ALL IS POSSIBLE WITH HORSES
Nancy Zintsmaster in Costa Rica with her herd
Throughout my life, I have had one foot in the animal kingdom and one foot in the human kingdom. Much of the discomfort that I have experienced has come from not recognizing this simple yet powerful truth. The word "recognize" means to "know again" or to "acknowledge the existence of." By definition, I was simply failing to perceive or honor the consciousness that I was destined to exist in both worlds. It has frequently been my experience during Waterhole Ritual clinics that the people in attendance are also struggling to reveal personal truths that they have yet to recognize. In clinic after clinic, I am honored to witness the growth of participants who discover themselves through truth as reflected by the horse. We need only be willing to hear the message.
During an introductory clinic of The Seven Waterhole Rituals at my farm in North Carolina, one participant (Judy) expressed an ongoing concern about her horse. The last few times she had tried to ride her mare, Judy wound up on the ground. Judy desperately wanted to ride her horse but most naturally had reservations about getting on her horse's back again for fear that she would be thrown. Judy was also concerned that her mare might have some type of physical problem that could be causing her pain. She also wrestled with the question of whether or not her horse really wanted to be ridden. I got the strong impression that Judy wanted me to communicate with her horse to find out why this sweet mare kept bucking her off.
As I watched this mare in the arena, it was apparent that her movements were not fluid. I got the strong impression that the horse was feeling some discomfort. At the time, I chose not to share this information with Judy because I did not want to deny her the opportunity to hear the message straight from her horse. Although this mare was new to The Waterhole Rituals, it was obvious that she was strongly connected to Judy (although Judy didn’t feel a strong connection with her). As always, the first two days of the clinic flew by. On our third and final day, we began with a group meditation while sharing territory with Judy's mare. What a telling experience this proved to be! While leading the meditation, I asked each person to think of a dream that they would like to come true. Shortly thereafter, I watched as Judy's mare deliberately walked up and nuzzled her. Quite unexpectedly, her mare proceeded to reach down in a quick and deliberate manner to nip Judy before turning to walk away.
As we finished the meditation, Judy shared with the group that the mare had bitten her. I asked Judy what she had been thinking about when the bite occurred. Judy responded that during the meditation, she had pictured herself cantering her horse with grace and ease across a field. At that very moment, her horse had bitten her. As Judy was talking, her horse stood directly in front of her chair and proceeded to poop. I asked Judy what her horse's actions meant to her. At first, Judy said that she didn't know. Throughout this three day clinic, Judy had expressed a strong desire to ride her horse again. It seemed to me that she was perhaps reluctant to acknowledge her own inner voice because it was telling her something she didn't want to hear.
At this point, I could have told Judy what her horse was saying but I still hoped she could hear it for herself. Since she wan't quite ready to trust her intuition, I decided to do an energy scan of her horse. As I ran my hand down her horse’s neck, I felt an abnormally weak flow of energy down her neck and back. The primary issue seemed to be centralized in her neck. Judy shared that she had previously hired an energy worker to examine her horse and he had said the same thing. Judy demonstrated that when she placed her hands on or near her horse's neck (in certain spots) the mare would blink (which can be an indicator of pain). At this exact moment, a screeching hawk flew directly overhead. I excitedly exclaimed that Hawk is a messenger. I asked Judy if she knew what message Hawk had for her. She timidly asked, "that my horse is in pain?'' We now had affirmations from both horse and hawk. This sweet horse had finally delivered her message to Judy that she was in pain. At first, she had spoken patiently and gently. Later she had spoken more firmly until her message was heard.
When I asked Judy to lead her horse out of the arena, they walked together at liberty. The mare was so magnetically connected to Judy that she willingly companion walked despite the fact that she had never been trained to do so. It was absolutely magical to watch them together. Judy shared that she had never felt that her mare was connected to her prior to this moment. It was my impression that the mare had been connected to Judy all along. Judy had now opened her heart so she could feel the connection too! The Waterhole Rituals will take you on a journey to the heart of the horse-human connection. These rituals are naturally performed and understood by all horses. As we practice these rituals, horses can lead us toward self-realization as well. When you walk into a horse's space, he will ask three questions: (1) Who are you? (2) What do you want? and 3) How do you operate? In their purity and honesty, horses present us with truths about ourselves that we often fail to recognize. I believe that most animal lovers are just like me. We ALL have one foot in the animal kingdom and one foot in the human kingdom. When we open our hearts, nature fully supports us and recognizes that we are all connected. With horses, everything is possible.
Have a great rest of the week!
Linda & her magnificent herd of 8
JOIN ME IN COSTA RICA FEBRUARY 20-27 for a week long clinic and retreat. Details below:
Beautiful Costa Rica
