My horse belongings are in order. It used to be that my gear was all over the place. I did and I did body awareness work/agility in the paddock and in the driveway. I was constantly moving stuff around. The way I am doing things now is easier and saves time. I brought Tinni over to the hitching post this morning. The grooming kit and fly spray were in the trailer. The trimming tools were in the tack room, as were the vital sign apparatus (stethoscope, watch, digital thermometer) as were the body wraps, clicker, and gloves. And the agility equipment was in the Playground of Higher Learning.

So in short order, Pete trimmed Tinni’s front hooves and I groomed him. After, I took his vital signs, cleaned his weepy eye, and put the body wraps on him. We then moved in unison, up to the Playground.

I worked with Tinni on walking over poles and the bridge. And in the process, I had this major revelation. This was it. Before one can run with horses they must first walk with them. I previously thought that I could put the halter on the horses, including Tinni, and just go. No, I must first walk in a thoughtful and deliberate manner.

Walking an older horse over a set of six or so poles, placed an equal distance apart, is a lot more difficult than one might imagine. It’s tricky, paying attention to one’s own posture and at the same time walking in unison with the horse. I kept looking down, and Tinni kept stopping. I almost abandoned ship but instead took a few deep breaths and looked out at the distant mountains. It then occurred to me at in looking down I was putting weight on his forehand, making movement difficult. So he’d stop. It went a little better when I looked up.

I am next going to chunk the task down, by putting the poles a greater distance apart, and focusing on one at a time. I’ll breath, center myself, keep my eyes soft, consider my alignment.

The most amazing thing in doing this work is that Tinni and I both are creating new neural pathways. Working in concert with him may actually be the answer for me, because now I have a context. Without a context, I was lost. How to explain this to Shari, my Bones for Life teacher? I am not sure. If say, I am on a hero’s journey, then this is the ordeal that I’m facing.

I do not know when I’ll be running with horses. Maybe the concept of running with them will be metaphorical. I’d like to think that in time that we will be running together – but for now, it’s best that I focus on walking with them. A journey begins with not a thousand, but a single step. And today I made that first tentative step.

Next: 254. 9/14/17: Footfalls