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Chosen
We had been looking for a small gentle horse to help us with our kids program for quite a while. We also wanted my horse crazy two year old son to have one to call his own. Ultimately, we ended up with a sweet 13 hand haflinger named Daisy. We love her. Daisy came to us from an adoring owner who could no longer care for her. When Daisy first arrived she was like a fish out of water. The poor girl was not expecting to be ambushed by four half wild horses who wanted to “jump her into their gang”. Though tensions were high the first week, Daisy was…
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Be Thou Prepared
Before hopping on your horse, it is very important to make sure that you are ready. How can you be ready to ride a horse? Well if you have any intention on riding a horse, you better make sure you have some kind of connection with her. This connection can come from years of hanging out together, or from simply spending some very intentional time together prior to riding. This usually means grooming, groundwork, etc. You cannot ride a horse whose spirit is intact without first making a connection, trust me. Now if you have a connection with the horse you intend to ride, but your mind is elsewhere, you…
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Fear of Falling
This was one of the last times that I rode my horse, Zoey without a helmet. It was one of many blissfully free rides. I would pop over to the field with nothing but a rope, hop aboard Zoey and take off. Free as the wind. To be completely honest, I treasure these rides in my memory and understand why people don’t always ride with helmets. Heck, I don’t even like to ride with shoes most of the time. As wonderfully primal as it felt to meet my horse in her natural habitat and ride her with nothing but total faith, something was bound to go wrong at some point.…
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Humbled
Since my mom first put me on her comfortable horsey back, my horse Zoey and i have had many ups and downs. All those years ago i was a disillusioned young adult, tainted by the world and the poor choices i had made. My mom put me on her back that fall day, after news of a dear friend’s death by drug overdose. She put me on Zoey’s back because she knew that this small act would be balm for my hurting heart. I didn’t yet know the saving grace of Jesus Christ, but i did shortly after. Since this first moment with my now beloved chestnut mare, i have…
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She Left Her Crutches at the Mounting Block
A little girl named Zya was the main reason that we launched our younger kids’ group here at Hearts in Hand Horsemanship. Why? Because she is one of the most horse crazy girls that we have ever met, (besides my mom of course). It was important for my mom and i to honor and foster that fierce horse love. Our hope is that every young horseman will ultimately become the saving grace for abandoned and abused equines. Most of the time, Zya relies on the help of her crutches to get around, though in my opinion, they certainly don’t slow her down! The minute Zya shows up to our farm,…
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Training the Trainer
This is one of our volunteers, Alyssa, with our mustang, Pepper. You could say that both Pepper and Alyssa are green. Green is a term that is used in the horse world to describe horses that are barely trained, or not trained at all. One thing that my mom and i have been working on is training Alyssa to train Pepper. As you can imagine, this is a tall order. For us, it is very important for our volunteers to understand the heart of our style of horsemanship which is relationship. As long as the concept of relationship is kept at the forefront of our volunteers’ minds, all other aspects…
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The Journey
When we start our youngsters on horseback, we typically have a few supporters walking along side them and their horse. This way they feel safe and have someone, (typically mom) to catch them when they start to slip off. The most common thing i have to reiterate to our young riders is to look up! When riding a horse, it is very important to look in the direction that you wish to go. Horses are extremely sensitive and will typically follow the direction of their rider’s gaze. Some people who are highly in tune with their horse can simply think about the direction that they want to go and their…
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The Flow
Only an hour before this photo was taken, I had been feeling very anxious, so I sought after my horse, Zoey. This glorious day marked the moment that i truly understood what it meant to hop onto God’s “flow”. I have struggled with anxiety for most of my life, as many people do. Praise God for my support system and all of His provisions. One of those provisions is time with my horse, Zoey. Now I’d like to tell you that this picture is an accurate representation of my history of horsemanship and that i have always been able to just hop on my horse with nothing and fly freely…
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Big Bravery
This is Kaylee right before she mounts a horse for the very first time in her life. Kaylee is a 26 year old police officer who has seen her fair share of horror. Since we first met Kaylee she has shown us big bravery with our horses. Many people are understandably nervous the first time they get up close and personal with a horse. This is due to the fact that horses are much bigger than us and could spook at any moment, (which basically means have a horse conniption). In order to keep a horse from spooking you yourself need to remain calm. Horses are very sensitive creatures and…
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A Little Desensitization
Once in a while we like to work on a little desensitization with our horses. In essence, this basically means that we scare them a little with harmless objects until they aren’t scared any more. Most horses will freak out over a plastic bag flying in the wind, especially if they have never been desensitized before. A horse that is in fear for his life, even if the object of their fear is something meant for carrying groceries, can be extremely dangerous. Horses are prey animals and are always on the look out for threats to their safety’; once they feel unsafe, the thinking part of their brain shuts off…