Hope Filled Faith

Due to lack of trust, Sherman was scared of traffic (as in other horses and people), loud noises, and strange objects, being disciplined in a remotely firm manner, and anything that happened out of the norm of his life. Because of Sherman’s trust issues, I was not able to trust him and ride him to his full potential. This is because when he did not trust me, he did not have a lot of potential, and I could not trust him. When Sherman was having a bad day, he was easy to set off, and he would not hesitate to run off. He could have been a youth show horse, but because of fear he was an unsafe horse for many people to work with. Not only could his bolting be dangerous to his rider and himself, but he could also hurt other people and horses in the arena around him.

Just like Sherman, some people struggle with trust issues, and because of their lack of trust they will never reach their full potential unless, of course, they learn how to overcome their fear. It robs us of peace, joy, relationships, and it does a fine job of keeping us from ever reaching our full potential.

A few years ago, I worked for a man who said, “The number one rule in life is to never trust anyone.” I had disagreed with him at the time, but later came to realize that he did not trust anyone because he could not be trusted. Ironically, this man was also a lawyer, so I am sure he witnessed a lot more than most of us everyday people must face concerning our fellow human race. While I believe that never trusting anyone is a horrible way to live, and his bitterness proved that it was not a happy life, I can see how his hurts led him to this attitude.

While it has been proven that hurting people hurt people, not every hurting person repeats the cycle; some turn their pain into compassion. The fact of the matter is we all have issues. The people who do not think they have issues are the ones who have a large blind spot and do not see their issues, and those same people are likely the ones who have the deepest issues and most pain to keep covered.

To ride Sherman successfully, I felt somewhat like a cheerleader the whole time, telling him it was OK, and that he could do it! I had to support him with my legs and hands, paying attention to the environment so that I knew when he would need extra encouragement, all the while trying to make him a better mover (so that he was more valuable as a show horse), and keeping my own emotions in check so that he could gain courage from me.

Like Sherman, many of the people we interact with have problems they face within. It might be situations they have wrestled with for years or something fresh. Some of those issues can be so painful that it causes them to act out in a manner they are not proud of, but it stems from what is going on inside them. They may not even act out in a mean manner. It could be fear and lack of trust that keeps them from letting other people in. While Sherman started doing better and gained some trust, it was a long ordeal that was emotionally draining for the rider and the horse, for that matter.