Tuning In

Today I have been preparing to met with a client to review the learning outcomes from a session with the horses.  I have been marking up all the photos so that they can refer back to them to deepen the learning and, as ever, I am intrigued to see all the many different ways people can work effectively with each other and the horses. The horses teach us so quickly that, just like people, what works with one may not work with another and so participants soon learn to expand their range of styles.

Susie enjoying a massage from a young client

It’s not just in learning situations either. I had a lovely day on Monday with sacro cranial osteopath Joanna Legard who is interested in the possibility of doing more of this work with horses. Joanna offered Chelsea some treatment which she accepted very happily and was soon totally relaxed and loving Joanna’s sensitive touch. We then moved to Susie and Joanna offered her some treatment too. Susie was not at all interested and just continued to eat. Her favourite form of treatment is a massage and so when we offered her that instead she was much more interested. I explained to Joanna that this was not about her ability to treat Susie – but simply Susie’s preference.

In all cases, the horses respond with honesty and and also with grace about what works and what doesn’t. There is no criticism and no judgement – just clear feedback. It’s such a great lesson for all of us. We all know what works best for us and can learn from the horses how to say so firmly yet gracefully – and we can also learn from them how to flex our style so that we have the best chance of interacting effectively with everyone we meet.