18th September, 2008 Only human?

So here's a controversial one. If we carry our horsemanship into the rest of our life then by definition how we are in our normal life is how we are with our horses. So, if we are all talk no action does this come through to the horse as a lack of reliability, consistency and commitment? If we can talk the talk but not walk the walk, can the horse sense our lack of certainty and experience and therefore feel insecure? If we constantly talk over other people and don't listen to their replies, does the horse give up trying to tell us anything? If we constantly block the advice someone gives us do we block the horse in the same way - no, it's not that, I've tried that! Or if we just add "oh and another thing" does the horse think how much do you want from me?! I'm off up to the farm now to ride my horse, be consistent, listen to her, open the way for her and not ask for more than she can possibly give. Phew! Actually, I shall just finish reading the Horse and Hound before I go!

p.s. Had a brilliant ride on Petra - for some reason known only to themselves, Blue, Nell, Cello, Ginger and another bay pony all decided to tag along even though I wasn't going around their haunt. In pale sunshine and dappled trees we wandered around the Forest as a group and played Three Billy Goats Gruff at the wooden bridge. All was serene until we got within the magnetic field of their haunt by which time we had gathered a few more and then the whole lot just took off through the woods and almost blew Petra's mind.