After 33 years of marriage, I decided to leave my husband in June of this year. We are still living together and our farm is up for sale so we can go our separate ways. This is why you have not heard from me for a while, it has been hell to say the least, and very hard on both of us. Sometimes people just grow apart and I realized that I wanted more out of our relationship than just being business partners. It has been the saddest and hardest decision of my life, but I feel a right and necessary one.

I have sold 2 of my horses to good homes, cleaned out my excessive tack room and am still in the process of dejunking my house and packing - what a catharsis!! My husband and I will always be friends, and share the responsibilities of parenthood and grandparenthood no matter what, so that is good. We will always be there for our kids. I have a new grandson now - born on September 18th to my daughter, he is a bouncing boy and a great joy to us all.

I have just launched a new website, as Wit's End Farms is no longer, and it's called; www.annshorsemanship.com. This is something I have always done but never talked about, so I have a new book to write and I will be running clinics and workshops around the concept of Spiritual, Emotional, Mental and Physical health of the horse, and my new motto is "it's all about balance". Horses are here to teach us about balance, in all ways, and as most people these days, including me, seem to be going through major life changes, we need to focus on balance most of all. Whether it's a relationship change, a health crisis, a change in job or location, we are all being forced to re-evaluate our lives and our thoughts. With the major shifts in energy going on in the Universe these days, we have to realize that we are one with all life, and inner turmoil is reflected in our outer world. We have to learn to feel the connection to all life on this planet, to each other, the trees, oceans, animals, birds and plants, and through this connection we will become whole and heal ourselves and our planet. We have to take responsibility for our thoughts and feelings, and realize that we must feed the right kind of mass consciousness, not the one of fear and greed. Our journey takes us through some challenging situations - I am in the middle of one of them - but this initiation is our way to grow and move forward. It forces us to change, and remodel our lives and our world for the better.

I have always done energy work on horses, and played with things like colour healing and crystal energy. The horses respond well as they are more sensitive and tuned in to their true spirit than many humans. Everything is down to vibration, as scientifically, everthing is made up of atoms, and the only difference between a table and a human, is the revolution and arrangement of the atoms. We and our universe are basically all made of the same "stuff". With this in mind, it is easier to understand that telepathic communication is possible, and that good and bad "vibes" are just that! Colours have a vibration too - what I call an "energy signature" which makes them appealing to us or not. Like with horses - you may not have the horse you want, but you always have the horse you need. In other words, the one to teach you a life lesson, to hold up a mirror that says " hey - pay attention to this". There is always a lesson to be learned.

I had an interesting encounter with a woman who came to my booth at a trade fair this past weekend. She was aggressive and wanted to know if I had any answers for a horse who kicked and pawed while being trailered. I found out that the horse had only recently been trained to trailer, so I said that he was probably frustrated with the new idea of confinement and I suggested doing short hauls and then turning him out as soon as he got home. She replied 'oh I leave him in there for hours until he stops". I suggested that building frustration and claustrophobia might not be a good idea, and I compared it to leaving a baby in a playpen to cry for hours - this frightens the child and creates abandonment issues. To my chagrin she says 'Oh I did that to my son and it worked, the teachers all said how well behaved he was". She hasn't realized yet that the child is intimidated and emotionally shut down, just like her horse! I then suggested the horse might have backpain issues - again " oh no he has a regular chiropractor". At this point I realized that she wanted me to validate her abusive behavior towards her son and her horse, this I was not willing to do, especially after she told me that now she has the horse in hobbles in the trailer! I said at last: " why are you here talking to me, you already have all the answers'. Of course she stormed off in a huff then, but here is a classic example of someone who is totally disconnected from their emotions, as she does not see her action as abusive and is not ready to take responsibility for the outcome.

Many horse owners are frustrated with the animal, but if taken from a different perspective, we can all learn to look deeper for the cause, and we can see our own behavior mirrored in the actions of our animals. Ann's Horsemanship is looking to examine these issues, and help both horse and rider find a new perspective and balance out of which harmony will be possible. Until next time, cheers, Ann.