Retorno’s empowerment workshops can change your life. Read this feedback from one of our participants:
In the saddle, riding high, looking at the world from a tall place, I want to fly, to gallop off into the sunset, the horses’ hooves kicking up dust along the trails. I’m ready to go…yet I’m not.
I’m getting closer though. The more I ride and discover myself, the more I’m willing, eager even, to push past my fear of falling off the horse if it goes too fast. Until now I’ve stayed where it’s safe…walking, trotting…things that I can control…like my life really. But now I’m ready…to give up that control.
Horseback riding can teach you anything and nothing. For some, a trip through golden cornfields, in and out of wadis, up and down steep mountain tracks, can be a pleasant activity. For others, it can be life changing. It all depends what you put into it, what you’re willing to learn.
The more I ride the more I discover things about myself that apply to my “life on the ground.” If I’m upset and nervous on an early morning ride, my horse feels it. By the second half of the ride after we’ve talked as a group, my ride back is usually much calmer and comfortable.
I’m learning about my fears…that the desires are there but fear holds me back. I’m learning not to be too over-confident, to be humble and let myself be taught; because one day I can be on top of the world when I ride, but the next week with a different horse that’s more challenging, I realize that I still not there.
I’m learning that there’s a fire inside me if I can only overcome this fear.
And I’m learning to let go…to loosen the reins…to trust my horse’s instincts and realizing that in order to have control of it, I have to first give it some slack, go easy on its mouth so it will listen to me when I need it to…that I don’t have to be forceful in showing who is boss.
This letting go pervades every part of my life, especially with my daughter who’s a recovering addict. I need to loosen her reins, to let her run as she tries to make a new life for herself without me always at her side. I need to let go and then maybe I won’t feel this pain so acutely, maybe the fear will disappear?
