THE MEANING OF WORDS

Last week I had a little incident with my horses. Having two horses in leadroap behind me and the dog on a leash in front I enjoyed the walk from the pasture to the stable when the dog's leash made a strange sound. Well, not to me or the dog, but my Danish Warmblood, who is a bit jumpy these days, got scared and jumped forward and right on my back. After all, being close to Mum is the safest place in the world. For a second it felt like she was actually sitting on my shoulders. On her way off of this splendid seat, her hoofs landed on my ankle. It all happened fast, and after a few minutes we could continue our walk. However with some really beaten up neck-muscles on my behalf. The following days I was pretty sore and couldn't move my head much. After a week, the ankle started to hurt. I went to the doctor's to check it, and was sent to the hospital for x-rays. When it was my turn, a nice radiographist came over to me, smiled and said "So, the horse was mean to you." I stopped and looked at him. "No", I said, "she was frightened, her natural reaction was to get away from what scared her, and I was in her way."

His comment made me start thinking of how we use words without being aware of the meaning of the word.

Being mean, to me it means that you on purpose do something that will harm others. That you intentionally want to hurt the other. This not-thought-through sentence started a chain of thoughts in me. Well, I had the time, sitting on the hospital waiting for results for some good long hours. Are we really aware of the meaning of the words we use in our everyday language? Are we really aware of what kind of impact the words we choose have on us and on others? Taste the word "mean - being mean to", notice what it is doing to your emotions. Is it a word that makes you feel stronger, or does it bring your energy down?

This brings me over to another word used daily, all over the world - deadline. Taste the word. Take it in, feel what it does to your body, mind and soul. Imagine this - you've got a new exciting project, you feel how energized you are about it. Take a moment and feel how the excitement and the energy works in your body, you can't wait to get started, and to do your absolute best. And then - "the deadline is at the end of this month". Feel the energy now. What did that word do to you? Can you feel how the energy drops to the floor, instead of bringing the energy further? The word kind of put a stop to it. Maybe it is about time to replace that word with something else - something more positive?

By looking into your own patterns of speaking, pattern of choosing words, you will become aware of what you say and how it affects you. If you want a change in your life , if you want a more positive outcome, this is one of the most important things to look at. Become aware of the intention behind the words you are using, become aware of the meaning of the words.

I know the radiographist just wanted to start a conversation, it was maybe his way of showing me he felt sorry for me. His choice of words suprised me, because I would never think in that direction. That explains also my respond to him. I know that horses don't intentionally want to hurt people. They are driven by their natural instincts.

My Rowena didn't intentionally mean to hurt me. And this I can say, if that horse could speak Human Language she would have said all the way up the hill to the stable "Marit, I am so, so sorry. I didn't mean to! Sorry, Marit, sorry!" All the way up her muzzle touched my arm like if she wanted to show me how sorry she was, to be assured I was ok. To be certain that her and me were ok. When we go for a walk she normally holds her head up high - as the majestic horse she is.

She worships my ground - as I worship hers!

And the ankle - no fracture or tendon rupture, just an inflammation in the achilles tendon...

THE WILD HORSES' DESTINY

Horses – our companions through centuries. They are a symbol of freedom, a symbol of power, and a wonderful symbol of strength and sensitivity going hand in hand. Horses have served humans for centuries. Of all the domestic animals, horses have been of the most important ones through all times. They have been more than an animal, they became part of the family. Because of them man could move over longer distances before an other horsepower took over. The horses became a be or not to be for farmers, without good horses it was difficult for the farmers to run their farm. They have been through wars for us, they have run across country carrying the messenger with important messages, and they have been the one to trust in difficult situations. Today we don’t need horses like we once did, but they still have a special place in human’s heart. All over the world there are herds of wild horses. They are the real symbol of freedom. They are an important part, not only of history, but also of the symbiosis of nature. Every creature has a mission.

Foto: http://www.best-horse-photo.com/

In America’s west, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is running aggressive roundups of the wild horses. The horses are removed from public land to holding facilities where the best ones are being adopted and the rest is sent for slaughter. The number of wild horses has decreased dramatically just in a few years. Why? Corporate oil, gas and mining companies need the land. When watching videos about the roundups, reading articles and hearing about it, I question - who are they to go in and make this anti-homeostasis? The ones in charge of this – who are they to stir up the symbiosis of nature? Yes, today’s community requires oil and gas, but to what expense? What are we willing to sacrifice? Are we willing to let the wildlife die to have a comfortable life? Do we want all the green lungs to be developed for corporate companies? How far ahead are the ones in charge thinking? I wonder how it would look like if they started to think more holistic – what is human kind without having an open land, forest or mountains to go to? We are also a part of the symbiosis, we need the diversity of nature and wild life. If this development continues in the same speed, we will not only have destroyed the wildlife, but the land – the free, untouched, wild landscape will also be destroyed. We destroy our children’s inheritance.

The horses that meant so much to our ancestors,

don’t we want to take care of the inheritance?

Don’t we want to pass it on to our children and grandchildren?

How the roundups actually are being done is another aspect. Helicopters are being used to chase the horses into the direction of the paddocks. The horses are fenced in together with horses from other herds in small paddocks. Herds are being split. Frightened horses fighting for their lives, stressed mares losing their foals. Live transportation to the next destination – a truck so filled with horses they can barely move. The horses ooze of fear. Again I question, who are these people to do this to another living being? What are they made of, don’t they see the fear? If the ones behind the decisions for one moment could put themselves in the same position – what would that be like? How would they react to that? And what about the ones that actually do the work, those who have the close contact with the horses. Don’t they see the fear? I wonder if they ever question their job.

Watch the new trailer of "Disappointment Valley... A Modern Western Day", a documentary made by James Anaquad Kleinert about the roundups of horses in the west.

 It is time to change the story. It is time to raise our voice.

NOW IT IS TIME TO SAVE OUR WILD HORSES!

Foto: http://www.best-horse-photos.com/