Tag Archives: horses

Apr16

love day

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Today Pam and I drove up to visit Bedlam Farm, home of Jon Katz and Maria Wulf.  Our friendship with these two amazing people has grown over the past few months.  Jon is an inspiration and a mentor for me, a budding blogger and writer.  With some trepidation I had asked him to look at a couple chapters of my book, Horse Dancing:  Artists, the body and the bond between horses and humans.  He is pushing me to show myself more, to open more, to step out of the shadows.  I thought I was.  I can see now that I am not, that there is more to show, more to share.

I also wanted to meet Rocky, the 30-year old pony that lives at the future Bedlam Farm.  Jon has posted some beautiful photos of Rocky with me today on his Facebook page and his blog.  To me, Rocky felt like the sleeping prince waiting to be kissed to awaken.  Jon and Maria had been giving him some soft kisses, but Rocky needed a big smooch to wake up.  He has been alone for a long time.

This is what I loved about today, what broke my heart open.  He was ready.  Not that he had just been hanging around waiting, but when he was touched, really handled, it was as if his body remembered all of that and opened to it like a flower in the sun.  I think that is a testament to how deeply he has been loved.  He became animated, eager and responsive with his herd of four humans.

Nelson, the mustang that I work with is like this now.  He wants to be with.  He is relaxed and happy, interested in whatever the next thing is. His life feels pretty good to him now.

I think this is what we all want, each of us in our own way.  To be with, to be touched, to be cherished, to be one.  I know it is what I want.  I am not always able to express that.  I don’t always give myself over to being loved the way Rocky did today.  That is his gift to me today.

Maria said that usually after his apple and a bit of brushing, Rocky wanders away. She said that was a relief, because it marked an end to their mutual commitment.  Rocky was wandering off because there wasn’t a compelling reason to stay.  Now he will stay.  And so will they.  He has felt us, and he knows there is more.  More love, more connection, more of all of us.

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Apr14

breakfast in bed

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 Nelson in his food nest.

This week when I arrived, Nelson was actually flat on his side, basking in the sun.  By the time I got my camera out with the long lens, he knew something was up and stood up to see who was hanging outside of his fence.  This photo was sent to me by my friend Michele, from earlier last week.

Mar29

buddha horse

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I am not sure if he was meditating, but when I downloaded my pictures, there was this photograph of Nelson with his eye closed.  Over the months that I have known him, Nelson has become a pretty equanimous horse.  He takes things more in stride and I will often see him reading me – reading my movement, parsing what I am asking before responding.

My body has become more readable as well.  I can feel it as I get out of the car and assemble my equipment (gloves, fanny pack with treats, brushes, sometimes a halter).  Settling, breathing, feeling the rhythm and smoothness of my gestures.  I don’t have a particular agenda or plan.  Usually we review the things that we know (grooming, hoof lifting and picking practicing our movement cues.  Then, depending on how he feels to me (steady, nervous, curious, disinterested), we move into something new.

I recently heard about a competition called the Extreme Mustang Makeover.  Contestants have 90 days to gentle and train a wild Mustang.  To me that sounds like a lot of pressure on both horse and human.  It also sounds like doing things in human time, not horse time.

For me, the joy of Nelson is in taking my time and in building trust, friendship and understanding in slow, comprehensible steps.  One of the greatest gifts that horses can teach us is learning to be in horse time, which is not goal oriented or clock and schedule driven.  And, as Klaus Hempfling says, letting the horse come to me, not the other way around.

 

Mar27

all the pretty horses

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This post is about a new performance project that I am developing.  I would love for you to share this information with friends.  This project grew out of my desire to create performance that would benefit horses, and is part of my company’s “horses helping horses” project.  It is close to my heart.  I am especially excited about this project because our partners, Little Brook Farm, are so deeply woven into their upstate New York community and have taught literally thousands of children about horses.

All the Pretty Horses is a community-based, inter-species dance project with “throw away” horses that have been rescued from abuse or slaughter and now live safe and happy at the equine sanctuary Little Brook Farm, in Old Chatham, NY. The performance is a benefit for the sanctuary and will take place September 22, 2012.

Also participating in the performance are the riders and vaulters from Little Brook Farm, area student dancers and the professional dancers from Paula Josa-Jones/Performance Works.

All the Pretty Horses reveals the depth and heart of the human-horse bond and the beauty and possibility of horses that were thrown away or consigned to slaughter. It shows us that when we share time and space with horses, learn to listen to them and communicate through the language of movement, we become more compassionate, more connected to each other and more a part of the shared earth.

What we need:
We are seeking 20 dancers and gymnasts to participate in this world premiere event. You will have a unique and exciting opportunity to work with a professional dance company and the horses and riders from Little Brook Farm. No horse experience is necessary. Participation fee is $100, which includes all classes and rehearsals. Participating dancers will receive a certificate at the end of the project. Saturday rehearsals are twice a month from April – September. For more information or to join the project:
josajones@gmail.com

We also need financial support:  Funds are needed to pay professional dancers’ fees, travel and production expenses. We raised start up funds from Kickstarter and need to raise an additional $5000 to complete the project.  You can make a donation here.  We deeply appreciate your support of All the Pretty Horses!