Horses bring us back to our centre -

Not just our gravitational middle,

But also the pivot -

The only place from which we can illicit change…

They draw us back to our own unique middle way,

So that we may make decisions from and deeply immersed in, our own frequency…

In doing this, they push us to see and integrate more of our conditioning,

Where we have held ourselves back for decades

And where we are still living lives of contraction - out of fear

And lives of contradiction - out of denial…

My own horse recently talked me into wearing a bareback pad again as we went out rambling in the forest after some time in the saddle - and I was surprised how much I had unconsciously slipped back into the predictable ‘comfort’ of the stiffness, the immobility and bad habits that a saddle can bring -

Going bareback allows his shoulders to really move,

His hindquarters to swing beneath him

And his back to gently lift and connect in with my seat bones…

Essentially, this is freedom of movement,

Freedom of flexion

And a freedom of will (aligned to a keen desire for wholeness, which, I believe, all animals have).

Now, as I write, I have stiff hip flexors and can feel the lower abdominal musculature all the way deep into my pelvic bowl…

Because, I was invited to swing forwards in supported movement,

Trusting that he would remain underneath me,

Knowing that his peaks of desire (and exuberant expression) would give way to a calmer rhythm and intuitive connection the more I surrendered to riding the waves…

I am re-learning a new way of going - a new way of stepping out, stepping forward, manifesting through the masculine -

A nuance of what has come up for me many times before (and I imagine, for many of the other riders who are reading this), of course,

But this time with a certain grace;

A certain tempo, elegance and harmony between horse and rider -

Along with a joyful opening of the wider path in front of us - upon the expanse of my native lands that surrounded us…

This is The Way of the Winged Horse;

Calling us home,

Highlighting the places in which we are still incongruent with our true Nature,

Anchoring us in and pushing us (gently and sometimes less so) forward,

Whispering into our ears what is ours to claim on the other side of the rainbow.

- Harriet