dream Rabbits, worn out, but happy from Another grand adventure…….
Exploring new trails….My favorite part!
Having fun with good buddies……My Favorite part!
Riding horses in snow storms…..My favorite part!
Hard/soft Tacos……My favorite part!
no, wait….
Tai peanut noodles with Prawns…..my favorite part!
Long trotting horses out for an hour………..my favorite part!
Looking at dream properties…my favorite part!

Being blessed with the company of great friends, great animals, loving family an amazing job and home?………DEFINITELY my favorite part………:)

Thanks for the Great Visit Bucka!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Spanish Monday

Posted on by Stefanie in Blog

Monday’s are not known for there stellar qualities as a rule. They tend to suffer from a certain lack of enthusiasm and generally rate fairly low on most people’s “Favorite Day of the Week’ List, so in light of that, felt that it was pretty much my duty to throw some excitement into the most humblest day of the week. Enter……( Ta-da-da da!)…….Espada!
Espada is my 7 yr. Andalusian/ Lusitano mare and to say I adore her would be a gross under-statement. Now just glancing at her portrait at the left to us, one could be deceived into thinking she was…..plain. She has been called a few less then glamorous names,but that is part of the beauty of the Lusitano. Just standin’ around in the field....well one COULD be forgiven to think they were plain, but under saddle? No- one in their right mind would think to call that fabulous bull-fighter, ‘Merlin’ plain! And so it goes with Espada. This is a great shot to see her name sake blaze….a perfect sword, and her battle mare heritage is not far from the surface, that’s for sure. Fierce, brave, crazy sensitive and expressive, she is pure undiluted Latin passion. Espada couldn’t play Poker to save her life (even if she had opossable thumbs)….EVERYTHING is written all over her entire body what she feels and thinks. Just climbing on her back immediately glues a Big Ole Happy grin on my mug….all the flash and dash and skirt-twirling and its like I have a mariachi band following us along.
Does this make her one of the COOLEST ever horses to be with? Well, for me…. Yeah! ‘Spady and me have shared a long, long journey together, and she is truly a gift for me. How she has changed my approach to horses and horsemanship is massive, and I credit her with softening me, the value of non-resistance training…for the human, and of course feel, feel, feel…..sigh!
And today was just another chapter opening up, and I am playing with the incredibly sensitive tuning of our relationship and how vastly my body effects hers…I mean I always try to be aware of what I am doing up there, but this! This is a whole other level again! All we were doing was loose reining it along the top property, and I was steering her with my weight and focus, but if I picked up a soft feel, and played around with the muscles in my back, and tiny hip rotations, shifts in weight…everything changed. Its like having a bio-feedback machine that talks to you about atoms….molecules of change and viola! Oh Boy..this is going to be some kind of learning curve again and ups the level of awareness, responsibility, response- ability, subtly, finesse and ohhhhhh yippe! Part of me can’t wait for spring now to get going in the ring again, and faster work, but of course, everything happens in its perfect place and time and its winter. Ice and slippery ground forces me to stay slow, feel, absorb and integrate and build gradually, getting it right first, fast later. Oh, ok! It just never really ceases to amaze me who aware our horses are. How perceptive to their environment, what they are interacting with, and how they constantly adjust to every new situation. Their sensitivity is awe inspiring……and I have the nerve to believe it is me doing the training?????????????????

“Orville Wright didn’t have a pilot’s license.” Richard Tate

Even without the Red Shoes…..

Posted on by Stefanie in Blog

Home!
With Christmas and a visit to Family and Friends back on Vancouver Island now over, two things have filled me with enormous gratitude. First, Christmas in its pure form is truly a gift. It allows us to remember to accept and give love, forgive, share, give thanks, spend time with those we often don’t take the time to, eat food lovingly prepared, and recognize that a gentle but powerful force greater then us is present and with us.
Secondly, I am blessed with a gift of my life, my home, my ability to do what I passionately love to do for a living in a place that I deeply care for. The crazy animals that seem to love me as much as I love them, my sturdy, happy truck, the Sunshine that pours down on me as I drove through the Fraser Canyon yesterday ( I opted for the Old Fashioned route. Just seemed more appropriate somehow….) and all those ridiculous rocks! I Love the rocks in this country! and the Sage! And the Pines! and the snow!….And the dirt roads! and…..
hmmmm, I expect that you can tell, I am HAPPY to be home.

Thank you.

With 5 days off under his belt, all of which were no doubt spent trying to ‘one-up’ his neighbor in the all time favorite Gelding game of ‘ Who Can pull More Fur out of Who’ , combined with a definite itch to GET OUT, Carson made the obvious choice for my first ride. Being the (albeit infrequent) sensible type, I opt for the saddle and snaffle, and slap my rope on as well, on the remote chance I might need something to latch onto quickly in case Carson gets a bit, shall we say…..expressive. Still, this is prime opportunity to check out our progress, and we tack an’ go. Course, I do have a plan, and that includes heading down the squeaky snow (trust me, it squeaks), past the calves, and up the hill. OK, maybe it IS the Canyon Hill, but its good footing, steep as all get out, and I want to give Carson a big job, get him focusing on something positive, and hey! Guess what else? We are doing it together, and he needs to trust me, himself and experience something new and Adventurous! I get off half way, as it is just too steep for him, and he lacks the co-ordination and strength to do it yet with me on his back as well, but that just lets him know I am on his side, and we are in this hare-brained deal together (Who’s idea was this anyway?) Once at the top, we are looking down on the Dot Ranch, in the sun, in the sparkling snow,right on the tippy-top off the Hoo–Doos. It is really too bad that Carson, Sage, Griffin and me are the only ones that got to see what we saw, but for those of you in computer land…..well, that’s just really too bad….;)
Then we lope and gallop a bit, and head down across the frozen creek(more trust, I lead the way) and home, practicing a tiny bit of soft feel, flexion and half pass, drop out a few loops and drag the rope…really no Bigga Deal. Remember, I am always playing the ‘Feel Carson’ Game….always. Oh!…. there were so many very cool things that happened on this ride, and it feels like we are heading in just the right direction…..for both of us*)

As we come in the yard, and well, here’s Jeanne and Kathleen! Yay! They haven’t been up in weeks, and their three boys, Gumby, Nash and Joey are thrilled! We head out down the hill and along the river trail, Jeanne up on Nash, and Kath on Joey and myself on the Comfy Couch of the equine world, Gumby. I think Jeanne is pretty proud of Gumby, and rightly so. He has come a long, long journey, and I adore him. He is so willing to connect and be with us crazy 2-leggeds now, getting quicker and quicker to trust. Gumby and brother Nash are Belgian/Mustangs. Gumby was ungelded and wild for years before Jeanne acquired them, and she would be the one to ask for the human side of their story, but Gumby has told me a fair bit about his…….
Unfortunately, the ladies couldn’t stay in their Chateau Le Dot Trailer but will be back up later this week to ride again. Remember warmer mittens, girls:)