A good trainer can hear a horse speak to him. A great trainer can hear him whisper.
Interpretation
Understanding subtle communication is key to true connection.
This quote emphasizes the importance of being attentive and perceptive in communication, particularly in the context of working with horses. A good trainer acknowledges the horse's needs and feelings, while a great trainer possesses the deeper ability to sense and interpret the more subtle cues and whispers of the horse, signifying a profound bond and understanding beyond mere vocal expressions.
In practice
In a workshop about animal training, one could use this quote to highlight the importance of empathy.
I had been riding horses before my memory kicked in, so my life with horses had no beginning. It simply appeared from the fog of infancy. I survived a difficult childhood by traveling on the backs of horses, and in adulthood the pattern didn't change.
You must somehow understand that we as horsemen can do very little to teach the horse. What we can do is to create an environment in which he can learn.
For centuries, humans have said to horses, 'You do what I tell you or I'll hurt you.' Humans still say that to each other -- still threaten, force and intimidate. I'm convinced that my discoveries with horses have value in the workplace, in the educational and penal systems, and in the raising of children. At heart, I'm saying that no one else has the right to say 'you must' to an animal -- or to another human.
Others may try to feed our ego, but it is up to us to constrain it.
Despite the constant clamor for attention from the modern world, I do believe we need to procure a psychological space for ourselves. I apparently know some people who try to achieve this by logging off or going without their Twitter or Facebook for a limited period.
To accept grace is to admit failure, a step we are hesitant to take. We opt to impress God with how good we are rather than confessing how great he is.
Our scars are a witness to the world. They are apart of our story. Healed wounds that are symbols that God has restored us.
Reassurance can actually exacerbate anxiety: when you reassure your friend that the worst-case scenario he fears probably won't occur, you inadvertently reinforce his belief that it would be catastrophic if it did. You are tightening the coil of his anxiety, not loosening it. All to often, the Stoics point out, things will not turn out for the best.
The most savory grape, the one that produces the wines with best texture and aroma, the sweetest and most generous, doesn't grow in rich soil but in stony land; the plant, with a mother's obstinacy, overcomes obstacles to thrust its roots deep into the ground and take advantage of every drop of water. That, my grandmother explained to me, is how flavors are concentrated in the grape.
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