Hello, friends. It’s LC here, with VERA stretched across a sunny patch of floor that she claims she found first.
The other day, we were having one of our regular conversations with Shiloh. Now, before you ask, yes, horses talk. Not with words, of course. Horses communicate with ears, eyes, breathing, posture, and the occasional dramatic sigh. If you’re paying attention, they have a lot to say. And lately, Shiloh has been sharing the same message over and over: “Everyone needs to slow down.” We thought about this while watching the barn. Humans are always hurrying somewhere. They’re rushing to work, rushing to appointments, rushing through conversations, rushing to the next thing before they’ve even finished the current thing.
Shiloh doesn’t understand it. “Horses only move that fast when something important is happening,” he explained. A strange plastic bag tumbling across the paddock? Sure. A new object suddenly appearing where it wasn’t yesterday? Absolutely. Something genuinely frightening? Time to pay attention. But the rest of the time? Horses conserve their energy. They graze. They rest. They observe. They think before they react. It turns out there’s a good reason for that.
VERA read somewhere (she reads a lot) that when humans are constantly rushing, their bodies behave as though they’re facing danger. Their hearts beat faster. Their breathing becomes shallow. Their muscles tighten. Their stomachs get upset. Their sleep suffers. Their immune systems work harder than they should. It’s as if their bodies are preparing to run from a predator that never actually arrives. Shiloh says that sounds exhausting, and we agree.
One of the most important lessons horses teach is that rushing isn’t their language. If you’ve ever worked with a horse, you’ve probably noticed that demanding an answer rarely gets you one. Horses need a moment to process, think, and decide. Did you know that when something is new, confusing, or worth considering, they take 10-13 seconds to process it?
We’ve noticed participants learning this lesson every day. The more they slow down, the more successful they become. Their breathing settles. Their shoulders relax. Their focus sharpens. Their horses respond. And sometimes, that lesson follows them home. The patience they practice in the arena shows up in conversations with friends. In school. At work. With family. A horse doesn’t just teach someone how to ride or lead. Sometimes, a horse teaches someone how to pause. And perhaps that’s a skill we could all use a little more often.
We cats certainly understand the value of taking our time. Finding the perfect sunbeam takes careful consideration. Selecting the ideal napping location requires extensive research. Patrolling the barn for rodents demands patience and strategy. (Although, admittedly, treats are the one thing we don’t take slowly.)
So this month, we’d like to offer a challenge from Shiloh:
Take a breath.
Look around.
Notice something you might have missed.
And the next time you’re in a hurry, ask yourself: What would a horse do? The answer is probably, “Slow down and give it a moment.”
With unhurried affection,
LC (and VERA, who is still evaluating sunbeam options) 🐾