Dear Friends of LAFS,
Much has changed since we last wrote and shared a blog. “What the Heck happened to our project?” you may ask. “Where are your workshops? What are your plans?” In the way of many stories, the narrative to LAFS changed quickly.
We council members realised we lacked the time, energy and capital to make LAFS a Worker Owned Co-op or non-profit at this time. We decided to put the project on hold, surrendering the reins to mystery; dream. As the months unfolded we each felt the wish/need to keep something of LAFS alive..
We decided to keep the blog going every two to three months so as to share with you the fruits of our individual pursuits. Like a 4-leaf clover, we each currently hold a “leaf” of LAFS “aboutness” we hope may serve you digitally.
Regenerative farming: (Sylvana)
Creativity and Art making (Ayla)
Connection and partnership with horses (Ellie)
Healing Arts (Joy)
In addition, we will gather to celebrate the winter and summer solstices each year. Stay tuned for information about that!
– Ellie
The Equus Effect
Few of us have the opportunity to hang out with a horse and share quiet conversations in our bodies. That’s what happens each Friday at Kairos Spring Farm in Stow, MA, where my friend and colleague, Leslie Bell, and I, facilitate the Equus Effect.
A small group of veterans from Clear Path New England came to Leslie’s farm in June & July to engage with Leslie’s four magnificent horses she rehabilitated and trained. In August we began programming for seven to ten former gang members engaged with “Leaving The Streets Ministry.”
Developed by Jane Strong and David Sonatore, out of Sharon, CT, The Equus Effect is a rich 4-6 week curriculum that teaches veterans and others with PTSD how to regulate their nervous system and gain emotional agility through unmounted activities with a horse. Participants learn skills of self-regulation, horse and human body language, and how to communicate with their horse while grooming, leading, and lunging (directing the horse at the walk, trot and canter, in a large circle around one’s self.) The final week, participants learn to direct their horse off their energy in a round-pen, no equipment(!), in a kind of dance known as “Join-Up.”
How might I best describe the magic of these powerful, yet simple moments shared between horse and human in just a few words?
Breath
Body Embodiment Body language
Boundaries Attunement
Stillness Movement
Awareness Mirroring
Play
Each day we start our session with grounding exercises near the horses’ stalls inside the barn. The horses inevitably come forward to their stall-guards to watch us ground and “go inside” ourselves to become more present and aware. These exercises help participants, volunteers, and facilitators alike to become more “horse-like;” embodied. The horses feel our shifts into presence and, in a field of resonance, release tension themselves. It is a delight to see: The horses inevitably yawn, lick their lips, chew, release snorts and sometimes stretch their necks in a breath-taking arch.
Beautiful, sophisticated and simple work; at its core, the Equus Effect is about the art of natural horsemanship (understanding the horse’s physiology and psychology through the lens of herd dynamics & herd behavior), attention, boundaries, connection, resonance, communication, partnership…
Grounded in teachings from neuroscience, polyvagal theory and somatic experiencing, The Equus Effect offers a rich, experiential curriculum steeped in the wonder and magic of partnering with a horse.
What we learn about ourselves while partnering with horses—including how to regulate our nervous system between states of fight/flight/freeze to one of social engagement— applies to all relationships.
To learn more about Kairos Spring Farm, go to https://kairos spring farm.org
Find information about the Equus Effect, https://theequuseffect.org