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I am enjoying some quiet time today. A day of Sabbath and rest is a welcome respite as I am feeling the need to integrate quietly some of the skills I am practicing here.
The last few days have been busy with the usual ranch routines of feeding, helping with building new fences, fixing fences, playing and riding horses as well as reflective Wu Wei time well spent with the herd.
I am deepening my connection with Robbie, Cristy and Sophie as well as the 10 beautiful horses here. They all are teachers in their own way, so different one from the other and yet cohesively co-existing and thriving. I feel a nice flow with the group dynamics amongst the fellow women here. We all share chores and follow our rhythms with respect to our own individual needs in a way that honours also what needs to happen on a day to day basis here on the ranch.

Some highlights these last few days:
The sacred pipe ceremony in the honour of Charlie Mc Guire. It was a remarkable experience. Robbie, Cristy, Sophie and I shared in this ceremony lead by Robbie. It was an honour to acknowledge the sacred wheel, creation,to pray and to experience some the Lakota teachings that Robbie shared with us as a pipe carrier and sharer of Eagle Medicine. It was fortuitous to receive the Hawks blessings as it circled above us and opened the ceremony. The horses too offerred their own blessings as they entered the round pen and joined up with us curoiusly sniffing the Alter at ceremony's end.

Other highlights include: Creating wholesome meals together, sharing laughter, taking an afternoon off with Sophie to go bask in the sun and refresh ourselves in the Dolores River at the feet of an enchanting sandstone canyon. The river offerred its generous clay,  we had a hoot pasting it on our bodies enjoying the raw earthy rejuvenation.

What stood out for me also was creating increased rapport and authentic sharing and overcoming some resistance vis-a-vis Cristy who helped trigger deep seated emotion relating to belonging, trust and respect. She is like a wild dominant mare who is slow at accepting a new herd member. This is teaching me about not taking it personally and allowing us to build rapport in its own good time and respecting her needs for boundaries.  It is also teaching me what it feels to be on the receiving end of having difficulty accepting a new herd member. This is a particularly potent teaching as the dynamics in my own herd/family back home have been very similar except, I was the one having difficulty embracing a new member as an integral and very valuable part of our day-to-day life back at Whispering Herd. With this, I am learning to integrate the teachings of what it means to live in authentic community and embrace differences as well as practice consensual leadership, a dance in trusting and sharing. Indeed, "the time of the lone wolf is over". Blessings to Jai for her patience and persistence in hanging in there while it took me a while to recognize her inherent strenghts in helping hold the space for one another as well as for our beloved horses.

Here are some of the Epona skills (inspired by Linda Kohnaov) we encourage one another to practice:

- Taking response-ability for assuring our emotional and physical safety and  supporting  the needs of others to this regard.
- Using emotion as information.
- "Keeping our seat" in uncomfortable sitiations-thus responding rather than reacting.
- Being Present with, aware of other's emotions.
- Attuning to body language and behaviour and reading it as important information.
- Practicing sensitivity, flexibility and responsiveness to personal space and boundaries.
 -- Creating and holding sacred space of presence and possibility. This engaged form of presence, empathy and patience is crucial in helping tap into creative solutions that arise from activating and expressing authenticity.