Following The Hoofprints
Follow the Hoofprints to a fulfilling, content life!
Recently I had a “stay at home” kind of day, and I was moving around in the kitchen. Outside my window, 3 horses had finished their breakfast, and were relaxing in the noonday sun. As I noticed them, lingering, some laying down, some not, I was struck by the rhythms of their day.
They ate,
they wandered, they lingered, they rested.
Fuel, Move, Linger, Rest. Repeat.
What a great template for our lives!! Right in front of me, The Wisdom of the Horse once again spoke; deeply, powerfully, purposefully. How so, you may ask? Well, Those 4 simple words reflect the magnitude of how one can live a fulfilling, content life. Here is why:
FUEL: We need to eat to live, not to live to eat. We need fuel to be sustained. Not just the edible kind, but the kind that feeds our souls and our spirits. The kind that is satiating and soothing. What feeds your soul? What makes you smile? What ignites your passion? What causes you to breathe deeply and say “Thank you”?
MOVE: We need to have purpose in our days. We need to be active, in our minds and with our bodies, to the best of our abilities. With horses, movement is never wasted. Reminds me of the saying “Nothing in God’s economy is ever wasted.”
So it is for us. Every movement, every time we notice, is an invitation, and is never wasted. Do the moments in our day lead to gratitude, and an open heart? Or, do they lead down the path of fear and a closed heart? If you believe we are all created, then that implies there is a Creator. And, if there is a Creator, then His creation must be a marvelous and wondrous place indeed.
LINGER: As I watched the horses pick a place to stop and linger, so must we. Actually, neuroscientists even back this up! In order to alter our neurons, to allow us to reframe and focus on the positive, we must linger with those elements in our lives which inspire gratitude and love. We must linger. We must stay with. We must not do, but be.
My show horse, Viton, always encourages me to linger. As I clean his stall, he comes in and quietly stands before me. Linger, it is as if he is saying. Stay with me. Here. Right now. Be with me. Do not do, just be. I often take him up on his invitation. Sometimes, I must say, I do not. But, the invitation is always there. And, I am grateful for that.
REST: We must stop, slow down, notice. We must rest. Rest in our minds. Rest in our bodies. Rest in our hearts. When is the best time for you to rest? I do not mean simply putting your feet up for a few minutes, nor am I referring to sleeping at night. When do you deeply, totally rest? You know, for a horse to lay down and rest, they must feel incredibly safe and secure. When do you feel most safe? When do you feel most secure?
REPEAT: Once we have mastered the FMLR template, we now have a metaphor for life. We only need repeat.
Next time, The Resonant Horse will fill you in on some wonderful future happenings. VERY exciting things are percolating at The Resonant Horse, and we want yo to have a front row seat for all of them! Till next time…Follow the Hoofprints