On ‘Acting In Service Of’

It’s been a good few weeks since I’ve done anything of note with my lovely horses. I’ve had a flu which has seen me holed up in bed- an unusual if not completely rare place to find me in the sunny (or not so sunny) hours of the day. And in the aftermath, I find myself playing a game of catch ups- the work to do, the family bits, the all-the-things that call me, all shelved under the heading of “commitments”. These are the things that for the short-term future I find that I must do.

It’s not usual for me to not be riding or working with my horses daily, but I know that there are cycles within life when this becomes, at one point or another, an unchosen truth. I find it interesting to observe what this lack of horse time does to my insides, what it creates within me. To me, it’s not a clean house, a tidy desk or a well-structured to-do list that makes me feel like I’m in order. It’s my horses- the feeling on connection, and togetherness, the outside-ness and perhaps beyond that, progress. The feeling that we’re creating, moving towards something that we’re both building together.

In truth, I know that they are fine. They owe nothing to anyone, least of all me, beyond being a happy and contented horse. They are horses who belong only to themselves. But this feeling, this feeling of missing, this feeling of I-want-to-be-with-them, this feeling of shared learning I think is one of the magical things about being a human with a horse. And it’s something that I never, really, wish to be fully rid of.

So I want to share with you a small thing that I find a big thing in these moments..

… when perhaps your horsing time is limited

… when you are unwell (or they are)

…when it’s dark when you leave for work and again when you get home

…I look for what I can do daily ‘in service of’ my horsing and my riding. A useful mindset to adopt when you’re unable to go outside, and perhaps to do ultimately what you would like.

‘In service of’ is exactly what it sounds like. Anything- a video tutorial, some exercises in your living room, the pages of a useful book- that act in some way in service of your heart and horsing brain.

I find this thought, and beyond that, this action to be so useful in the times when my horsing activity has its limits.

What can I do ‘in service of’ instead? What is adding to the well pool of information or skill that I can carry with me when the times comes back around that once more, I can get back out there and ride?

In service of… what can you do?

Onwards,