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Getting Stable With Horses
Written By: Sue Blair - Carpe Diem Farms | Issue: 2018/10 - October
Over the last 26 years I’ve had a lot of opportunities to work with a wide variety of children and adults. There have been nearly 4,000 in camps, workshops, private lessons, after school programs, internships, and more.
In all of those experiences there have only been four – two adults, two children – whose fear of horses was paralyzing and their determination to overcome it was relentless. My experiences have shown me that on the other side of fear is tremendous joy. It’s a matter of getting there.
A man recently called to ask for my help. Friends had invited him and his wife to their dude ranch in Wyoming. The activities would include a trail ride and his wife was so afraid of horses that she wanted to stay home! He asked if I could help her past her fears.
It all began with her willingness, desire, and courage. She shared that she had never been able to walk in a stable much less get up close and personal with a horse. Baby steps would lead her on her journey, mustering all her courage she turned her fear into respect
and understanding.
Experiential learning with horses – thousand-plus-pound creatures, prey animals looking for their escape route at all times – is about teaching relationship building. A metaphor for everything we do in our lives. With a pair of two-hour sessions she learned first to breathe and then to relate, not react. It was magical to experience through her eyes her fears melting away and her joy taking over.
We never know what we can accomplish if we don’t stretch our fear muscles, allow our hearts to open, experience the possibilities and opportunities that abound, and push through to joy!
For 26 years the horses of Carpe Diem Farms have given individuals of all ages the opportunity to do just that. It is my daily gift to watch it all unfold.
