The idea of being authentic is not a new one. But I'm giving it a lot more attention lately, and I'm fascinated by the challenges we all face when working to determine who we are authentically. It makes perfect sense when you think about it. 

 
Many children are not raised in an environment where they are truly accepted and treasured for who they are. And, I think, even if we are lucky enough to have a wonderful supportive, accepting, environment as a child, once we are exposed to outside influences, the internal turmoil of puberty and society's expectations, everything begins to change. We start shaving off the unique edges of our peg so we conform nicely into the hole that society says is acceptable.

At a lecture in Vancouver BC  Dr. Christiane Northrup, MD,said that if a woman  wants to get in touch with her authentic self, she has to go back to around age 9, before puberty. What did we love to do then? What made us happy? What was it we couldn't wait to spend our time doing? Who were we before our hormones and society's expectation of being female (or male) began to influence us and how we interacted with the world? (I wonder if this is true for men as well.) There seems to be universally common milestones (divorce, reaching mid-life, unexpected career change, financial catastrophe, infidelity, losing a loved one or facing a serious health crisis) that inspire us to begin to rethink who we are and who we want to be. Often, after experiencing a high magnitude life quake, we become more focused on a personal journey of discovery that leads us to accept and embrace our unique gifts and talents. My journey involved a handful of those milestones and they all hit within a window of time around turning 40. Actually, it was a full handful. The stress induced a health crisis that happened during those years. I look back and am

humbled at what humans are capable of overcoming, and the complete and utter turmoil we can survive, personally and spiritually. It was a very alive and rewarding upheaval, albeit painful. And right in the middle of all of that, I brought horses back into my life!

Not just any horses, I adopted two green broke 3 year old boys who ultimately would take me back to the 9 year old girl and reconnect me to my authenticity. But not without some challenges from my entrenched 40 +/- year old ego fighting me to maintain the comfortable status quo. I really love what Dr. Lance Secretan says about change; "We sacrifice what we are for what we can become-and that takes courage."

Click Here to Continue Reading 

Back to top 

Lukas, the World's Smartest Horse (according to The World Records Academy) has done it!! Guinness World Records has officially recognized Lukas' history making achievement: "Most numbers correctly identified by a horse in one minute." The seventeen year old ex-racer and former rescue met all the guidelines and identified NINETEEN numbers in less than sixty seconds. Karen Murdock, Lukas' owner/trainer had quite a list for her beloved gelding during the event.

Guidelines for the attempt included the following:

• Qualified veterinary surgeon present.
• No equipment whatsoever to be used by the handler (including a halter) - Lukas loose and entirely free in a round pen.
• No touching or pointing by the handler or any other person.
• A single verbal request (a number) solely must be made by the handler.
• The numbers must be placed on the floor/table in front of the horse 20 centimeters apart.
• The horse must return toward center after each number and make a conclusive selection.
• Only correct responses are counted.
• Numbers spoken at random and non-consecutive.
• Two expert witnesses.
• Two expert time keepers with stopwatches accurate to 1/100th of a second.
• Static (non-stopping) filming of entire attempt and focused on attempt at all times.
• Still photographs documenting the above.

Once again, Hadi Khalil, veteran producer at International Production and Advertising was on hand to film this momentous occasion; IPA staff photographers and Linda Alexander Walton generously donated still pictures. Lukas' veterinarian, Dr. Don Scott Vrono, assisted with overseeing the event. Expert witnesses included Stacey Erb and Kathleen (Tat) Yakutis, timers were Chuck Erb and Doug Murdock. Dawn Mellen, President of After The Finish Line, was on hand as Lukas dedicated his attempt to benefit those less fortunate. According to Murdock, "I'm very grateful for the help of so many good friends who have helped to bring this about. We're also very fortunate to have had the support of animal lovers all over the world who have sent encouraging messages and given us inspiration. I also want to express my appreciation to Guinness for their acknowledgment of Lukas' abilities and to Guinness Talent Manager Louise Ireland for her wonderful assistance.

What's next for the Guinness World Record Holder? Lukas plans to continue to share his message of hope and happiness for all creatures. Will there be another record attempt in the future? Lukas isn't saying yet, but he is practicing identifying his shapes.

Watch Lukas' Record Setting Video 

Visit Lukas' Website 

Back to top