The very talented musician and songwriter John Denver sang the following lyrics in the song Today: “I can’t be contented with yesterday’s glories; I can’t live on the promises winter to spring. Today is my moment, now is my story and I’ll laugh, I’ll cry, I’ll sing.” If horses had access to audio streaming services, it might be a strong possibility that this song would make their playlist. Let me explain…
This song speaks to the importance of living in the moment, a characteristic which defines how horses operate. Our equine partners do not plan for the future; they have no agendas. While they demonstrate remarkable memory skills, they do not live in the past; they don’t hold grudges. Horses make us better humans, if we choose to learn from their example, by showing the ability to live in the present. This personality trait, what some would call a “horsenality” trait, is what makes them so incredibly well-suited for helping people work through personal issues. Horses have survived for millennia by being acutely tuned in to their surroundings, think being aware of predators in the tall grass, but through domestication most horses continue to utilize this razor-sharp talent to become a mirror of the anxieties and emotions of their human counterparts. Not only do horses provide immediate feedback to the riders who interact with them, they provide a non-human, non-judgmental, non-verbal source to allow their riders a release of the topics currently creating uncomfortable situations. This feedback is beneficial because it can help individuals identify these emotions in themselves developing a deeper sense of self-awareness bringing them closer to finding positive results from the interaction. While highly trained therapists and well-intentioned friends mean to only help, horses manage to accomplish this truly with no judgement, perceived or otherwise, all the while being unable to speak in human words. Perhaps horses can be an example of speaking less and listening more when helping each other.
Many riders find their way to East Point Horspice because of the horsenality traits mentioned above. The not-so-dirty secret of the program is that the riders realize the benefits of the horse/rider relationship while playing games, building friendships with other riders and volunteers and also becoming better riders. The beauty is these benefits will occur even while the riders are unaware they are happening. EPH and the horses don’t feel this is sneaky or under-handed, maybe under-hooved, because it is expressed that it is the intention of the program to create an environment where everyone involved will benefit from the relationships established. Honestly, can’t we all enjoy a little sunshine and good feelings provided by the horses? EPH would like to think so.