So, no, this isn’t a post about my dating life in NYC. Although I did spot Chris Noth in a restaurant on Sixth Avenue one time…
This is a story about my beloved partner for one week in April 2017, Mr. Big the horse. I traveled to Leaves and Lizards Retreat in Costa Rica, and participated in their Eponicity workshop (Equine Facilitated Learning—read about it here). The idea is that through connecting with one of the retreat’s amazing horses, you experience clarity, inner strength, and beautiful shifts in yourself. Having studied animal communication, I was familiar with what it felt like to connect intuitively with an animal. But this week I was completely blown away by how psychic Mr. Big was.
The first day of the workshop, the horse picks the person he wants to work with. I can’t even tell you how special it makes you feel when a beautiful, wise creature like one of the Leaves and Lizards’ horses picks you. I felt such gratitude toward Mr. Big right away. He responded by resting his head on my shoulder, or placing his face against my face and leaving it there so we were like two dreamy lovebirds.
On the second day, we did a riding-while-blindfolded meditation. One of the other women in my group led my horse in a circle around the arena as one of the facilitators read a guided meditation. Before I got on Mr. Big, I told him I was concerned about triggering my recurring back spasm issue. A bit apprehensive (and blindfolded!) atop Mr. Big, I attempted to lose myself in the meditation while he slowly walked around the arena. At one point, Mr. Big stopped moving and stood still…and stayed still for the rest of the exercise. For a moment I wondered why, but I soon fell back into the soothing meditation. Afterwards, my fellow animal communicator who was leading Mr. Big told me that when he stopped, there was nothing she could do to get him to move again. She asked Debbie the facilitator for help, but Debbie couldn’t get him to move either. They both said the intuitive message they received from Mr. Big was “Julie is my responsibility, and I’m not moving because that’s what’s best for her right now.” Later I realized he stopped right when I started to feel an ache in my back. That’s how tuned in he was.
After the meditation, my group was sitting in a circle in the arena discussing our experiences. Mr. Big was hanging out several yards away by the railing with three other horses. At one point, he walked across the arena to me and put his nose and mouth on my head, like a big smooch, then walked away. Debbie asked me what was happening with me in that moment that inspired Mr. Big to behave that way. I explained that while listening to the conversation about unconditional love, I was thinking about how affectionate Mr. Big had been with me. I remembered how we had been taught to respect our horse’s boundaries, and I wondered if he’d be ok with it anytime I spontaneously wanted to hug him or pet him. Just as I had that thought, he walked over and kissed me on the head.
Don’t get me wrong, Mr. Big challenged me big time that week as well as being a huge ball of love. But that’s for another post…
Ever wonder if your animal is tuned into your thoughts and feelings? I promise you he is. The next time your animal behaves a certain way—a way you like or not—take the time to stop and be aware of what’s going on with you in that moment. It’s likely your cat/dog/fish is communicating a message to you about your state of being. And all he wants to do is offer support or join in the fun.
It’s all about the magic. 🙌