What Horses Do for Us

Human actions are never without purpose—even if we don't always consciously know what that purpose is. Riding as exercise, riding as competition, riding as social life, riding as countryside experience, riding as teaching and learning...all these give riders meaning and satisfaction. Even non-horsy people, and those with emotional and psychological problems who have therapeutic contact with horses, can find that their lives have been transformed for the better. There must be more, and deeper, benefits...What is going on when horses and humans encounter each other? In this important book, Wendy Jago draws upon her experiences as a rider and as a teacher, psychotherapist, and coach to offer some professional and personal insights into horse-human relationships. Drawing on a variety of disciplines and upon her own struggles and successes as a rider, she begins to unravel some of the fascinating and profound gifts that horses offer us—just by being themselves.She shows that without artifice, without manipulation, without disguise, they offer us a mirror to our true selves, giving us the opportunity for self-discovery and self-ownership in a way that human relationships often fail to do. And so they bring us gifts of inestimable value: reflection, presence, spaciousness, influence, poise, self-acceptance, authenticity, transcendence, engagement and connection. No wonder we want to spend time with them.