inspirited connections

I could hear hoof beats coming up the other side of the knoll where I was sitting and was not sure
what to do; they were wild horses after all.
What would be their reaction when they would suddenly see me there on their path?
The question did not stay long unanswered as the horses had already reached the top and come to a
dead stop. For a moment, motionless we eyed each other. I was looking at all the battle scars on the
stallion's body, his large head and powerful shoulders. Images of fighting, rearing horses going at
each other with bared teeth started filling my mind… He was just standing there with his mare and foal.
Suspended between curiosity and fear, in a state of full alertness the horses were evaluating the
situation at hand while I was trying to stop my imagination from running wild…

The horses were offering me yet another lesson in fear management. As a rider I knew the importance
of riding every stride especially in tense situations but here on the ground I felt so much more
vulnerable and out of control. The horses beside me where still trying to figure out if I was friend or
foe: they would stretch their necks, raise, lower theirs heads and smell the air looking for a clue. My
breath was short and my body tense: I was already in fear mode. They where still exploring
possibilities; I had exhausted mine by reacting.

Riding every stride became riding my breath. The more I breathed, the more I felt my hands, jaw, neck
and legs; everything was held tight and hard. As my attention came back to my own body my mind
calmed down and the wild projections and stereotypes faded away.

So I learnt that inner awareness gives us choice and that freedom
lies in our ability to decipher intent from the cues we receive. Now I
see how our body-mind postures, beyond form, are ways of
perceiving and relating. So I wonder: how can a behavior that often
falls into fear before being curious really serve our growth or
survival?
I will always remember my delight the first time I sat on a horse when
I realized that the world underneath me breathed and moved. I never
felt more alive.

Coming back to the here and now woke up my curiosity.
In the present moment as my senses slowly came back to me I felt
myself expanding : the slight breeze was alive, the sun warm on my
skin, twigs dry under foot and the juniper fragrant.

Coming back into my body, was like the world reappearing.
As I softened I experienced knowing there was no real danger here.
Not only had I recovered my sense of orientation but I discovered
body language as rooted through inner awareness. I had just
entered the horse's sensual reality by trusting my body's innate
ability to sense and perceive.