“Trying to understand is like straining through muddy water. Have the patience to wait! Be still and allow the mud to settle.” – Lao Tzu
This week in one of my lessons with Belinda Trussell the mud settled.
“You need more bend!” “More angle! Bring the hindquarters!” This is what Belinda would endlessly be telling me as I went down the longside in travers (Haunches in) or when I was in half pass to the right or to the left. I would think: “I’m giving Biasini all the aids. Why can’t I get more angle? Why is this not enough bend?”
Just for reference the featured photo in this post is of Belinda riding a half pass. That is the bend. That is the angle. Those hindquarters are not trailing.
It has gone on like this for the past year. Biasini was just waiting patiently for me to get it right. This past week the importance of timing the half halts fell into place. The mud cleared. I could feel Biasini’s hindquarters swinging in the direction we were travelling. I could see the bend and feel he was bending round my inside leg. BOOM!
What had changed? It was me. I finally got the timing of the aids right. At last Biasini could understand exactly what I wanted and he responded!
I know we frequently blame our horses for not doing what we are asking them to do. We see it as being their fault. Don’t get me wrong sometimes it is their fault. But often it is our fault. We are the ones who are impatient. But this week I had sterling proof that it was me. I had not been getting it right, and when I did Biasini responded with exactly what I was asking for. He responded because at last I was asking clearly in the way he could understand.
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