Stetzle’s Gift
As an equestrian, I spent countless hours with my four-legged friends. It takes little time to sense their silent communication and years to master it. Snorts, ear twitches, stomps: all soundless expressions of thoughts and emotions. There was no double-edged diction or insincerity. The lack of words gave a sense of authenticity to our interactions. In all my years spent with these animals, one moment stands out.
After a hard evening with my family, I retreated to the stables in search of peace. Stetzle, a sweet gelding that I'd worked with since he was three, drew me in. I wrapped my arms around his neck as he helped hold my heavy heart. He nibbled softly at my hair, as though he were comforting me as he would another horse. Standing in his stall, I felt him transmute and release my pain. Taking a seat next to him as he ate, I grew aware of the connections shared by the horses. As the night grew darker and quieter, I got the sense that the horses brought me into their herd. I started to understand their equine language through linking and somatic communication.
Practicing their language allowed me to see patterns in both horses and people more clearly. My intuition grew. Physical pain and feelings of isolation became perceptible in my hands and fingers. I would feel vibrations in my hands when one of the horses was snickering or snorting, or when they wanted a deeper connection with the rest of the herd.
As I continued to work with horses professionally, I could sense dense energy in their system and use my hands to soften and shift the patterns. Many times, heat would be present. I would hover my hand or hands over the heat and ask it to ground. I would move the dense heat from the pain center to the ground. More often than not, the horses would feel better.
I learned that healing energy could manifest when I attached that intention to love. I wanted my four-legged friends to feel better. It felt good to create a sense of peace in their muscles, body, and mind. That night with Stetzle informed some of the deepest knowing within me. I will never forget how those beautiful teachers taught me to tune in, be still, and trust my intuition.
