Chansonette did a great job below describing her lesson with Mystic today. Watching her play with Mystic at liberty, it was clear that the two of them were having a good time. Mounted up, it took a lap of the arena to get neutral and straight working. It really didn’t take long at all before Chansonette was dropping the reins and having Mystic turn and stop to her body language and seat, without reins. The Spring grass is lush and very tempting to the horses. Most people would be having a fight with their horse trying to nose dive into the grass. Chansonette learned the power of focus and going forward – where Mystic followed her feel until he arrived at her destination and she said “head down” and let him graze as his reward. He followed her feel and she made sure his needs and desires were taken care of. I love these lessons with Chansonette!
Chansonette: still blissed out from my two-hour lesson with jackie, mystic, and tori at mystic ranch today. the last few visits have been pretty much play time out in the open land next door. which is in itself a lesson. for example, coupla times ago was after some hard rains and we came to a spot where there was a little stream and a lot of mud in a bit of a dip. mystic decided to jump it instead of get his feet all mucky. wise decision. jackie cautioned me before it happened and coached me on what to do, but i was blissed out and wasn’t ready. i came THIS close to falling off over his behind b/c i snapped backwards. a little bit later we came to another similar blip in the landscape. this time i was more ready, and i stayed on. so going out on the trails for pleasure rides is still learning. but jackie and i both noticed that i had started relying on the reins instead of working on my seat and body language. so today, my first lesson in the new order (ie two hours twice a week) we got back on the bareback pad instead of the saddle. we started in the arena with a really fun romp at liberty. mystic is reminding me of my playful side and making me so happy in the process. we played “weave the cone” and “pick up cone” and “push the ball” just with me walking beside him, no lead rope. and we just had a glorious time. (i am SO in love with this horse.) and then for the rest of the lesson we played “does chansonette remember ANYTHING she learned about steering with her body?!” first in the arena. moving towards dropping the halter reins and just using the neck string if necessary. and then out in the pasture in the trees and around the ponds. by the end of the lesson chansonette had made great progress. mystic was pleased and proud and received much praise and many treats (and sweet green grass) for his efforts in helping chansonette get back up to speed. all the way home i was marveling at what my life has come to. by which i mean: heaven on earth. seriously. i look back a year and i never EVER would have seen this coming from there. thank you Divine Design of Things. thank you jackie. thank you tori. thank you mystic.
