Reflections on The Benefit  

by Susan Terrell

First, let me say that Jaki's posts were a fitting tribute to this weekend,...beautifully expressed. But dang' girl....you took all the quotes! I was gonna cheat and just post  Ray'ism's! Now you've made me have to Think (which, under the circumstances is appropriate I suppose :) I know there will be more postings from others that were there - to try and write about "all" that was observed and that happened this weekend would be an exhaustive process I decided to concentrate on an aspect that really stood out for me, and that I thought would perhaps be of interest to others - I will try to discuss it as non-judgmentally as possible: a tricky task to assign myself under the circumstances as you'll see, but also an important one if I am to express the truth as I perceived it behind the

actions. And most importantly, if I am to write in the spirit of what Tom Dorrance is all about. In that spirit, I deliberately will not name names.

This was perhaps a once-only gathering of men and women considered to be some of the best of our time. In their sheer "numbers" they presented a wide palate of abilities, perspectives, techniques and attitudes. What was I looking for as I watched them? Tom, to me, is a human being that has managed to totally remove his ego from the equation when interacting with a horse. It is NEVER about Tom, is ALWAYS about the animal: a theme that Ray Hunt verbalized again, and again, and again this weekend. With Tom, I sense it is ALWAYS ultimately about the "feel", never an exercise in the use of "mechanics". As I sat those two days and watched the Colt-starting and Horsemanship. I was looking for that concern for the horse; for the softness and demeanor in the clinician that would indicate how far along they were in achieving that ideal that Tom exemplifies - and more importantly, for the softness and demeanor in the horse, that would reflect his handling. I felt that some of the weekends' participating clinicians are closer to that ideal than others.

During the colt-starting I observed such contrasts - there was the clinician that seemed more concerned with exhibiting his ability to get the job done the fastest, as opposed to the one that found a quiet corner amongst the chaos to stand and Just rub on his obviously troubled colt - there was the clinician that Just wouldn't give any release to his colt to the point that Ray finally noticed "from the other side of the arena" and told him to "let-up on that horse"; balanced by another clinician who had such exquisite timing and feel that it made me want to cry - there was the group of clinicians in one round pen calm and focused on teamwork, as opposed to another group that just didn't seem to be able to come togetherbecause they were too focused on each doing it "his" way. That, by the way, is something that I'd like to express too. I find it sad that I had to write that last sentence and use only "his". Would have been nice to have had to write his/her. There was not one female clinician participating in the colt-starting. It was by invitation only I understand --1 would like to think that some women were invited and chose not to participate, as opposed to the thought that none were invited to begin with.

My summation? They are all like us folks - no better, no worse. Just like us, some are further along the path than others. Some had a direction and a manner and a feel that appealed deeply to me............others did not. We all have a responsibility to our horses to watch these clinicians with an eye for what is important to us as individuals, so that we can choose to learn from the ones that come the closest to our goals and aspirations for the relationships we want to have with our horses. Those goals and aspirations will be as different as each one of us are - and that is as it should be. But put no one on a pedestal: and don't close your minds to the depths and levels of relationship that are achievable with your horse.

I shook Tom Dorrance's hand once. This dear man, small in stature but so huge in heart, exuded a sense of sincerity, honesty and humbleness that I will never forget.. ........ attributes that we, and each of the clinicians I saw this weekend, should strive for, There is to me, a sense of "spirit" about the man that is his core -1 came away this weekend more firmly grounded than ever that an acknowledgment of spirit is a fundamental in following the path of horsemanship that Tom tries to teach us. You will not come close to his level of understanding  if you narrow your focus to mechanics and technique only: they are an admittedly crucial part of the picture, but not, to me at least, the essence. I am deeply grateful that I was able to attend this event. I am equally grateful for the opportunity to meet the wonderful people that I did - many from this list. My opinions expressed here are just that - *my* opinions.

I look forward to reading about others' perspectives and observations of the weekends' events. On one thing I know we will all agree on - it was a once in a lifetime experience for an extremely worthy cause...........that none of us will ever forget.

Respectfully,

Sue

Cowboy and Blaze