The next morning Gus
arrived with Biffer and the three walked back to Gus's place anticipating
a steaming cup of coffee by the outdoor fire pit. They would spend the
day in the round pen. On the way Gus explained the concept of the round
pen to Ream.
"Like its name, it's
round, but it has high solid walls. These walls are higher than the horse's
head. This is a safety factor because their height prevents the horse from
being distracted by anything outside the pen."
"OK," said Ream. "What
happens inside when you work the horse?"
"For us now, we are
using it because it's safer place for you."
"I mean, what do you
normally use it for?"
"It's where the
horse comes to understand how to yield. Not obey, but yield. It's all done
by running the horse in circles. "
"How's that?" asked
Ream.
"In the end, the horse
comes to yield two things. First, he learns that I determine the
direction of the circle he moves in, and second, I determine when he stops
running."
"Go on."
"As I begin to work
him around, he will likely ignore me, thinking I am only a mild nuisance
to endure. He will try to impress me with running, galloping, snorting
and kicking up his heels. I don't try to restrain this. I just let him
run it out in circles, but all in the same direction. At some point he'll
tire and then stop, turning his hind end to me, looking in the opposite
direction.
This is where his education
really begins. By throwing one end of a rope at the side of his hip, he
will move in a direction away from the rope. It isn't necessary to hit
him with the rope because I don't want to force him to move by panic or
fear, rather I want to allow him to yield consciously by working at it.
The first time the
rope is tossed he thinks I am only a minor annoyance. But then, by making
him run when he is tired is teaching discipline. After ten times or so,
he figures out I am the one deciding when he can stop running. This is
a big revelation. I start getting looks over his shoulder expressing serious
registration of a new deference in his world.
We keep this up until
I sense he really gets it and understands why he is running. Patiently,
he has come to understand that he is not being stampeded into running,
but is being allowed a choice to work at it. The work is easier than being
annoyed with the rope, especially if I express considerate thank-you's
in a comforting tone of voice. It's very important to express your sincere
appreciation of his willingness. He hears the tone not the words.
We only stop
when I say "Whoa", not when he wants to stop. If he doesn't face me when
I allow him to stop, I throw the rope and he runs more. Pretty soon he
figures out it is easier to face me when he stops. Then I approach him
in a friendly manner. I loop the rope over his neck and gently lead him
with the Principle toward me for just a step or two as I kiss to
him. Then I unloop the rope, back up, and ask him to run some more circles.
Again when we stop,
I approach him, loop the rope, use the Principle, make the kissing sound;
he follows a little easier because he knows the routine. Next I approach,
kiss, and turn , and then walk away. That's how I give him back to himself
at the right moment. Sometimes he will follow, but if he doesn't we run
some more.
Because I am allowing
him to make the decision to follow, he can understand his way into doing
it, or run some more. Recognize the moment, then let it happen. This
is the difference between respect and fear. Fear comes from being stampeded,
and bullied. When he is allowed the choice to buddy-up, soon he figures
it's easier to follow an old friend who respects his right to understand.
That's why when you kiss, Biff Follows you."
"What happens if you
don't use a round pen?"
"In the old days before
the round pen, horses were plain broke, and I mean their spirit was broken.
Snake does it that way. You remember I mentioned Snake Buckman? Cowboys
like Snake don't know the damage they do when they break the spirit, but
you and I know because the same kind of thing's been done to us. I've seen
Snake tie up horses, wrestle them to the ground and then cut them without
an anesthetic.
Maybe it's got to be done sometimes, but before the horse gets up, he hobbles
him front and back; ties a rope through each hobble, and ties it around
the neck, stooping the horse. The horse is left like this for three days,
to "make" it subservient. During the three days the tight hobbles strip
the hide from the horses hocks and the flies swarm to where it's bleeding.
All the while, the horse is in shock from being cut. It's cruel and inhumane
punishment, not just hobbling."
"Gus, what do
you mean by cut?"
"Gelded, castrated,
and Snake still does it the old hard way. I've heard Snake say, It's nothing,
and with hobbling the horse learns patience at the same time. Others
have heard him say, I love it when they squeal, as the horse was
being cut. Times have changed, and it's time to get the poison and ignorance
out of our grandfathers' ways. I'm interested in generating respect,
not breaking spirits. That's why I use the round pen. There's a big
difference in making a horse do something, and allowing him to do it."
"How come they used
to be so hard on horses, Gus?"
"There is an old idea
that mankind has been given dominion over the animals. Well, whoever had
this idea forgot to tell the Arab horse. That's why I have an Arab, because
the Arab is too free to recognize this. I'm not sure he comes from this
planet anyway. Some say he's too smart for his own good. He has to trust
you in ways you can't imagine. You gotta ride to release him."
"What happens
if you do, Gus?"
"He will make a bargain
with you, privately, and without words. It's a pact and bond
going deeper than friendship. "
"What kind of bargain?"
"He'll need a loose
rein and his dignity."
"What does he give
in return?"
"He'll anticipate you.
He'll be eager, not compelled, even knowing what you want before you do.
For every hour you've lost to heartache and hard times, he'll put one back,
with peace and well-being. Just being with him will make your spirit swell.
He'll pack your troubles out to where they don't matter. And there,
you'll fly without wings because the sky will climb higher, the grass grow
greener, and life will be new all over again.
There is a lot more,
but this is a good beginning."
The coffee was simmering
on the fire when they arrived. Gus poured two cups and sat with Ream on
the log saying, "Biff is a horse who don't have any holes in him. That
means he doesn't have weak points. He' s extremely honest and will accomplish
almost every thing you ask. He's very light to the touch."
After their coffee,
Gus helped Ream up on Biff, and before handing the reins to Ream indicated,
"Many riders want constant contact with the horse's mouth through the reins.
When you allow the horse to use his intuition and what he has learned about
you, the reins are used only for direction, not control. Ride to release
the horse.
Remember, horse sense
always chooses freedom, so stay out of his mouth, let Biff have slack until
you want him to do something, then pull gently to direct him; do not control
him, allow him. When he does what you want, let him have slack again."
"I get it," said Ream.
"To stop, you
cue him by saying, Whoa and giving him more slack in the reins so he can
use his head for balance in stopping. Biff has already learned Whoa means
to stop. If he doesn't stop, then you pull on the reins firmly, only if
he doesn't respond to Whoa."
Ream was holding the
reins as Gus had shown him. He squeezed his legs gently cueing Biff to
walk forward. Biff responded. With Gus walking along side, they advanced
around the pen. "OK," said Gus, "stop when you're ready."
Ream picked up on the
reins and said, "Whoa." Biffer stopped.
"Let's take a break,
got any questions?"
"No," said Ream dismounting,
"I think I've got it." Ream patted Biff's neck and as he did so, he heard
paper crackle in his shirt pocket. Remembering what it was, he took it
from his pocket and handed it to Gus saying, "I have a letter here from
Bob Howard, would you read it to me?"
Gus tipped back his
hat and opening the letter he read:
"Dear Ream,
In our ride to Prescott
to hear Gus's poem I promised to send a copy of your condensed remarks
about Dee Dee entitled The Connection. I now keep a copy in my bottom
desk drawer along with other quotes, some religious, some spiritual. Some
have authors, some don't; truth never needs authority. Yours follows:
This final relationship is about gravity not commitment. It's letting the gravity of total communion with another's being become the connection. There is a difference between letting someone love you and obligating someone to love you.
Intimate love will never be owned nor willed. It must be released. It is a gift from the heavens. The mystery of how one can unlock another from the inside out by letting go, and then emerge as a fuller self by becoming part of the "us" is the great miracle.
It's a mutual surrender to the divinity in the other, because the soul will not rest until it finds this mystical completion and this freedom."
"It's a heap of insight,
what do you think, Gus?"
"Certainly people are
different from horses. But it sounds to me like not being able to
put a horse into a trailer until he is ready. It's the same difference
between making a horse do it and allowing him to do it. It's the Principle
again."
Ream smiled gently
in deep recognition.
"OK," said Gus, "let's
ride some circles."
Ream mounted and Gus
handed him the reins saying, "To do this, reach down the rein on the side
you wish to turn and pull gently. At the same time press gently with your
leg which is on the outside of the turn."
Ream collected himself
and then tried the circle. Then he observed, "I get it, I feel like he'll
steer with only my legs. He turns so easily and so lightly."
"You're right. If you're
doing it right, you could really ride him with a piece of thread instead
of the reins."