From Michelle -
Weekly Task Challenge: Playing Catch-up!
Since it is a holiday week, your challenge is simple. Play catch-up! In between visiting with family, making dinner, and opening gifts, try to carve out a little time to watch a DVD, read a Mastery Manual, or listen to an audio CD. Happy Holidays everyone!*Weekly tasks are based on many different Parelli resources I have studied as well as my own ideas on how to proceed through my journey. Some of the content was copied to make it easier to put up in a timely manner. Please consult parelli.com for any official instructions or materials.
Read more of Michelle's writing here
From Norma -
I hope you all have a fabulous holiday season and I'm definitely looking forward to the new year! Wanted to share a quick "Boy, am I glad I study Parelli" moment with you. I have been taking out my Thoroughbred (Leroy - here on the left with Gordon) recently, getting him fit again after a long recuperation/semi-retirement. And we headed for the "big trail" the other day - a big winding loop through hundreds of oak trees and hillsides.
As we approached the first set of gates, he got nervous and skipped around a bit, so we went off to the side in a grassy area and circled, bent, played, got him relaxed and then headed calmly past the fences and gates. But on the other side, he realized two horses were coming up the trail toward him and started skipping around again. One of the riders called ahead to say, "Watch out, my horse is being a little wild." So Leroy and I circled and changed direction, I bent him this way and that, slowly and calmly, chatting with him as the other horses passed us. The other rider's horse continued to skip, crow-hop, lurching around the gate and finally went up with her and then bucked several times on the other side. She yanked on the reins and shouted at him. I had gotten Leroy to stand quietly by then but seeing her, I thought, "When do you get off? The moment you think of it!" and I stepped down.
Leroy and I continued on the trail for a good long walk together and when we completed the loop, I climbed back on (he's 17.2hh, so it was fun looking for a step up!). A nice walk home through the neighborhood and we passed through the local show barn, where the riders I had met on trail keep their horses. I stopped to say howdy and the woman says, "So, did you see me get thrown off?" Now this is a woman of, shall we say, a healthy stature, so she had some 'padding' on her backside. But she admitted that she landed hard on hard ground and would be feeling the pain for several days. She had seen me get off and move my horse's feet and even commented, "You were putting him to work!" I asked why she didn't get off herself. "Get off? And let him think he'd won?! No way!"
Now those of you who know me even the tiniest bit, know that for me to be speechless would take a great deal of something! But I could not put two words together to respond to her. Leroy and I went happily, calmly and SAFELY back to my barn...



Recent Comments