Body of Work: Dances with Horses from Paula Josa-Jones on Vimeo.
I put this up on Facebook and have been thrilled with the number of people who are generously sharing it there. I am still so passionate about this work, and look forward to more. Please enjoy and pass it on!
Laila (& Precious) yielding
Another of the gifts of having a long visit with my grand daughter Laila Rose is the opportunity to do some hands on revisiting of Body-Mind Centering, the groundbreaking work of Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen. According to Bonnie, all of our movement is built upon these five fundamental actions (1) yielding, (2) pushing, (3) reaching, (4) holding, and (5) pulling. Any movement can be seen as a variation or combination of these basic actions.
I am especially interested in the yielding, as that is the action that I find personally the most challenging. I don’t yield a lot. So besides playing with Laila using yielding, I have been using yielding in my riding. Yielding my hips into the saddle and then into the horse’s back and then yielding my legs down to the ground, and practicing a yielding contact on the reins. That is different from “giving the reins away.” It has to do with the Aikido principle that Mark Rashid taught us about softening toward the horse’s mouth without actually moving the hands. When I yield my hips into the horse, there is a corresponding (subtle) push and then a reach through the head that creates a beautiful balancing counter-tension. Naturally, breathing has to support the yielding (and everything else).
Interestingly, Bonnie’s husband Len is a longtime practitioner of Aikido. Connections everywhere!
For those of you who want to know more, dance therapist and BMC practitioner Susan Aposhyan describes these fundamentals this way:
Yielding is a quality of resting in contact with the environment and underlies our basic relationship to the world. It is about the state of being versus doing, and forms the basis for the ability to act effectively in the world. In being in contact with the environment, discernment can be developed as to whether push, reach, or pull is desired or appropriate.
Pushing separates oneself from the immediate environment. The action contracts (shortens) all the musculature around the pushing limb resulting in the body becoming denser and more substantial. This action supports the capacity to psychologically feel, establish, and maintain boundaries, thus promoting an internal sense of support. It also supports the process of individuation and confidence building.
Reaching is an action that supports going beyond the sense of self. It is a way of extending out towards others or towards objects. Psychologically, reaching manifests curiosity, desire, longing, and compassion. This action may, however, expose one to risk taking and a sense of vulnerability.
Holding and Pulling allows for reaching out into the environment towards something/someone desirable and bringing it closer to oneself. Psychologically, the ability to hold and pull depends on the capacity to yield, push and reach. These actions provide the opportunity to reach out and take in from the external space.
If Ivy is in the studio, be sure to lock the bathroom because Precious will open the door and go downstairs to dig in the plants.
Obi and Precious can stay in the closet all day when the realtors are here.
At night, Ivy goes in the bathroom because otherwise she will pee on us during the night.
Cho can stay in the bedroom with us overnight, but if he wakes up in the night, he needs to go out otherwise he will pee.
Eli pees and poops on the smooth wood floors.
Eli will only use the clay litter.
Liam will eat the cat food whenever possible, so be sure to lock the bathroom door at night.
Tallulah tries to kill Eli and Ivy, so keep them apart all the time.
Nikita is the only cat that can go out.
Well, actually Eli can go out too, but generally comes in right away.
Guinnie and Jules are perfect.
Guinnie and Jules have to leave the kitchen after they eat because otherwise they will eat Cho’s food.
Ditto for Liam.
Maggie needs to be out of our bedroom at night because she is a talker and a kneader.
If Mamacita is outside in the morning, don’t let Cho out because he goes over the fence to chase her.
If there is snow, Cho doesn’t go over the fence, so disregard the above.
Guests have to leave their shoes in the closet or Liam will pee into them.
Bella will try to get into the living and dining room because she loves to dig in the plants and play with the Matrushka dolls.
Remind everyone not to leave any door open that is closed.
When the realtor comes, Maggia and Talullah go in carriers, Obi and Precious in Paula’s closet, Eli and Nikita in Pam’s studio, and Bella and Ivy in Paula’s studio (be sure to put up the signs to keep the dors closed. All four dogs go in the cars with us and we leave.
Remember to scoop the litters and rinse the bathtubs before leaving the house.
Remember to burn incense in the dog room and wash the stinky dog beds.
Remember to leave the camera out so we can get a video of the next time Liam (dog) is humping Talullah (cat).
We think that video will go viral and maybe drive more traffic to our blogs.
at a TTouch clinic with Linda in Hawaii in 2008
Linda Tellington-Jones has come out with a brilliantly written and wonderfully designed new book: Dressage with Mind, Body, and Soul: A 21st-Century Approach to the Science and Spirituality of Riding, Training, and Competing
I am a TTEAM practitioner and consider that work to be an essential part of Embodied Horsemanship. For more information on TTouch or to schedule an appointment for you and your horse, click here.