As you may remember, our family had been looking for projects to help surviving families and returning veterans who suffer from PTSD as a result of the the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars.
We looked into equine therapy as it appeared to be very successful for veterans with PTSD and Melissa and I have thought it might be a benefit for surviving families from these enduring wars. Over the last several months, Melissa and I have been in training with Shannon from the ranch.
To start, you have to understand, I am petrified of horses. They are big and intimidating. What I have learned so far is this is an adventure in finding trust. It is about me learning to trust them as the horses are learning to trust me. Trust is a hard thing to find when you are broken by life whether you are a broken horse or person.
Th good news is that I am learning to trust these big, 1,500 lb beauties and they are learning to trust me. The last couple of times, I have been grooming Heath Bar. The first time I entered his stall when he first arrived at Solid Rock, I was jumping out of it as soon as I entered as he pinned his ears back and came at me and was going to bite my hiney.
We have come a long way since that time. I can groom him and I attempt to pick his hooves. That is a challenge, but I am making progress. They reality is I find peace when I am there. I see why this is a good thing for hurting people and I am blessed to be part of this adventure. I hope others will find this experience as well in the future as the horses progress in their healing and learn to find trust as well.
