The Sorraia Center – part 2
Apr 2nd, 2009 by Carolyn Resnick Method
Hello and thank you for all your comments and I will be writing some blog posts soon about my Uberstreichen excercises as so many of you were asking about them. Before then though, I’d like to tell you a little more about my vision for my school.
The program’s study will center around three wild horse herds consisting of caretaking lead stallions and their mares and foals on enough land to bring for 30 horses with extra feed when necessary. There will also be birth control management and horses relocated to proper environments as the numbers increase. The Sorraia Center will be a model to show how more effective ways for educating students and better methods in leadership communication through programs that bring more experiential learning, relationship and community participation.
The School will offer programs in horse behavior studies to understand the culture of horses. How horse creates their language and educate their young to bring about a unified herd in harmony and how they achieve their ability to work together as a team for community survival. There will be an intimate study of the pecking order proving that it is a system that supports the community and the weakest individual rather than a system of survival of the fittest. There will be studies showing the difference in dominate horses and leaders and how both personalities work together to create unity and safety for the herd’s survival. The study will show how dominant horses create the order and lead horses lead. The knowledge gained from the study of horse behavior and understanding in the use of the Waterhole Rituals to communicate with horses will lead to programs in human communication.
The School will bring this awareness to the public by creating tours, an interesting family stop, picnic grounds for casual observing of horse behavior, a restaurant, gift store, theater and bed and breakfast experience. The theater will show short 3D films about the Waterhole Rituals along with a new film each month that will show what has been learned in each month of observing herd behavior at the School. There will be daily guided tours for the public by the student leaders to increase appreciation of horses and their culture. Visitors will learn how the environment and weather plays an integral part in the horses’ well-being and will be a model of how nature works to support life on earth. There is also a school that will teach how to lead and interact with horses in partnership to enjoy training and performance with humans. The skill gained from this program will prepare future leaders in all fields of education, personal development and business.
The students learn optimum responsibility, leadership, and communication skills. The program is being developed based on the depth of experience I have acquired over many years teaching horses and humans horsemanship and performance. My expertise is training horses through a natural evolution at liberty, dressage, bridleless riding and herd behavior developing a working bond using every day rituals I have named the Waterhole Rituals. From observing wild herd behavior and how horses educate their young, I discovered the unwritten herd laws that develop tremendous networking ability, cooperation, and community loyalty. I also found that these laws are effective in teaching leadership and community to people and have the same capacity to improve relationship and networking skills. The focus of the method is on the quality of the relationship shared with the student and the teaching rather than the outcome and goal of the project. Today, people are more goal-oriented than community minded. If all parties have the power to communicate as to how to reach an ideal outcome for that day and the process is equally as life-enhancing as the goal, the result will offer the highest return. With focusing on building connection and enthusiasm, you can build true effective humane leaders as well as loyalty and friendship that are lasting and a resource for future networking partnerships.
What do you think?
Till next week, have a great weekend
Carolyn
No related posts.
I was interested in why you picked the name Sorraia Center and now I know why!
This page alone explains so much http://www.sorraia.org/
Will you be bringing some of these horses and some American Mustangs with these characteristics into the center?
I haven’t checked in for a while. Since before Christmas, but I assure you I have been spending every available minute with my horses applying your Method. My mare August was the one I started with and as I stated at the beginning, I knew she would accept your way whole heartedly. We had a fairly large bump in our road this past fall when I decided to do ‘dressage lessons’ with her. She hated it. I felt it was all wrong. We are back to what we both enjoy best and she is happily carrying me along the trail out in the open and back to being a very happy girl. Your Method has brought us even closer than before. She is softer and the more I listen to her the more she tries to communicate with me.
There is never enough time in my days to do everything I want, but I do enjoy every moment I have with my little herd. They are all interested in watching and working at liberty. They see what is going on and want to participate. I loved Stinas video. It looks like my bunch trying to get in on the session while I’m working with one horse. They ALL welcome your Method
Thank you so much from every horse I play with and all future horses I get the pleasure to work with.
Have you seen this webisode which includes a kind of cool sequence about liberty communication between a girl and a horse? It’s called “Urban Cowgirl” Wondering what you think about it…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jysS5VD0iM8
Dearest Carolyn,
I read with interest peoples responses to your centre. One of my horses would make a great politician. He often talks about the need for the human race to learn from the way of the herd. These are his words from 2007.
He walks in a land far removed from our own
It shows in his eyes and his hair
He looks through those eyes at the mess we have made
And wonders if we truly do care
As he floats through the air
His movement shimmers like gold
And his bearing is kinglike to see
The vortex in balance, the body a whole
An entry requiring no key
As he stands to a splendour, on two legs or four
His beauty, his breath, his life
We can all watch and listen, in stillness and awe
Pay attention, you too could end strife
Its a shift in our thinking that is needed right now
How we treat other humans is key
We have lost our behaviour, gone soft in the years
The result is anarchy
If you want to see change, then watch over the herd
Pay attention to social and graces
You will see forth a pattern that the world could follow
And change the future in places
Some might say its aggressive, the answers either yes or no
There are boundaries which need to be met
But others will find the idea simple and neat to explain
The rules clear and very well kept
A society without rules and structure has no place to go
But downwards to destruction and ruin
Look back to our past, use the horses as guides
And watch war take a downstep and soon
A poem from Harry 2007
The centre creates a perfect platform to remind people how to communicate with each other and who knows, maybe future leaders might pay attention to the way that horses communicate to see how structures work and how boundaries and conflict are naturally dealt with. The horses already believe in it, it is no surprise that this vision would therefore come from Carolyn. I hope that people fully understand how good this vision is and would ask anyone who believes in this, to think that thought out in the open. I believe in the power of thought, I believe that this power can help make things happen and I believe this vision would help horses and people at every level.
Inspirational!!!!
Carolyn your Center is going to be amazing. Like a dream come true. It sounds like it will proove once and for all that the connection between humans and horses can be made strong enough to withstand a sand storm. The human to human connection too. Carolyn, maybe a sand storm simulation room is in order
All silliness aside, after reading Naked Liberty I feel like if all I ever accomplish with my horse is that he sticks with me thru sand storms and/or all equivalant circumstances we come across, at liberty, that would be enough.
Hello Carolyn and everybody, I recently received the Waterhole Rituals dvd and watched it a couple of times. I have always played at liberty with my horse my own way and we have great fun together. But I tried a couple of things that I learned from the Rituals dvd the other night, with my horse. The next night when I was hanging out with him, while he ate his dinner and getting things ready to ride, I was amazed at what an attentive horse he had become. He was following me around the paddock wanting my attention, even leaving his grass hay to be right at my side, like my shadow. He has never left his food to be with me before. This behavior even transferred over to our ride. He was doing everything he knew to please me and couldn’t do it fast enough to his liking, when I rode him. He was behaving like a mare!! I think I’m getting a glimpse of what leadership really is all about. It is very rewarding.
I hope this fits in with the context of the thread. Just had to share.
Hi Carolyn (and everyone else on here)
The Centre sounds wonderful and very worthwhile. I wish I could be part of something so special.
You obviously know exactly where you want to go with the project but can I ask what stage you are at ? Is it still at the paper planning stage yet or has it gone further ? Do you know where it will be ? How long it will take to create ? How much is it likely to cost and how will you raise the money ? It is such a massive undertaking that I wouldn’t know where to start and I’m so far away as to pretty useless but if there is any small way I can help let me know.
I’m already planning how to get over to train with you and found flights are ok (between £3 and £4oo) but I was stumped as to what to do with my partner until I found one of your bloggers has a camel sanctuary in California. He loves camels so I could use the sanctuary as a creche leaving me free to train, if not this year, then definitely next year. It would be wonderful if your centre was underway and I could pitch in and make my contribution.
Best wishes
Sarah, Uk
Hi Carolyn,
It sounds wonderful! When it happens I will have to save to come over to experience it (from Ireland). I find myself thinking of the waterhole rituals in my work which is with neglected and abused children. They are very relevant and help me think about how I interact to make connections with these children who find it so very hard to trust.
And, of course, my big, dominant gelding at home is benefiting from your approach and showing himself to me as just longing for consistent leadership.
Many thanks for your approach and very generous sharing on this blog.
My children’s old, wise little pony also says thanks!
I think it’s great and exciting Carolyn, all the things you would like to show and teach people about what you have learned in your long years experiencing wild (and domesticated) horses.
. This is so inspiring to me and I’m thankful that the internet makes it possible to spread your valuable insights around the world!
I understand and appreciate Mary’s statements as well and what I sense in them is that her goal is actually the same as yours: learning from horses and in order to do that, being and staying open to their natural wisdom and everything they have to say.
In everything I read and saw from you so far Carolyn, that’s just the thing that strikes me the most again and again: that you stay so open to horses and keep on being creative in turning their messages into lessons for everyone’s life
The Sorraia Center sounds a wonderful idea – it is so appropriate Carolyn for you to set up such a centre – a fruition of all your years in the field studying wild horses as a child and continuing as an adult to create The Waterhole Rituals – your years of experience are invaluable. What a wonderful thing to be able to see and understand the following “There will be studies showing the difference in dominate horses and leaders and how both personalities work together to create unity and safety for the herd’s survival. The study will show how dominant horses create the order and lead horses lead. ” Human beings have much to learn in respect to this type of unity for their survival. Crissea
I think I misunderstood the aims of the center. My apologies. When Carolyn used the word ‘study’ repeatedly in that paragraph, I took it as meaning doing research to see what new knowledge could be learned about horse behavior. I think the term ‘study’ was used instead to indicate that students will be studying Carolyn’s ideas and methods.
Talley said:
” I disagree with you and ask what would you do or say if you were the person that had spent a lifetime studying wild horse behavior and wanted others to have the knowledge you had through your direct experience…I think you missed the point. Carolyn is not a scientist, she is a wild horse expert and wants her point of view known, studied, and understood.”
With regards to your question, Talley, if I had spent a lifetime studying wild horse behavior, I’m sure I’d have even more unanswered questions about it than I do now!
I love the idea of Carolyn’s center. And I think a center with several observable herds of wild horses could be the perfect set up both for educating the general public about wild horses, educating horse owners/lovers about more advanced topics and also advancing our knowledge about horse behavior and herd dynamics. When I read the post, my first thought was that the center could be an great way to add to our knowledge about herd dynamics and horse behavior.
The research that has been done on herd dynamics (on wild herds, feral herds and domestically kept horses) has shown that herd dynamics are probably much more complex than most of us realize. For instance, depending on habitat, herd size, distribution of resources and other factors, sometimes horses form very concrete linear hierarchies, and sometimes much more complex non-linear hierarchies form, that can even include triangulations. (A triangulation would be where horse A is dominant over B, B is dominant over C, and C is dominant over A.) In many situations, there is not one clear leader of the herd, but different horses lead during different activities. As well, sometimes 2 stallion harems form. However, I don’t know that it is well understood exactly what factors contribute to these different kinds of patterns.
Our captive horses often form very distinct linear hierarchies, which is probably a product of limited space and often limited resources. I wonder if we could understand more fully how interactions between wild horses develop, if this would influence or could improve our own horse keeping practices.
I think Carolyn probably has a wealth of knowledge and experience to share with the world. Talley, I hope you’ll understand where I’m coming from, though, as someone with training in the sciences, I believe that our understanding of things is never final–I’m always looking for ways that we can expand our knowledge and understanding of the world.
Carolyn, I have not had a chance to read your book yet. However, I am currently most of the way through the waterhole rituals DVD, which I am finding interesting. I find your blog refreshing and thought-provoking, and will enjoy continuing to reading it.
cheers,
Mary H.
Dear Mary,
Thank you for your intrest and concern. Have you read my book?
I learnd these thing that “I spoke to you about” from horses when I had no idea what I would find. What I will be sharing with you at the school is what I know.
I will be leading people to the things that have enriched my life and heart. It never hurts to study or search for harmony and unity in life and try to creat more of it in others and how horses and animals support one another.
From my years of observation I learn some things about pecking order that I want to share with the world that will help people to better connect and communicte with one another and to develop cartaking intrest for all living things. In all the years of my life studying with horses and interacting as a member of the herd and working myself up the latter of the pecking order and follow peckig order rules they taught me, when I had not idea about their world or laws. From what I leared I gain bonds, true working obnds with herds. I have learned may things I want to share with others.
The school is a place for me to share with others what I have learn about the cultor of horses. I also want to give people a chance to have and experiance with natural wild horse herds that I can guide and teach others of my knowledge and methods of communiction with horses and with natrue and how to allow nature to speak to them in meaningful ways.
From many years with horses I know their cultor and how they raze their young and I want to give people the opertunity to know them as I know them, not as science knows them.
This school may not work for science.
It is a school where I invite you to learn how to witness truth from a different point of view from my experiance in life and my leadership. It is for people who trust in my program and would like to learn of my connection with wild horse herds.
I hope this helps you to understand the program better.
Warmest regards,
Carolyn
I hear what you are saying Mary. I disagree with you and ask “what would you do or say if you were the person that had spent a lifetime studying wild horse behavior and wanted others to have the knowledge you had through your direct experience…that they could not have as they had not spent the time in studying?” How could you bring the most “meat” to the table unless you had a program that showed what you know? I think you missed the point. Carolyn is not a scientist, she is a wild horse expert and wants her point of view known, studied, and understood. I don’t understand the need for criticism…can’t we move towards support instead. What can you add that moves us closer to community and further away from separation. I don’t understand your “worry”…not every study is science…how do you explain the study of art? I think that by speaking in third person you are attempting to influence people and it seems like that is Carolyn’s role. If she had used the word “show” instead of “prove” would it still have created the same problem for you? My intention in asking these questions is to encourage connection and a more supportive community.
This sounds like an incredible vision. I am glad to see it in my time….
“There will be an intimate study of the pecking order proving that it is a system that supports the community and the weakest individual rather than a system of survival of the fittest. There will be studies showing the difference in dominate horses and leaders and how both personalities work together to create unity and safety for the herd’s survival. The study will show how dominant horses create the order and lead horses lead. ”
I think it’s great that you plan to conduct studies on horse behavior and herd arrangements.
However, as someone with a degree in biology and extensive training in research and the sciences, these statements that I quoted above worry me.
Science works by having a hypothesis that can be tested, refuted and refined. The statements you made above make it seems as if you will be going about the reseach already knowing the conclusions you plan to find. Sometimes, the most interesting part about scientific reseach is realizing things operated differently than how we first though.
If we have a working hypothesis, yet remain open-minded to new ideas, we often find things we never would have considered before. If we “know” how something works, and then just collect data to back it up, we often miss subtilties or other interesting mechanisms that are at work in the situation.
I’m eager to hear more about your center, it sounds like a very interesting way for people to learn more about horses.
cheers,
Mary H.
http://stalecheerios.com/blog
Your vision sounds wonderful. I have long thought that teaching leadership through interaction with horses would produce great leaders. This is one aspect I would like to see developed.
sounds awesome, will you be incorporating a track- like environment for the horses with birthing cells – much like what they would have in the wild? (jaime jacksons – paddock paradise plan)