Up Down Lessons

Posted by The Divine Cowgirl on April 12th, 2009 at 08:00am

Part of being a new riding student at my barn entailed “up down” lessons. All riders started out on the lounge line, meaning I guided their first experiences on one of my lesson horses on a line, in a controlled circle and pace. I believed that horses should not be punished by human ignorance and lack of the requisite riding skills.

The lounge line provided safety for both the horse and rider. The rider could completely concentrate on developing the basic physical strength and coordination of the body before having to communicate and guide the horse too. By allowing the rider time to learn and discover new muscles, new balance requirements and become familiar with new rhythms their first ride by themselves was far more successful for both.

The up down part of the equation was my literally chanting “up, down; up, down” in rhythm with the trot as the riders attempted to persuade their bodies to move in time and with the horse. It is a lot like chewing bubble gum, rubbing your tummy and patting your head. The mind can be willing and the body can seem to have a mind of its own.

Learning new things can be difficult. It requires us to be willing to look foolish and to feel vulnerable. Somehow we have gotten the idea that we should be able to do something new perfectly the first time. In fact, the idea of beginners mind, looking awkward, and feeling embarrassed has stopped many people from experiencing new things.

There are basics in life. Perhaps one of the important basics is our ability to learn. And I mean learn beyond what school has taught us about learning. Yes, we can read a book about something. We can memorize facts and theory. Real learning is in the doing. In the becoming immersed in the nature and being of the thing we are willing to know with intimacy and nuance. And even when we think we know something about what we have been studying; we allow ourselves to return to beginner’s mind and add another layer of knowing to our experience. We are open and curious about what else there is to discover about the subject.

For me the horses have been a lifelong study. And I know that I learn daily in my encounters with these magnificent creatures. My experience is that the more I am willing to engage in my relationship with curiosity and openness, the more the animal reveals to me another layer of their being.

I was privileged to have mentored by some amazing horsemen. Their lifelong study and appreciation for the animal and the art of horsemanship impressed upon me the importance of being an apprentice in relationship and in life. It has instilled in me the desire to go deep, to test new ideas, to experiment with new ways of putting information together and to challenge the status quo. I know that it is up to me to move beyond my mentors into new ways of relating to my subject.

Learners engage with life. It is in engagement that new ideas come forth, new understanding, new applications, and new ways of interaction – which moves us as individuals and as a collective group forward. There are those that brace against progress. They fear the new and wish to forever remain in the fantasy of the past.

Do you want to learn something enough to go through the process of “up down” lessons? Who are you as a learner? Do you challenge your assumptions? Do you seek to know more than what you have been told by someone who holds a position of authority? Do you allow yourself to move through the process of learning even when it is uncomfortable?

Divine Cowgirls are learners. They allow themselves to discover deeply the nature and being of what they love. Learning is an act of permission…. What will you give yourself permission to know, to explore or to discover???

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