Chapter 191
Summer fun. Green fields, trees throng and wildlife aplenty. This is the season of fortunate abundance in our glorious foothills. As we meander through the month of June into July, the alternate showers and brilliant sunshine offer perfect growing weather and chances for stunning outdoor adventures.
This afternoon I spotted a young moose calf trotting purposefully east along my back fenceline. I missed the presumably earlier passage of Mum, but it’s great to see these lovely animals still inhabiting the land despite the ever-increasing pressures of human invasion.
We do take over. In this beautiful land, such a unique slice of the planet, it’s good to be reminded that we do not actually have dominion over everything. We are here to share and to be good stewards and support each other, whatever our language, number of legs, or style of clothing.
As I worked this afternoon with a youngish client and her equine friend, it was a delight to see the dawning reciprocal communication blossom. They are in a challenging place as the horse has been launched into complex demands without – to my mind – sufficient fundamental education and coping mechanisms. Of course, horses endure. They endure an incredible amount of human demands and unintentional abuse because many of us are not skilled in their language. With good education, horses learn human language, they may not be able to make sense of our madness, but they become equipped with the self-management survival skills necessary to live comfortably in our world.
Without said education, they struggle with confusion and slowly building distress until the ‘sudden’ onset of ‘bad’ behaviour. This is the tipping point at which the horse loses resilience and is forced to say No! I can’t cope! I think this often happens with humans too, we go along with a lot for the sake of harmony, putting up with behaviours and demands in order to keep the peace/keep our jobs/keep our relationships. For women, this constant compromise can take several decades to exhaust. Once the hormonal shift begins to take control of our existence, we are forced to recognise that survival of self is the most important aspect of life, without self, there isn’t much left. We lose patience, lose interest in placating others, are frequently criticised by the male of the species, and often find ourselves sans partners as they are unable to cope with being asked to step up and accommodate demands which they have spent a lifetime being met for themselves by others.
Oops. Controversial language here. I speak from many years and continents of experience. Travelling amid different cultures, living in different places and working in different environments, I can attest to the continuing inequality that permeates most modern cultures. There are many advances, improvements and magical people making positive change everywhere…but there are many more who benefit from the status quo and make little effort to accommodate change.
Change is always uncomfortable. Make yourself uncomfortable once in a while.
Kat Dancer
bodymudra@gmail.com,
+1 415 525 2630 (ph/whatsapp)
Free Classifieds