When I first started this journey into horses, I had no idea where it would take me. I really had only one goal - to overcome my fear of these magnificent creatures. Sounded pretty simple, right?

Take some riding lessons, and voila! Of course, looking back on it, and having learned as much as I have, there was no WAY it could be this simple or easy. Horses really are amazing teachers and they ALWAYS teach you what you most want to avoid.

• How to be more present
• How to feel the fear and do it anyway
• How to not make it about me
• How to put my needs aside and focus on my horse's needs
• How to show up even when I would prefer not to
• How to stand up when it's really uncomfortable
• How to get up after getting pushed down
• How to appreciate a summer's breeze 
• How to love a sunny winters day
• How to smile at your horse rolling in the dirt after you just spent an hour giving him a bath
• How to find common ground with people (and horses) of all different backgrounds
• How to learn to live in the moment
• How to not have to control EVERY LITTLE THING
• How to give voice to the voiceless
• How to feel the peace watching a herd of horses grazing in the pasture
• How to JUST BE and experience life with eyes wide open

And living life means taking part in it, experiencing it, making choices to do things you might otherwise not do. Take a class, learn something new, talk to someone you would not otherwise talk to. Appreciate a different perspective. Always learning to see with fresh eyes, cultivating a Beginner's Mind as the Bhuddist tradition calls it.

So this weekend, I am heading to the first Masterson Educational Conference - being held at the beautiful White Stallion Ranch in Tucson, Arizona. There will be 70 of us converging on this gorgeous place. I studied with Jim Masterson and his team several years ago. I had connected with his gentle and intuitive approach to horses and bodywork and found it resonated with me deeply. It will be an immense pleasure to reconnect with so many other practitioners, especially since we all bring our own flair and flavor to the profession. Not only that, but we will also meet some very dedicated professionals who will share their experience and expertise with us:

• Jochen Schleese of Schleese Saddlery - on the finer points of saddle fitting
• Mark Rashid - an incredible horseman - on the evaluation of the horse's movement
• Jerry Schmidt - an equine dentist - who will present on how teeth are impacting the horse's body
• and of course Jim Masterson - on bodywork - because he also never stops learning!

We will also have a bonfire and a friend of Mark Rashid's - Brad Fitch - will join us and Mark for some live music and jamming. Brad is booked all over the US for John Denver tributes, so I am expecting it to be a blast. Plus I get to meet new people and old friends and wear shorts and tank tops in February!

And as I sat down to write this, I suddenly realized. It was Tucson AZ - the Sonoran Desert - where I took my very first horseback ride! I could not believe it!

I was visiting a friend and her parents and she insisted on wanting to take a ride out in the desert. Of course, I was not prepared at all. I had no boots, no jeans. From what I remember, I wore leggins. The shoes remain a mystery at this time. But appropriate they were not, of that I am sure. We showed up at the place where our guide was going to lead us into the desert for two hours. I have to say, I had not just slight trepidations. While I grew up in rural Germany and we had lots of animals, we did not have horses and I was quite intimidated by their size, strength, agility and speed.

To really give you an even better idea, our guide asked what level of riding we had done. I was honest (better that than dead I thought) and said: NONE. He looked at me very politely (as if my answer was a big surprise to him given the outfit I was wearing!) and said: "then I have just the horse for you". And out he brought the tallest horse I could imagine. The stirrup was at about the height of my ear.

He asked if I needed assistance in getting up at which point my fear/annoyance took over and I mentioned that since the stirrup was that high and I did not work for the Cirque de Soleil - yes, his assistance was required - and I added - also appreciated. Once I was up, boy, my heart skipped a couple beats. It was a looooooong way down! Not only that, but I had no idea how to steer this horse......

Off we went, the young gentleman didn't give me much time to think about what I was getting into. He headed straight for the desert and some really big cactus. Of course my horse knew immediately that I had no experience and must have had a great sense of humor because he tried to get as close to every cactus he could find. We finally came to an agreement that I would stop over-reacting and he would stop trying to brush me off on those darn spikes. It was one of the best experiences of my life. The desert was gorgeous. It was the beginning of March, after some serious rains, and a landscape very unfamiliar to me. There were flowers and plants in a variety that I had not expected.

Growing up in Germany could not have prepared me for the immense landscape and stark beauty of the desert. Especially on horseback. There is something very visceral when you are moving with the gentle rhythm of the horse. There is no screen, no filter. You feel the same breeze, the same sunshine as the horse. You get to smell the same things, see the same things, experience the same things and yet, it is still all your own. 

Little did I know that it was those two hours out in the desert that would leave a big mark on my soul. Something I would always go back to and long for. There are those moments in our lives that speak deeply to us. Meeting someone we have an instant connection with. A beautiful sunset over the ocean. The cry of a seagull. Sitting under a tree while the sun caresses your skin. The smell of coffee in the morning. A sip of it sliding down your throat as your hands warm up holding the cup. The giggle of a baby. Your horse nickering as you step into the barn. The hug of a loved one. A beautiful piece of music. Watching fireflies on Midsummer's Eve. Staring into the flames of a fire or a candle. The smell of the earth after a rain. The smell of your horse, the feel of his coat, the look in her eye. 

There is one thing horses have taught and shown me over and over again. Stay present. Live here, right now. This very moment. No matter how busy our lives get, no matter how hectic everything seems to be. Life - and adventure - happens in those quiet moments when we allow ourselves to just be. When we choose to breathe just a little bit slower, a little bit deeper. When we look a little bit closer, but with a softer gaze. When we become present to all there is, we get to experience and live it on a much deeper level. 

In all these years, looking back on my ride in the desert, I have had the great fortune to experience that same bliss. A lot of it with horses, although not always.

Be it seeing a foal born and watching this little being take his first breath. Or be it watching my mare take her last. And all the moments in between. Life is a series of adventures, of experiences, of encounters with others, of noise and laughter, of quiet solitude and serenity. No matter if we are heading out to go someplace or are choosing to stay put, let's be more present, live more fully. 

Like our horses.

Daniela