Thoughts On....

Patience...

I think all natural horsemanship students would say that they are patient. At least to some degree. But in the book I'm reading, it really points out what patience is. It's more than going along for the ride, or waiting until you can't stand it any longer...
The dictionary says:

Patience

1.the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like.

2.an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay

Now, how many of you can say that you are truly patient?

Just a few?

I thought so...

Set it up and wait, is an amazing tool, when applied correctly (applying it correctly could be simple, or extremely hard.) But when you set it up without ANY force, then the wait is much easier. It could take 1 minute, it could take a month. Maybe a year. But whatever problem stands in the way, it requires waiting.

Let me go on to something else... How many times do you interrupt people when in conversation? Often? Rarely? That reflects if you are a patient person or not. Sometimes we are so focused on getting to the next thing, that we don't fully enjoy the present.

Last spring, about this time, I went through quite a confidence transformation. Aka, I was scared, what-if-ing, and it only came about when I rode. And this year, 2010, It's almost disappeared. But it didn't happen over night. In fact it didn't happen in one month, not even two! It took a year! And it's taken Eddie THREE years to be able to fully trust me when I ride. He had been abused by a professional predator... I mean trainer. Just now we're really starting to ride.

That took patience. On his part, and on mine. I remember days where all I wanted to do was ride, and he wouldn't be having a good day. Or, I bet, there were days when Eddie would just want me to get on, instead of laying on him ten million times.

It's taken time for me to find days where he wants to be ridden, and I want to ride. When we have days like that, it's incredible, because we are both so happy.

I know a lot of traditional horse people who would have thought I was crazy. "You hardly ride your horse? Then what good is he?" But I see our herd and how happy they are. They don't wish to be ridden every single day, whether it's a good day for them, or a bad day for them.

Horses are so patient with us. They set it up for us, and wait.

We want to teach them our language, our program, our tasks. But do we really want to learn their language?

What's important to the horse? Just getting by. No confrontation. Nothing that will jeopardize their lives. Being able to do what they want to do.

Back to patience.

Have any of you seen colt starting clinics? Have you been to one? Most trainers do 3-4 days clinics. In those three to four days they:

• Get the horse used to the bridle the horse
• Get the horse used to a bit
• Get the horse used to the weight of a saddle
• Get the horse used to a cinch (front and back)
• Get the horse used to a rider
• Get the horse used to the rider giving them directions in somewhere that a human has never been before. 

And that's just kindergarten.

;)

In the book, (I'll tell you what it is now. Because if you've read all this, I know you're interested...) it's Life Lessons from a Ranch Horse by Mark Rashid. Fantastic book! I learn so much from his books!

Anyway, its says that colt starting should not be 'a day' thing. If it's done in a day to a week, there's almost always assurance of the horse bucking.

But if it's done (and it's been proven) that if you take a few months, to a few years to start a colt. There's no bucking. None. It doesn't matter how 'good' the horse trainer is. Young horses need time to think. Just like children. Would you put a 300 page novel in front of a 5 year old? Probably not. It's too much.

I thought that was a really interesting topic. Something we all can work on.

And, it helps your conversation...

Lea & Eddie

Galatians 5:22-23

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.