Wisdom from Ray

"In the boldest print of all, remember the word THINK. Be aware and alert, visualize what you want. realize you are working with a mind. A lot of people think it's just a horse, but there's a mind operating that horse. This mind gets him doing things because he wants to do them. Or you teach him to do things he doesn't like to do but feels he has to do them anyway."

You can't judge a book by its cover. And that certainly goes for Think Harmony with Horses by Ray Hunt. It's this itty bitty brown book that looks like it could be more of Beatrix Potter's illustrated stories than wise wisdom from one of the greatest horseman who ever lived.
In this little brown book, I've found a lot of truths that have changed my horsemanship and shaped it. As Eddie and I progress into more advanced things, these truths are more pronounced and I have to make sure that I continue to live by them.

I used to measure my aptitude in horsemanship by my ability to do things more advanced people could do.
Or I measured it by how many things I could check off a list.
And then I measured it by how happy Eddie was. That wasn't too bad of a way to go, but it was left to my own interpretation. As you can imagine, some days I got it right and some days I got it wrong and misjudged his mood.
Now I've switch my mind around, I did a 180 and after reading a phrase in Ray's book this morning, and after thinking about it long before that...
I don't 'measure' it anymore. We are where we are and that's good enough for both of us. My goal with Eddie and with all horses is for us to someday be in perfect harmony.
Then there's Ray's quote: "It's like a light at the end of the tunnel. It gets brighter and clearer all the time."

We'll always be working towards it and once you get a taste of it (which we have) you'll be chasing it for the rest of your life. You'd rather do that than eat.


~Lea & Eddie~

The Amazing Days

As I was playing with Eddie yesterday and riding around lazily in the outdoor, I started to reminisce about a few of the amazing days I've shared with the horses.
These were the ones I thought of:

#1
The day that I first cantered Eddie.

He started to trot and took a few strides at the canter. It was so smooth, so perfect. That was in August 2008.

 #2
The day that Scout came.

I remember like it was yesterday the look on Eddie's face. "A PONY?! YOU GOT A PONY FOR ME?!" He was so happy. I think this picture totally sums up that day. Pure happiness. Scout had been alone for over ten years and Eddie had been alone for 15 months. They are perfect brothers and love each other so much!

 #3
The day Diesel came home.

I also remember this day so vividly. HARPS humane society came out to help us get Diesel. He was alone in a field for one year with no food or water. What some people do to animals... Anyway, I was able to put the rope around his neck and then we hung on. We got him in the trailer and he started a new life with us.

#4

The first day that Eddie and I actually jumped.

We cantered after it and my best buddy took the most amazing picture! It is still one of my favorites! Totally sums up our carefree, fun loving style! Crocs and rolled up jeans, oh yeah!!

 #5
The day we got flooded!

We had SO much rain and the south west corner of our property had about a foot of standing water. So we took the horses down there and Eddie rolled in it, pawed in it and we even rode through it. It was so fun!

 #6
The Blizzard & skiiing.

Scout would pull us on the skis and my sister and I would take turn leading him. It was so much fun and Scout was pretty excited about it too.
The blizzard was really fun too. We got upwards of 4ft drifts and the horses had so much fun playing in them. Diesel probably could have gone under a few of the big ones!

#7
Jumping & Cantering in August 2011.

That was one of those days that every fit so perfectly together. Like a puzzle piece, but even better.

"That absolute pure honesty of the horse, man that's just the greatest thing there is... - Buck Brannaman"

That's the quote that somewhat sums up that day. We were both so willing and he was so open and soft. It's said that once you get a taste of that, pure harmony, you'll spend all your life trying to get there again. :-)
That was our day.

~Lea & Eddie~

Psalm 107:1

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
         For His mercy endures forever.

An Inspiration

Yesterday, I had a thought and decided to act on it.
Eddie and Scout and I have been doing pretty much the same thing for a long time. Run around the pasture online, jump over a few things, canter a little bit and that's all. Or run around at liberty in the outdoor and do cavaletties. Or when we ride we walk around, trot a little bit and play with a few little things.
Well, yesterday I decided not to do the normal anymore.

Instead, I took Eddie for a trail walk all the way around the property. He was so... ALIVE! And excited! We went around the pumpkin field, through the pine trees, around the silo, in front of the house, through the orchard, down to the south line, through the south line, up the east line and back to the outdoor. It took about 45 minutes to go around the whole property and just a few little corrections so that he stayed connected to me, but we had a blast! Then we went into the outdoor and rode - playing with collection and shifting his weight to his hindquarters. I don't think we've had such a stimulating play time for a while. Of course, when we were done he was pretty tired after playing for over an hour. But he took a nap and that gave me a chance to play with Scouty!

We went for a walk too, albeit not a long one. But then we went into the pasture and 'raced' each other. He was so happy to run, buck and just play. Oh boy, do we all have fun together! I hopped on him then and we rode into the outdoor. He so loves to run around and race. hehe, pure joy!

So yes, from now I'm going to try not to do what the horses expect me to do - take them out to the pasture and do... well not much. I moved the cavaletties out to the east line, so that should be fun to play with today! It is a beautiful day and looks to be a fun one too!


(This is my new favorite song right now! I've had it stuck in my head for the past two days!)




~Lea & Eddie~

2 Corinthians 12:9

And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Lotsa Cows

I have had an epic realization lately and I haven't really blogged about it at all. Yet.
You see, Eddie likes to be the herd leader. He liked to literally herd the ponies. He just did it today when we brought them in off of pasture. He runs behind Scout or Diesel and chases them/moves them to where he wants them to go. Also, he did it yesterday. I was inside, but mom said that he herded Scout into his own paddock and kept him there.
He knows this stuff. He gets it and does it naturally.
So, why not encourage it? I've been teaching him some cutting moves on the ground. Just basic things like rollbacks, fast back and forth movements and such. But hey, he can do it so much better without me teaching him! He just does it!
I'm really hoping that in a few years Eddie and I can go to a Buck Brannaman clinic. My mom and I really like his stuff and we're keeping each other grounded. We're not going to put Buck on a pedestal like what we did with Parelli. There are other great horsemen out there and I would just as soon go to a Mark Rashid clinic too. Only Buck has cows. Lotsa cows!

In order to go to one of his clinics though I need:
1. Money (lol!)
2. A Trailer
3. Eddie to be able to go alone and be ok with that
4. Prepare for it by going to a Martin Black clinic or going to the forest preserve a bunch of times.

And I know this isn't going to happen overnight. Heck, it's probably not going to happen for a few years. But God knows and I'm just trusting that some day Ed and I will be able to go to one. It's my new dream. :-)

A friend said on my facebook:
Once the horse knows to hook on to the cow, all you do is hang on and don't take you eyes off the cow!
Very cool.
I suggest that you all go to amazon and buy Buck's documentary. I've watched it twice and could watch it over and over again!

hehe, I also have to get myself a ropin' rope!


~Lea & Eddie~

Open Wide

Most teens my age have to have one big thing done after they get their braces off.
Any guesses?
They're big.
They're annoying.
And they have to come out.
You guessed it!
Wisdom teeth!


Today was my lucky day and I got they pulled this morning. I actually feel pretty good! Lots of jello, frozen pea ice packs and watching Buck Brannaman's documentary on the tv.

So hopefully I'll be able to get back to normal soon. I haven't seen the horses since this morning, but that's ok. It's one day. And besides, they ran around enough yesterday to tire them out today!

As I was watching Buck, I got the 'rancher' itch. Me, Eddie and a herd of cows. Some day, some day....


~Lea

I Always Do This...

... I always skip blogging for a long time, and then it hits me. Like an avalanche. After a total dry spell, I'm flooded with new things to blog about.
So here it goes... My attempt to catch up! :-)

A Camera? YES! Mom surprised us and bought the camera from amazon on sale. It's an amazing camera and we've already taken somewhere around 300 pictures with it. I love it and the horses look so pretty with the clear resolution.

Ok, next thing to tell you!
I got my senior pictures done!

My sister took them and we just walked around the property, stopping to take pics with the pretty, fall trees. I have yet to take some with Eddie because he has been pretty spooky lately. So we'll get the rest of them done when it's sunny out again! :-)

One more thing!

I've learned something lately.
Contentedness.
Well, I've actually been thinking about something lately. Horse people all around the world have their own 'discipline.' You know, cutting, reining, pleasure, trail riding, dressage, show jumping, eventing, you name it. And I don't do any of that with Eddie. *long pause* But it's not like it's a bad thing, in fact I'm quite content with it. But there's always been something in me that says, "Shouldn't I be doing one of those?" And I can't quite answer that. I would say yes, because I believe horses like to have a job. And I would say no, because there's a middle road and we're pretty much ridin' on it. We're not competitive. We don't go places to compete. I think we're more like horsemanship gurus. lol! Like the above Ray Hunt quote. We do horsemanship. And perhaps down the road that will come in handy. I can't see that right now. Cause that's up to God. But I'm just trusting God, He knows our future. <3 Like my Bible Verse a Day that just so happens to be the below verse!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mF33ga1vlHQ


~Lea & Eddie & Scout & Diesel~
Horsemanship Gurus :-)

Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope."

Guesssss What?!

I'm going to be a DAEP!
A Degreed Applied Equine Podiatrist.

"The essence of Applied Equine Podiatry is the conscientious study of the equine foot, always striving to expose it to the proper environmental stimuli, making every effort to promote proper structure and function as we progress in achieving high performance. It is accepting the facts that the horse has the innate ability to heal itself and that man's interference has caused imbalance and has broken the golden rule of do no harm.
Applied Equine Podiatry is a Holistic approach to hoof care; it is instrumental to those wishing to practice the art of Whole Horse Health Care."

That's what I'm going to be doing and I am so excited to start! So it's off to Florida for a course in three months and I'm also starting the online this month.
I would just like to say that I am so thankful to God. I have so seen His hand through all of this and He has helped me and made everything available to me to start this career path. If it weren't for Jesus Christ, I wouldn't be where I am today. Ever since I was a little kid I always wanted to do something with animals. And now I am!

Totally exciting and completely amazing.

~Lea



Isaiah 41:10
Fear not, for I am with you;
      Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
      I will strengthen you,
      Yes, I will help you,
      I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ 

When you think you need to use the reins more...

Well today was just totally gorgeous! Cool, sunny, breezy and just perfect! So, I took the day to play with Scout and Eddie and ride them both too. And Eddie proceeded to teach me a lesson.

Scout and I went for two liberty walks around the track. We cantered a lot, raced each other (of course he won) and I let him graze in the corners. Then we went into the outdoor and just rode around. Trotted here and there, walked over cavaletties and gave him some cookies. :-) A perfect, relaxing day with my super adorable pony! <3

Eddie and I played in the pasture and cantered (on the ground) quite a bit. He was pretty spunky, so I let him run around before we went into the outdoor. Also, we cantered because he's getting a little chubby. ;-) I don't like to admit that, but he is. So I put him in the outdoor for a little bit to graze it down and I think he thought, "I have to be in the Jenny Craig paddock?!" Yes, Eddie... poor Eddie...
We went in the outdoor and rode for a while and I learned a lesson. Eddie was pretty... opinionated. Which is not a bad thing. I'd rather have an opinionated horse than a dull horse. So the thought crossed my mind as he was pulling on the reins, "He needs to respect my reins!" The dominator in me came out for about two seconds as we walked a lap. Then the image of Buck riding his horse in his documentary appeared in my mind. Everything was at peace and he was offering a really good deal to his horse. The phrase popped into my mind out of nowhere:

Just when you think you need to use the reins more,
    You actually need to use them less.

I don't know where it came from. Maybe it was the inner-horsewoman coming out in me. Let me just say that I'm never going to forget it now.
So.
I laid the reins over Eddie's withers and crossed my arms. I only used the reins when I felt like my safety was in jeopardy. Like when he spooked at a shadow from a vulture overhead or pushed open a gate that led out of the outdoor.
Things went much better.
Naturally.
Duh.
He was relaxed, let out more sighs and was more responsive to my subtle leg cues than he's ever been. If you're a rider, then you know that legs cues can only be so 'loud' to a horse. They have to be subtle or else your leg would be floppin' up and down like a fish outta water.
Like Buck says:

“When you’re younger, you ride with 90% physical and 10% mental. But if you could learn how to use 90% mental and 10% physical you’d be better off.”

I think we all would be better off.

~Lea & Eddie~

Psalm 119:165
Great peace have those who love Your law,
         And nothing causes them to stumble.

Looking to the Future

Lately, Eddie and I have been making HUGE progress! It's like I'm finally immersing myself into a new realm where we can set high goals, achieve them and soar. I know that was poorly worded, but I can't really describe it. Here, maybe if I explain what what we have been doing lately things will be more clear.

First of all, Eddie and I have been jumping and cantering a lot. Wow. Am I actually saying that? Cantering? A lot? Yep I am and it is because I am confident and Eddie is ready.
Second, Eddie has taken up a new game. The cutting game with Scout! We opened up the round pen so now he has a very large paddock. It is SO nice! They have a ton of room to play and kick up their heels. Literally! Eddie was chasing Scout and cutting him. Going back and forth, you know, cutting!
Third, I'm really, really starting to like the idea of going to a Buck Brannaman clinic in the next two-three years.

After seeing his documentary and hearing great things of him from our friends at Karmik Acres, I really like his approach and he is just a legend. Well, I guess there are lots of other horsemen like Mark Rashid or Martin Black or... I know there are others I just can't rattle them off at the top of my head.
But yeah, I'm shooting for going to a clinic with Eddie sometime. We have lots of great friends and they are very willing and generous with their trailers. And I think Eddie would be ok. He hasn't left the farm since April 21st, 2007 but after seeing Diesel leave and come home just fine, I think Eddie would be ok too. We'll see. God knows what is in store for us. :-)

~Lea & Eddie~

Impressive Or Inviting?

Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in a book.
Ever been there? You read and read and read and pretty soon what you read becomes what you do.
Or you listen and trust a horseman. You see the results that person creates and you follow the steps to see if you can get there.
You leave one path and explore another. Sometimes that path isn't what it seems.... sometimes it is....

I recently had a similar encounter.
I got the book, The Horse Seeks Me by Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling, for Valentine's Day. Beautiful book. The pictures are beautiful and I was very intrigued when I began to read it. Something stuck in my mind though. Well, actually two things.
1. Klaus works with all stallions in his book.
2. He makes things seem magical.

Those things aren't really that bad. In fact some might say they are good. But to the average, backyard horse owner, those things are not easily obtainable. I can testify to that.

I tried to do some of the exercised Klaus does in his book with Eddie. Neck rope, engaging the hindquarters, and using the whip as light as a fly. Let me tell you that the fly theory did not work. Sorry Klaus, but not with my Eddie... Flies are funny insects aren't they? Sometimes they can simply tickle you and other times they can send you hollering when they bite. Well, my little stick with a tiny piece of plastic on the end might as well have been a horsefly the size of a elephant. Eddie likes clearer directions, not a little tickle on the shoulder. I can put my hand on his firmly, yet friendly and he will follow my directions SO clearly.
Anyway, Klaus also makes things feel harder than they are in his book. Horsemanship is easy.
Listen to you horse.
End of story.
However, his techniques work for him and that's great. I wish him well on his journey, but his kind of horsemanship is not for our herd.

With that being said, the kind of horsemanship I keep coming back to can be seen in this painting I found on Google. A person with their horses enjoying time spent together.
It's relaxed.
It's easy.
It's clear.
And there's a calmness to it. Compare this picture with the one above. Which one would you rather be in?
One is impressive.
One is inviting.
I know that I would rather be in this one. And that is what Eddie and I are going to pursue.
Perfect harmony.

~Lea & Eddie~


Romans 1:16
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.