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It’s said that Horses are gate keepers to other worlds. Worlds that rest just behind a shimmering veil of wonderment and infinity. Time slows when you’re in their presence, and moments grow expansive. Holding everything from peace and serenity to waves of tears and pain, Horses invite an expression and ownership of authenticity. Perceiving emotion as neither good nor bad, Horses drink from the endless river of a life felt fully.

This past Tuesday, I ventured out with a group of mothers and daughters for a day-long retreat at the Great Escape Mustang Sanctuary. Partnering with GEMS has meant creating a sacred space for humans to experience the powerful and life-changing presence of Wild Mustangs, and to learn about their lives, their struggles, and their need for our help.

Many people don’t know that there are still wild horses roaming the lands of America. Their plight is far reaching, and enmeshed in the politics of a capitalistic system governed by people more concerned with monetary wealth than the wealth of an abundant and healthy Earth. Over the years, more and more wild horses have been rounded up, kidnapped and removed from their lands, separated from their families, and placed in holding facilities that are near the equivalent of Guantanamo Bay. Their displacement is driven by cattle ranchers, politicians, and an uninformed public.

Enter organizations such as The Great Escape Mustang Sanctuary. Working tirelessly to educate people about the current state of affairs for wild horses, and adopting as many as the Sanctuary’s land will sustainably house, GEMS as well as others envision a world where wild horses still roam the lands. They envision a world where Horses and the Earth are honored and respected.

So, what does this have to do with a day retreat, you may be wondering?!

Let’s begin with what it looked like. Mothers and their daughters ventured out to the eastern plains to meet the amazing Mustangs of GEMS. They ventured out to drop into their bodies, to unplug from a busying world, and to reconnect to themselves, to each other, and to the wild lands and wild horses. Through yoga and meditation, all practiced outdoors, they opened up their awareness to the natural world surrounding them. They listened to the Birds, bathed in the Sun, felt the nip of Mosquitoes, heard the buzz of Bees, saw the zipping and zooming of Dragonflies, and felt the silken breeze cool their ever-warming skin. They began to feel the land the way the Wild Mustangs felt the land.

After steeping in a morning of mind-body practices, we made our way out to meet the herd. Rounding the bend and ascending a small hill, our eyes met the vibrant blue-sky horizon, and there in the tall grasses rested the Mustangs! We began a slow, quiet and mindful walk towards them. Stirred by our presence, they felt us coming more than half a mile away. Stopped by their arousal, we were gifted with the blissful experience of watching them acknowledge and greet us.

As one collective unit, they began to run to where we stood. Naomi, a lively and curious mare, stepped forward to investigate who we were. To tune into our presence and energy. To sense our intentions, and whether or not we were to be welcomed in. After several minutes of taking our presence in, she turned around, tossed her head through the air with her mane whipping wildly, and eventually reabsorbed by the rest of the herd. All of the horses continued to walk towards us. We had been welcomed in!

From there, all of the mothers watched as myself and GEMS trainer, Kim Zamudio, followed behind their daughters. Each of these young women are not only soon to step into High School, that day they stepped into a whole different world. A world with a language rooted in sensing and feeling. A world that asked of them to engage their multilingual capacities, and to see, hear, feel, smell and taste the world around them as the Wild Mustangs have been for hundreds of years.

All of the mothers watched in awe as their daughters were gifted a rare experience - each of them was touched by the power and wisdom of these Horses. They were gifted an opportunity to not only learn about horses through a conceptual framework, but to also connect with them. To meet them on their turf and feel their expansive presence.

There is nothing like it!

When you look into any beings eyes, you are sure to see the Soul inside each of them. If you look with the eyes of your heart, you’ll not only see their divinity, you’ll likely see your own mirrored back to you. Soul implies purpose and place, and these Horses absolutely have a purpose and place in this magnificent world.

So, what do yoga and horses have in common? Honestly, one could write a dissertation in response to such a question. Instead, I’ll stick to a more simplified response.

Yoga, when translated, means “union.” Horses, for all of their journeying through this world with us, have a demonstrated history of knowing how to connect with human beings. They have become adept at speaking “human.” Horses, whether recognized or not, teach us about connection. They remind us of the interconnectivity of all life, and the overlapping of worlds within worlds. Their presence is not only natural, it’s necessary! Horses, for millennia now, have been a medium to the natural and Other than human world. Translating messages from the Earth, when we’re quiet and still enough while in their presence, we’ll hear it - the call to rise and live into our greatest and most potent potential. To live as beings of the Earth, not as separate from.

It’s my humble opinion, that Horses are key players in what Joanna Macy refers to as “The Great Turning,” as all beings most assuredly are. However, Horses have inherited a unique role from their Ancestors. They stand in multiple worlds - two of which are hopefully quite obvious: human and equine. And one can only hope that such profound relationships will contribute in the balancing of our inheritance, and bring about a future that benefits all. Where freedom reigns, and all beings, human and Other than human, are honored and respected as being a significant part of the grand and mystic whole.

Let the Horses re-wild your Spirit! You’re indigenous at heart. A child of the Earth.