I want you to have it all!

Hi again

Today’s post was inspired by a song that struck a chord in my heart the minute I heard it. It was one of those songs I had to ask Siri to play again and again.

The song is “I want you to have it all” by Jason Mraz

 
Here is the Verse and Chorus that plucked my heartstrings…

May you have auspiciousness and causes of success
May you have the confidence to always do your best
May you take no effort in your being generous
Sharing what you can, nothing more nothing less
May you know the meaning of the word happiness
May you always lead from the beating in your chest
May you be treated like an esteemed guest
May you get to rest, may you catch your breath

And may the best of your todays be the worst of your tomorrows
And may the road less paved be the road that you follow

How many times has a friend of yours told you of a promotion, or a success in their life, or even shared their happiness in a new boyfriend, engagement, or even a new horse?!

There are those people out there that will automatically get jealous and want that same happiness for themselves, and there are people out there that are genuinely happy for their friend and wish them the best of the best.

And just because for a second you may think, “Oh I wish I could have that”, it’s ok for just a second.

Staying positive in every situation in your life actually is a struggle for everyone.

Our brains are wired for negative thinking, according to Dr. Rick Hanson. The good news is that Hanson and other researchers believe it’s possible to rewire the brain, promoting positive thinking and gratitude rather than anxiety and worry.

Of course, the next question is: How can we overcome this tendency toward negativity?

Because, according to research, we are hardwired to respond with fear to any potential negative outcome, we often feel overwhelmed with anxiety, especially in the age of the internet and information overload.

Let’s look at the song again…

Wishing success, confidence, and happiness towards a friend is definitely a step in the right direction. Being able to honestly hope that your friend is “treated like an esteemed guest” or “get to rest, may you catch your breath” is such a wonderful thought.

I love the line that says, “May you always lead from the beating in your chest”.  May you always follow your heart!

When you think of those lines, and thinking of your best friend, doesn’t that just make you feel warm and happy?

What if you knew that your best friend was wishing this for you right now? That just brings tears to my eyes to think that someone I care about, cares that much for me too. Doesn’t that warm your heart as well?

That warmth is a beautiful warm burst of positivity. Feeling that warmth is just the start. Take that feeling and spread it forward. Doing one little thing with that feeling then puts the emotion into action, which helps increase those feelings of gratitude and stabilizes that positive feeling.

Do something nice for someone without needing recognition for it and just pass on the positivity. It could be just saying hello and smiling at a stranger in the grocery store. It could be buying a coffee for the car behind you in line at Starbucks, it could even be buying a second lunch at Chick fil a and handing it to the homeless guy on the corner.

My mother always told me, over and over, “Count your blessings, not your problems”. It took me a while as a child to figure this one out. It’s probably why she said it a lot. Hahaha. But, I get it now and there are days that I really have to remind myself of this.

My next question for you…

Who did you think of when I asked you about wishing your best friend success and happiness? Was it the same name you thought of who cares about you and wishes you happiness? Was it a person or an animal?

When I heard these lines, I thought of my husband and I wished these things for him.

May you have auspiciousness and causes of success
May you have the confidence to always do your best
May you take no effort in your being generous
Sharing what you can, nothing more nothing less

But, when I heard these lines, my thoughts automatically switched to my horses. And they really hit a chord with me. I really wished that everyone with a horse could feel this way and give their horse this kind of thought.

May you know the meaning of the word happiness
May you always lead from the beating in your chest
May you be treated like an esteemed guest
May you get to rest, may you catch your breath

This is how I interpret those lines…

My deepest hope is that my horses are happy with me, with their surroundings, and with their life.

I try to always lead my training and my work with horses from my heart first and head second.

I am grateful every day to be with my horses and I want to make sure that they always know how special they are to me.

Just like me, I know they need their rest and downtime to relax and be calm, just to enjoy being a part of the herd.

In today’s blog, I want to stop and redirect for a moment…

It’s not always about ‘how to fix a problem’ with your horse. Yes, there can be time set aside to work on an issue or two, but there has to be a balance.

A Negative and Positive balance.

So, today when you go out to your horse don’t look at the issue you need/want to fix, look at something that you enjoy or love about your horse. Once a week, at minimum, sit down or walk around with your horse and think about all the good stuff you do together. Concentrate on the positive side only, all the good stuff that is going right. These feelings will not only help you stay positive, rewiring your brain, but they will have a positive effect on your horse too.

You like to be appreciated, too don’t you? Well so does your horse.

Count your blessings today when you go out to your horse. Lead from your heart and treat your horse like an esteemed guest. See what happens and let me know in the comments below. I love to hear your stories too.

And in the spirit of gratitude, I want to introduce you to the newest addition to my herd – Cajasu, or Kit for short.

He is an amazing 24-year-old Egyptian Black Stallion that actually is the son of the Anheuser Busch Black Stallion, Bahim Hisan.  That’s Kit’s Sire in the picture above.

Kit is in the introductory picture and Kit and I are in the black and white photo in the middle.

I am very grateful and appreciative for this beautiful boy, that he enjoys spending time with me and allows us to play together like two little kids.

Here is a video of one of the first times we met.

Happy Horses and “I want you to have it all!”