the secret of life is to endure: Little green bucket

Head down. It works. Really.

Lynda reminded me at Aprilfest how important it is to be able to bring your horse's head right down. Engage the parasympathetic system. No more flight response. Breathe. Focus. Be still.

Sonja reminded me of this again today at our early morning lesson. She set up a bunch of little green buckets in the sand ring. The same buckets we use for therapy lessons, when we try to drop toys in the buckets as we walk by.

The buckets were upside down this time, masquerading as cones. Luba was very reactive this morning. I think she needs some body work. Very tight in her poll and her usual C3. Managed to get tacked and mounted up without too much drama, but boy the sand ring was a scary place. Especially the far end of the ring that borders on the grove. Horses magically teleport from the pasture to the grove just to freak us out. Sonja says Luba sees all the gnomes and fairy folk in the grove.

So Sonja asks us to work at the scary end of the ring. Is she crazy? Maybe, but there is always a method to her madness.

So I oblige. After a couple of minutes, she directs us back to the safe end of the ring, that is even safer now that we have forced ourselves to gaze into the depths of the grove.

My instructions are to walk patterns and when we come to a green bucket, stop. We do this, and I also ask Luba to put her head down (from the saddle). Before long this has become a game. Walk to the bucket and touch it with her nose. Nibble it. Push it over.

We calmly walk around. We trot around. We stop and stand quietly by the bucket.

Even at the end of the ring by the grove.

Safe by the bucket.

Safe in a circle.