Yeah, I don't even know how to talk about my session with Prin today. I'm honestly at a loss for words for how INCREDIBLE it was. You ever have those days where everything you've been playing towards just suddenly drops into place? That was today.
I took Prin out, vowing that I wouldn't get hung up or obsessed with the big picture, the goal, the task, whatever, that I was going to focus on the pieces and reward the slightest try. Interesting how motivating that strategy is for an LBI...Isn't it fun? I can have the same BFO on a half a dozen times on different levels...all in one year!
Anyway, everything sort of just fell into place. I've been playing for the past week or so in isolating porcupine games and getting different parts of her body super light and responsive to a feel. Isolate, separate, and recombine, and all that. I'd been focusing particularly on zones one and 3/4, because this is pretty much where my Prin's biggest physical blocks are. I started using cookies as incentives in her zone 1, simply because I could, coupled with some lift and driving game in circles, really close in until she relaxed and REALLY flexed around me. I saw some big changes there, but the biggest surprises came when I decided to play with some zone 5 driving. After some small isolations in her hind end, she offered amazingness: QUALITY haunches in/half pass from zone 5 with ONE LINE! Um...COOL?! I'm really excited for this, because it's going to help our finesse SO MUCH. I'm really loving how my online is turning into my finesse!
When it comes to zone 1 with Prin, one scenario has always stayed true in my head--I feel like the ultimate zone 1 accomplishment with her (and maybe this is because of how..DULL Prin used to be!)is to achieve quality and correct vertical flexion in the halter, and be able to perform collected maneuvers as such. Farrah and Caesar are a great example, and I once asked her if it were as simple as a broken porcupine game, or if there was more to it than that. Farrah responded that yes, it was a broken porcupine game, but the reason probably wasn't disrespect so much as a lack of strength/flexibility, and that she's just telling me by resisting that she isn't strong enough to do it. That's been a journey in and of itself--helping her find that strength! But recently, I've felt that we're on the edge of a breakthrough.
Well...ladies and gentlemen. Today. I isolated, separated, and recombined. I showed Prin what it was I wanted, helped her find comfort in it, and she got it! Prin, for the first time in our partnership, was prancing around like a dressage pony with her head all in and down...in a HALTER! This is just...well...like I mentioned, can't really find words for it! It shows me that my horse has developed physically in a way I had truthfully seen as only wishful thinking, and is starting to offer it as her own ideas. It also shows me how much EASIER my finesse journey is going to be if I continue to develop this on the ground, then apply it to my riding.
So. That's what's going on here. Yeah, Prin is pretty much awesome. I'm SO proud of her!
And now I'm off for bed. The forecast is promising a blizzard tomorrow (6-12 inches of snow), so I may be home-bound tomorrow...or I may be riding in the snow. Either way, I'm tired now! Savvy on!
Photo by Margaret Chant and edited by Jessica Metropulos
Showing posts with label dreams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dreams. Show all posts
Monday, December 7, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
Re-inflating the Bubble
This is an excerpt from a journal entry I wrote earlier today. For the record, I'm now sitting in the computer lab at the Parelli Center, surrounded by cinder-block walls ;)
It's a little past 7:00am. I"m sitting here in a green plastic chair, watching the sun rise over the hill playground at the Parelli Center in Ocala, FL. Kristi's horse, Maxi, grazes on some hay in a pen about 20 yds in front of me, and around me, the last of the externs finish up their morning routines and head up the hill to Pat's barn.
A typical day at the Parelli center, for sure. Yet as I sit here, I feel something else. I was here in January/February, and it was a life-changing experience. I returned home to Wisconsin with a new attitude, a sense of renewal and happiness, and a place to go with my journey.
Fall was a very hectic time for me this year, and yet, through it all, I felt like I did alright. My dream was (and is) still alive, though perhaps a bit duller...or...distracted (Yes, I like that, better word choice!). I hadn't lost sight of it, I just couldn't remember quite how to get there.
Sitting here now, I feel a great sense of renewal. There is nothing quite like the feel of being here, in this beautiful place. Pat and LInda have worked hard to create an environment of positive, progressive, and natural, and that truly IS here. For me, it's a refresher of my goals and dreams as a Parelli student, and a swift kick in the butt to remind me to STOP MAKING EXCUSES and just do it! I strive to be this happy all the time, and this is the starting point. So think of this as a home-coming for me. It feels good to be back, to the place (and mental attitude!) where I belong. I'm ever so happy to be here :)
It's a little past 7:00am. I"m sitting here in a green plastic chair, watching the sun rise over the hill playground at the Parelli Center in Ocala, FL. Kristi's horse, Maxi, grazes on some hay in a pen about 20 yds in front of me, and around me, the last of the externs finish up their morning routines and head up the hill to Pat's barn.
A typical day at the Parelli center, for sure. Yet as I sit here, I feel something else. I was here in January/February, and it was a life-changing experience. I returned home to Wisconsin with a new attitude, a sense of renewal and happiness, and a place to go with my journey.
Fall was a very hectic time for me this year, and yet, through it all, I felt like I did alright. My dream was (and is) still alive, though perhaps a bit duller...or...distracted (Yes, I like that, better word choice!). I hadn't lost sight of it, I just couldn't remember quite how to get there.
Sitting here now, I feel a great sense of renewal. There is nothing quite like the feel of being here, in this beautiful place. Pat and LInda have worked hard to create an environment of positive, progressive, and natural, and that truly IS here. For me, it's a refresher of my goals and dreams as a Parelli student, and a swift kick in the butt to remind me to STOP MAKING EXCUSES and just do it! I strive to be this happy all the time, and this is the starting point. So think of this as a home-coming for me. It feels good to be back, to the place (and mental attitude!) where I belong. I'm ever so happy to be here :)
Sunday, September 28, 2008
AHHH!!! OH MY GOD!!! YES!!!
I am positively BOUNCING as I write this post. (Number two for the day?)
A little back story here: My parents, but particularly my mom have always been VERY skeptical of my journey towards becoming a Parelli pro, and have never really supported me financially AT ALL.
So, the week before my 18th birthday, Farrah told me she was going down to FL this winter for a 4 week masterclass, and that if I wanted, I could ride down with her, since she had room in her trailer for a horse. The catch is, um...the $6000 I'd have to earn in the mean time to pay for the course. NOT an easy feat for me, being that I didn't have much notice ahead of time. I was determined to go, and told my parents this from the get-go. There were several nasty arguments about it the past few weeks, how PNH couldn't support me, etc.
And then, tonight. My mom just called for me to come into the kitchen about 5 minutes ago. I went in, and she's holding a Florida Course Application in her hand, and says "What dates do you want to go, and what's your Savvy Club number? If you're going to this thing, I'm paying for it tomorrow so you save $1000."
OH MY GOD. I am SHOCKED. THRILLED. AMAZED. I am going to FLORIDA FOR A COURSE. And my MOTHER is ARRANGING IT so that I save MONEY! Of course, I have to pay them back, but I don't care. All I know is that I'm GOING! I'm holding back tears and screaming!
A little back story here: My parents, but particularly my mom have always been VERY skeptical of my journey towards becoming a Parelli pro, and have never really supported me financially AT ALL.
So, the week before my 18th birthday, Farrah told me she was going down to FL this winter for a 4 week masterclass, and that if I wanted, I could ride down with her, since she had room in her trailer for a horse. The catch is, um...the $6000 I'd have to earn in the mean time to pay for the course. NOT an easy feat for me, being that I didn't have much notice ahead of time. I was determined to go, and told my parents this from the get-go. There were several nasty arguments about it the past few weeks, how PNH couldn't support me, etc.
And then, tonight. My mom just called for me to come into the kitchen about 5 minutes ago. I went in, and she's holding a Florida Course Application in her hand, and says "What dates do you want to go, and what's your Savvy Club number? If you're going to this thing, I'm paying for it tomorrow so you save $1000."
OH MY GOD. I am SHOCKED. THRILLED. AMAZED. I am going to FLORIDA FOR A COURSE. And my MOTHER is ARRANGING IT so that I save MONEY! Of course, I have to pay them back, but I don't care. All I know is that I'm GOING! I'm holding back tears and screaming!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
