The Equestrian Journal

Time For Reflection

August 2021 I Cat Nihem

SO MUCH PROGRESS FOR #hopteamscottie!!!

Our sponsored trainer Justin Haefner is participating in the Appalachian Trainer Face Off 2021 hosted by Heart of Phoenix Equine Rescue. It is a 100-day challenge in which feral horses taken in by Heart of Phoenix Equine Rescue, INC are paired up with trainers to prepare them for adoption. Justin is using The Equestrian Journal to record his sessions and accelerate progress with his assigned horse Scottie - and we love being able to share his journey with you.

The past few weeks Justin is really zeroing in on the areas he wants to progress & using his entries to stay on track.

Less than a month ago, Justin was journaling that his equine partner Scottie was "A little more on edge than usual...worked towards ride but didn't get on. Very tight and distracted..." Their next session focus was "Field trip tomorrow. Prep to ride. Ride in round pen if settled. Stand tied."

And the following week he writes "Softening more in bend and diaphragm - increasing understanding in bridle. Quickly understood garrocha and not worried about it behind. Worked in round pen and arena..." And in his next session he will focus on "Continuing garrocha, balanced circles. More canter work."

It is amazing to see the progression of each daily entry and to also read back on their entries and how far they have come in such a short period of time! As Justin wrote in one his own social media posts,

Life is always moving at an incredible clip and it’s so easy to let the importance a moment slip away. There’s potential for learning from every moment, but in my experience I can miss this entirely if I don’t take a moment to stop and record it in some way.

I use several methods of reflection, including journaling, audio recording, conversation with those I hold close. In these ways I am able to think about important moments and cultivate a perspective that helps me grow and move forward. Recently I’ve been using The Equestrian Journal to document my sessions with Scottie, and it’s been incredibly powerful. The timeline of this competition has been very short with a lot happening day to day. It’s generally hard for me to have perspective on something like this until I am done and it’s in the past. This journal has helped me keep perspective while remaining in the midst of the process.

How do you reflect upon the occurrences of day to day life? If you’re a horse person, do you keep track of your sessions each day in a way that allows you to see your progress clearly?

I would absolutely recommend anyone with a horse check out the equestrian journal as an option for you. I hope it is as profound for you as it is for me!

Follow Justin and Scottie to see how #hopteamscottie do at the Appalachian Trainer Face Off competition August 10-21, 2021 https://appalachiantrainerfaceoff.com/. Go #hopteamscottie!

Happy reflecting,

The Equestrian Journal team