From 2012-2020, my horses and I worked with a local school district to serve students who needed a bit of a boost. The groups of 8 ranged in age from 4th to 9th grade. Some had experienced “Big T Trauma” and others had challenges that couldn’t be attributed to one specific thing.
I heard from the mom of one of those kids yesterday. I met him as a 4th grader and he’ll be graduating from high school this spring. She told me that working with me and the horses “was a turning point for him. It really helped him communicate his needs to us better.” As a parting memento, I gave each student a horseshoe as a reminder that we all need support. She said, “he still has his horseshoe. He leaves for the Marine Corp soon and it’s in his box of keeps.”
I’m sharing this story for 2 reasons.
- Because it feels really good to be expressly told how I contributed to this person.
- To encourage you to expressly tell those who’ve influenced you for good what it meant to you.
I know how much working with horses can help kids manage life, but I can’t express how much it meant to me to hear that 10 years later, the experience is still very much with him. A part of him. I never set out to have that kind of impact, but I’m so honored to have been a part.
And I especially love that he still has his horseshoe. <3
These days, I work with women who are tired (and resentful) of the expectations they’ve been living under. They may know exactly what they want, but feel hopeless or don’t know how to get it (and they have tried lots of things!). They often feel like they’ve lost themselves somewhere in the middle of raising a family and/or building a business–” doing it all” to be successful and make sure everyone else is happy and cared for.
What they want is to be seen and heard and to be “full of themselves.” They want life to have more ease and flow and not be so damn hard.
- It’s fun, rewarding, exhilarating, and inspiring to witness these women coming home to themselves.
- To see them love and care for themselves in deep, nourishing ways–while staying connected to others who are important to them.
- To experience their own quiet power and trust in themselves.
- To grow from empty to empowered to make a difference.
It’s an honor to hold space for their emotional labor as they learn to feel grounded and secure in who they are so that when they do give, they are well-resourced instead of going through the motions.
If this sounds like you and you’re (beyond) ready for a change, let’s talk.
