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Most riders hold a mythological dream in their hearts. The dream of becoming so in tune with their horse's thoughts and movements that they become one creature. The myth is of a creature that is part horse and part man, the centaur. The best riders seem to have found this unity, or at least as close as you can get without actually becoming physically part of the horse. For many others, who don't have the time, inclination, or ability to be in the saddle 6 to 12 hours a day, it seems that lucky and fleeting glimpses are as close as they'll ever get. It can be both disheartening and maddening. Part of the reason that a lot of saddle time gives us the experience necessary to become good riders is that we learn to understand how the horse moves and reacts with our bodily memory. But humans are a very mentally active species. We like to think about things. Thinking and the desire to learn is why we take the further step and get riding instruction. Instruction becomes frustrating when, through rigid form, we lose sight of our dream of becoming one with our horse. We follow rules to get the horse to move this way or that but we stop asking the horse what she thinks, what she can do physically or mentally, and whether she even understands. We may even become marginally antagonistic towards our horse. In this way, we leave teamwork and unity behind. Partnership Awareness takes a different approach from most riding and horsemanship instruction. It directs part of the rider's attention back to the horse. It encourages the student to become more aware of how the horse thinks, moves and reacts as they ride or work with their horse. Through better understanding, horse and rider can begin functioning better as a team. They can become partners. They can re-awaken the dream of being a centaur. They can become one. My favorite thing to hear during a lesson is, "Ahh, I understand!" then a smile and... "can we do that again?" - Sara on teaching. |
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Instruction in Partnership Awareness: Groundwork and riding exercises designed to improve communication and understanding between people and their horses. Please contact me for more information. Click here for special Partnership Awareness exercises that you can do today! |
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