Trust

Rain pattering on the roof
Means nowhere else to be
My long legs and your bony hooves
Perhaps I’ll take a seat
Get lost while gazing
At your face
Remembering that feeling
When you trust everything

  Lisa Tirion 2020

It might seem ridiculous to think that the ultimate prey can trust the ultimate predator, but it can happen. We can create that feeling in our horses. A prerequisite is that we trust ourselves. We have to trust that we can be assertive without being aggressive. We can be upset and angry, and let it go. We can be introspective while at the same time paying attention to what the horse needs. We can place our horse into situations of pressure and yielding with no more and no less pressure than is required. We can relax the horse using bodywork that puts her in vulnerable position to a predator, and she trusts us to keep her safe.

Trust to Yielding: A horse that trusts her trainer even when in a vulnerable situation is one who yields with the slightest of pressure or intention.