The Power in Vulnerability

Yesterday, I got to witness some magic. ✨ I was coaching Shawnah through a training session with Clyde, in the middle of a rain/hail storm in the indoor arena. We were working on softening the head and helping him re-establish his relationship with movement. Towards the end of the session, he actually started to looking at Shawnah with curiosity and was looking for a connection. As he looked at her and moved towards her, I felt some hesitation. The following is what transpired:

Me: “So, what are you feeling?

Shawnah: “I’m feeling a bit uncomfortable because I don’t know what he’s going to do when he’s this close to me. I’m waiting for him to try to nip at me or push into me with his nose.”

Me: “Aha! And so we’ve now discovered the next ‘hardest thing’ about training horses the way we do here. We have to be willing to let down our guard. We have to embrace vulnerability. We have to be okay standing in front of a horse on their best AND their worst days and being open and vulnerable. We cannot expect the horse to soften and open their heart and soul to us if we don’t do the same.

And so you have options here. You can either ‘ride the wave’ and authentically tell the horse you’re feeling anxious about him being this close to you. You can sit with the feeling and experience it. OR, you can ask him to take a step back. You can set a boundary for yourself that allows you to feel safe and secure in the space with this horse. One is not necessarily better than the other. It’s all about what allows you to remove the wall you have built around you and be in this space with him to show him how good, how freeing it feels to be vulnerable and open.”

I watched as Shawnah took some deep breaths. She rode the wave, held the space and stayed in the moment. Then Clyde began to breathe a bit deeper, blink a bit slower, lick and chew.

Then he yawned. I mean, BIG YAWNS. 8 or 9 of them, all in a row. The first ones since he’s been at Harmonized Horsemanship. I am SO proud of them both. Shawnah let her wall down and Clyde followed suit. And that’s the magic. ♾