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Yesterday we harnessed our pony, Andy, hooked him up to the cart and taught some driving lessons at Dharmahorse. It was a great day for doing this since our earliest student could not make her lesson and it gave me the chance to take our late morning student on a brief drive around the property just for fun.
The lessons on driving went well and when my young student arrived early, we just popped on her helmet and sat her beside me in the cart. What happened next was so interesting to me! She had never ridden in a pony cart. She was thrilled to do so, but she talked the entire time. I realized that she would never remember the look of Andy's cute little bottom swinging with his stride as we rolled along. She will not someday think, "wow, I know what breeching and a crupper look like" or "the pony wears blinkers to keep his attention forward" - No, she was never fully present in that cart and I'm certain that years in the future, should someone ask if she has ever ridden in a horse drawn cart, her answer will be "no".
It really was that disconnected. Now, sometimes we disconnect out of fear or anxiety about a situation. That is me on a roller coaster; just hurry and get me off of the thing. Sometimes our mind is chattering so much that our focus is unclear or distorted. Often, we are just in the habit of being scattered.
So, like my young student, I know that I can hold myself separate from my experiences if I forget to focus and be fully present in the moment. Often, I have too many things on my mind. I have to know how each horse is feeling and what each student needs and match riders to horses for the benefit of both - while remembering to check on my Mother and turn the fan on for the dogs and pay the water bill and move hay up for supper and get the dumpsters out for the truck, and, and, and... you get the picture. It is something we all do.
I think of this series of mind checks and balances as a kind of lack of trust. As if I do not trust myself to remember what needs to be done, I constantly review and often chastise myself for any daydreaming or simple useless conversations. My, my... it is harder to release yourself from your own authority than it is to slip away from the domination of another. Just to relax is priceless and it is the foundation of being fully present in the moment. One must relax.
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 Meditation is an excellent method for relaxing and getting in touch with the moment. Sitting in quiet repose with calming energies in the background (by a stream or in a darkened room, etc.) will help you learn to soothe the chatter in the mind. I focus upon my breathing and just concentrate on each breath - hearing it, feeling it, being fully present with the act of breathing. If something distracts me, I return my thoughts to the breath. This practice will also serve you in times of stress or fear when the human tendency is to hold the breath - which just scares the willies out of a horse since his herd in the wild would stop and hold their collective breath when feeling threatened by a predator! Breathing keeps you present in the moment and breathing helps you relax. It is always vital to breathe well when riding a horse. Learn More » |
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 Sometimes I will think about "Google Earth" and how you put in a location and it will zoom in from a scene of the entire planet to just over the house or lake or city that was entered. That is how we sometimes have to visualize to get "back to" being fully present - in the moment; at the meeting; on the horse; at the hospital; whatever it is we need to acknowledge and experience. Sometimes we get so far from the present moment that we need to zoom in and wake up and just be. It takes practice. It is worth the effort. Being fully present is way more like the way your horse and dog and cat experience this life. And they really do know how to live in the moment! Have a great August! Love & Peace from Katharine and the Dharmahorse tribe.     |
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