Another week, another slightly delayed recap. But hey, I'm not feeling bad about that one bit and that is huge progress for me! With it being Father's Day weekend and having other family/adult commitments, sitting down to write this blog post took a backseat and by the end of the day Sunday I was exhausted so I chose to honor that rather than push to get this out "on time".
While deadlines are important for certain things, it is amazing to think about how many things we create artificial deadlines for and then either stress about and force our way to meeting or don't meet and then beat ourselves up for it. I think this is especially prevalent in the horse world where there is such a pervasive tendency toward 30, 60, and 90 day training programs.
We learn to expect huge results in super short timeframes and then get disappointed when that unrealistic expectation is not met. We don't allow for life to happen in those narrow windows even though we all know it will. So with this, I challenge you, just as I am challenging myself, to set goals that are solid, yet flexible. Allow yourself the space to care for yourself and for your horse while still making and celebrating your progress. Because you can't truly show up for others if you're not showing up for yourself in the ways that matter first.
In my "We're Not Really Strangers" prompt for the week, I asked "When was the last time you surprised yourself?" Interestingly enough, I chatted with a few people who really struggled with coming up with a response for this prompt which got me thinking about how frequently we keep ourselves small so that we are not in situations that would allow us to surprise ourselves.
My personal response to the prompt was that I had recently been surprised by the accuracy of my abilities to connect and communicate with the horses in level one of the Intuitive Equestrian course I am currently navigating. This was not at all something I thought I of all people could do. Taking this course already felt like a huge risk but in receiving all of the positive and affirming feedback from the horses' people, I was truly surprised at my abilities. I realized that I could actually communicate with animals in a way that I could not see myself being able to do before.
Without taking a leap of faith in taking this course, surrendering to my gut feelings and following my interest in it, I would not have had this opportunity to surprise myself. This really made me realize that it often isn't in your day-to-day life that you surprise yourself. It happens when you do something you never thought possible, no matter how big or small and to do so requires a level of courage and trust in yourself that so many of us feel that we lack.
I am learning time and time again, however, that the courage and self-trust do not simply materialize. Just like motivation, there are days where you simply will not have the level courage and self-trust you expect to always have as a baseline. You have to embody those things first by doing the things you struggle with or are scared to do but deeply know that you want. Because it's only after you get out of your own way and do the dang thing will you find out how truly courageous you are and how you can, indeed, trust yourself.
Despite the busyness of the week, I spent some fantastic time with Annie and we made some really solid progress towards our conditioning goals! It is genuinely such a joy to see her learn to use and balance her body in a way that she had not had access to before. And while I continue to work through my own limiting beliefs (because you bet I still have plenty of those to work on!), she continues to remind me that she's got me.
With the increase in her workload, which mostly looks like practicing her canter transitions both up and down and increasing her overall stamina, I make sure to include things that she enjoys doing into each training session and continue to include a day a week that is dedicating to furthering my body + energy work practice with her.
And now that it is warmer and I am not fighting Annie's winter fluff, my plan is to get back to practicing applying kinesiology tape to her for additional support. That said, it has been SO wet here with day after day of rain that this past week deterred me from even trying. The forecast this week is looking much better so I am excited to try again and share our results! I really love the idea of k-tape because not only does it have proven benefits, but it's really hard to "mess up" which is always one of my main concerns when exploring a new-to-me therapy with horses. So if you're reading this and have any tips or tricks when it comes to horses, please comment those below or feel free to DM me!
Empowering Observations:
Set goals that are solid, yet flexible. Plan for life to happen as you work towards them! The purpose of goal setting is really to move you forward, so as long as you are making progress, no matter how small or how "slow", toward your goals you are still making progress. And that deserves to be celebrated! Focus on what you have accomplished, not what you have not.
You won't surprise yourself if you're not doing anything differently. You know the outcomes of most of what you do in a regular routine, therefore you're not really able to surprise yourself. It's when you do, try, say, react, etc. differently, that you create space for that magic to happen and for you to witness your own strength!
Things I'm Loving This Week
The Tapestry Comfort Cinch! I finally broke down and bought one of these cinches after hearing so many good things about them and so far I am not disappointed. I was concerned about the neoprene sternum pad as I am not normally a fan of neoprene on horses due to the fact that it traps heat but have so far been very impressed by how comfortable Annie seems in it! I love that it is one of the very few elasticized western cinches that allow the horse to really breathe while saddled.
My Everyday Equestrian Apparel! I ordered a few more pieces that I had been eyeing that are currently on sale including a tank top and hoodie. Both are amazing quality and super affordable, even without the sale! Charlotte, the owner of EE, has some great new summer pieces, too that you'll definitely want to check out. Don't forget to use promo code "Annie10" for an additional 10% off your order!
Equestrian Reflection
Journal Prompt: When I close my eyes, the nest step I feel called to take with my horse is...
At liberty - spending more time working on our "new cue idea" list. Under saddle - riding more with others. In general - practice k-taping.
Affirmation: I already know. It is safe for me to trust myself.
Equestrian Oracle
Theme for the Upcoming Week
Surrender
We often make our way through life attached to achieving an end result, and if it isn't coming our way, we start to think that something is wrong. We play the victim and believe that nothing will ever work for us, or we judge ourselves against others who we deem as more successful than we are. We become determined to find a way to fix the situation and begin to detach from our feelings.
Because, if it is working for someone else, you should just be able to copy what they are doing and it will work, right? Sure, this might work some of the time but if you find yourself pushing and forcing to make everything come together, something is off. This can be frustrating to accept, but that off feeling is the universe trying to guide you to an easier path, but this path only comes to you once you let your guard down and surrender.
Where are you pushing for something to happen in your life? How can you allow yourself to surrender and trust that what is meant to be will be?
*The Equestrian Reflection and Equestrian Oracle cards are courtesy of Felicity Davies and can be purchased directly from her here. Full transparency - I receive no financial gain from sharing these, I just love them and find them to be helpful on this journey!