My respect and admiration for horses was ignited as a teenager. Driving through the New Mexican desert I happened upon a band of wild horses moving gracefully across the horizon. I had never seen anything quite like it before. The sight of them sparked something in me that has remained in my heart like a beacon ever since. I have chased that untamed spirit through many ups and downs in my life, and across several different chapters.
It wasn’t until many years later, however, that horses would come back into my life in a much more meaningful way. My daughter, at the time just fourteen years old, was suffering from severe depression and anorexia. It was devastating. The person I loved more than anything was slipping away. Purely on a whim we decided to go horseback riding, neither of us having much experience in the saddle. As we rode through a thick canopy of eucalyptus trees something began to shift. The joy and wonder that my daughter had always worn in her eyes began to return. It was the first time I’d seen her truly happy in over a year. Simply being in the presence of those horses was transformative. The course of our lives was forever changed that day. Within weeks we were taking lessons together. A month after that we began leasing a horse, and very soon after that we bought that very same horse.
For years I dedicated myself to becoming a better horseman. When I discovered The Masterson Method®, I was moved beyond words with what I was seeing. The effect it had on the horses was a revelation. I knew I had found the tools needed to truly repay the debt I owed. I immediately signed up for the weekend seminar, then committed myself to becoming a certified practitioner. Horses brought my daughter back to me. They saved her, and in doing so, saved me. When I enter a stall to work with a horse it is with undying gratitude. To help them find peace in their bodies, to help restore balance and natural movement, is to me the greatest gift I can give. I feel honored to do it.