CentaurGenics®


	CALENDAR : NEWS & ARTICLES : TESTIMONIALS : SERVICES & PRODUCTS : BIOGRAPHIES : WEATHER : CONTACT

NEWS & ARTICLES : The Truth

The Truth - As Published in September, 2000 issue of "The Trail Less Traveled"

My heart is breaking for the mare. She tries so hard to please, yet it doesn't seem to be enough. She has searched diligently for the answer, but there is no reply. The "trainer" continues to "school" the mare as she examines the wares that are up for sale here today. By the time she finishes, she declares the mare "dead green", hops off and places an uneducated youngster on the mare's back and sends her off to try the "goods" as well. The mare whinnies uncharacteristically at each new rider, occasionally pausing at the gate where I stand, only to be driven onward. Finally, I am asked to ride the mare so that the potential buyers can watch her movement. I mount her and she heaves a sigh of relief, begging me to let her catch her breath. We walk carefully around on soft contact, and she tries to continue the effort. I ask her quietly for a trot, which she picks up readily, then a floating canter. Through the middle in a quiet simple change of leads, the mare continues to try to please. We come to a halt by verbal command only and perform, a bridleless backup. My heart soars with the beauty of what this mare has just done for me! She just wants to do what I ask, she tries so hard, because I have asked and explained it to her so that she can do it.

The potential buyers drive away, and I spend extra time and effort grooming the mare, as if to apologize for what she has just gone through. The first time it was a "dressage trainer" who barely said hello to the mare before jumping up on her and expecting her to "come together" and perform. That trainer ended up thinking the mare was going to buck her off, and couldn't imagine riding out on the trail. This most recent one was a "hunter-jumper trainer" who rode with heavy hand and leg, expecting perfection, again with barely a hello to the horse, let alone a period of "getting-to-know-you" or warm-up.

Every time I run into people of the non-natural-horsemanship world, I am reminded why I now do what I do. (Been there, done that.) However, in the meantime each of them causes me to look inside myself again to analyse what I do, mostly because I am made to feel as if I have done the horse a disservice by not pushing it harder or demanding more. Sometimes I am told that the horse is not properly trained because I have not tied its head down. Sometimes I get the "well, where is the 30-day-wonder?" look. I question myself endlessly, only to come full circle in the realization that I can find all the answers -- the truth -- in only one place, in only one way.

The truth is in the horse, so I return to the horse to reaffirm my beliefs and my methods. Every time the horse approaches me with confident, respectful desire to be with me and do what I have asked, I again acknowledge the power of natural consideration and communication with this magnificent animal. No amount of force will ever produce the beauty that this creature is able to display naturally. One cannot demand or force brilliance, expecting to get it without the horse's willing and happy cooperation. The truth makes me stronger in my convictions. In the quiet, precious communion with horses, they always tell the truth. If you listen, you will hear it too.

Rebekka Rhodes