Homage to War Horses

 

To minimize risk of exposure to and spread of the COVID-19 virus, I am temporarily suspending in-person hypnotherapy sessions with me in my office. However, phone, Skype and Zoom consultations ARE and WILL REMAIN AVAILABLE!

 

(This blog was originally posted on January 4, 2012)

 

 

Photo courtesy of Sara Fogan

 

My first real introduction to the concept of a War Horse was in the song, “Comanche (The Brave Horse),” by Johnny Horton and Francis Bandy. This 1959 tribute describes the deeds of an equine survivor of the Battle of the Little Big Horn. According to the lyrics of this ballad, Comanche was the only survivor of this infamous battle. This was not true, but he was severely injured. After being rescued from the battlefield, the horse—which was owned by Captain Myles Keogh, not General Custer—recovered from his wounds and lived the rest of his life as a hero of the American cavalry. I get goose-bumps whenever I listen to the song—which is often, as it is part of an iTunes play list I created for my new horse, Galahad.

Galahad is an Arazzon: a "hybrid" in that he is one-half Arabian and one-half Lipizzaner. His Arabian side makes him a direct descendant of the original war horse, the Arabian. The Arabian dates back 2000 years. They are legendary campaign horses in the North African and Arabian deserts: Bedouin warriors would ride mares to battle, leaving the stallions to protect the women and children at the camps.

Arabians are also the seminal breed used to create the elegant and rare Lipizzaner four hundred years ago. (The Arabian stallion Siglavy is a foundation sire of this breed.) Although the Lipizzaner elevated battle maneuvers to an art form in haute école, these horses were never used in actual combat. They were bred exclusively for the Hapsburg royal family to ride. Over the centuries, various wars have pushed the breed to the brink of extinction. During World War II, American General George S. Patton famously helped Colonel Alois Podhasky, the director of the Spanish Riding School, to smuggle the horses out of Austria. These days, Lipizzaners are renowned for their haute école performances at the Spanish Riding School, where the levade, capriole and courbette thrill audiences.

In December 2011, Steven Spielberg released the film adaptation of Michael Morpurgo's novel, War Horse. At first, I was very wary about going to see the movie. It wasn't that I didn't want to watch the movie. I really did. But I knew it would be a tearjerker.

I ultimately did go to watch the movie. It was very well done. But, I won't say that I "enjoyed" watching it. The battle scenes were harrowing. Not just because war is so devastating, but because the humans who went to war knew (sort of) what they were getting into. However, the equine soldiers who were similarly drafted to charge into the machine-gun fire and swinging swords did not.

When the movie let out, I drove to the barn to see my horse. I wanted to thank him for his gentle companionship and any sacrifices his forbears made for their human companions. On the cover of her book titled Perfect Partners, Kelly Marks encourages everyone to strive to be “the owner that your horse would choose for himself.”

Galahad that is what I will do for you.

This blog is posted in loving tribute to the service men and service women and the canine and equine soldiers who have sacrificed so much throughout our country’s history to protect our freedom at home and abroad.

 

December Promotion: Quit Smoking with Hypnotherapy

Let hypnotherapy help you become a permanent ex-smoker! Package #1 is six sessions and helps you kick the habit gradually ($800 when paid in full, up front, including  the First/Intro session in the cost). Package #2 is one, two-hour session for people who smoke 5 or fewer cigarettes per day. Please go to the link below for prices and more details about each offer ($275, may be required to also do the First/Intro session if you have never been hypnotized before).

 

*These promotions may not be combined with any other offer. It is non-transferable and may not be exchanged for cash.

 

 

Sara R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified hypnotherapist based in Southern California. She graduated with honors from the Hypnosis Motivation Institute in 2005. In July 2019 and in September 2020 she was voted the Best Hypnotherapist in Santa Clarita, California. For more information about Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up an appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/.

© 2020

 

To All the Horses I Have Loved Before

In light of the current WHO and CDC recommendations to minimize risk of exposure to and spread of the COVID-19 virus, I am temporarily suspending in-person hypnotherapy sessions with me in my office. However, phone and Skype consultations ARE and WILL REMAIN AVAILABLE! 

(This blog was originally posted on September 27, 2016)

Photo courtesy of Sara Fogan

Me and Galhoso (“Gally”), the Lusitano stallion who brought me back to riding.

This blog is dedicated with love to the memory of Galhoso (“Gally”), the Lusitano stallion who reignited my love for horses and riding. Rest in sweet peace, dear boy.

When I started my hypnotherapy training, an important focus of my original business plan was to help equestrians improve their communication and relationship with their equine partners, including overcome anxiety around horses and achieve competition goals. Of course, not all of my practice focuses on horses and riding. Smoking cessation, weight loss, overcoming fear of public speaking/performance anxiety, grief resolution and dealing with stress/anxiety are just a few of many other self-improvement goals I help my clients achieve. But I named my hypnotherapy practice Calminsense Hypnotherapy® in homage of my special interest in horses and riding. “Common Sense” is a colloquial expression that means “horse sense,” and I use the word “calm” many times during every hypnotherapy session. Recent queries about my work with equestrians inspired me to pay tribute to some of the horses that have been so special to me over the years.

·         Paent (pronounced “Paint” and probably named because of his coloring). I rode him on a trail-ride during my one-and-only summer camp experience. He was probably an average-sized horse, about 15 or 15.2 hands high, but I was very little at age eight and he seemed huge. He was a gentle giant—i.e., he didn’t run off or try to dump me during the ride—and I begged my parents to let me take him home with me when I went home.

·         Renege. I rode this grey gelding for a few years between the ages of about 11 and 15. My first-ever riding instructor owned him and his doppelganger, a gelding called Charlie. Trivia fact: Clint Eastwood is riding Renege in the first 10 minutes of High Plains Drifter. The gelding was very dirty in this scene, but he is definitely in those scenes. My trainer’s husband worked in the movie industry and owned the horses—or bought them right after the movie, I can’t remember. Renege was a little smaller than Charlie and rarely used in jumping lessons—which made him less popular in lessons—but I really bonded with him. I can still remember how slow and smooth Renege’s trot was; in fact, it was probably better categorized as a Western jog. His canter (lope) was also comparatively slow compared to the bolder stride that is desired in dressage. My memory of how wonderful his canter felt probably created the subconscious mental script that my subsequent trainers and I had to work hard re-write so I would feel comfortable riding a true medium (bold) canter.

·         Galhoso (“Gally”). One of my dear friends co-owns a Lusitano stallion called Galhoso. Sadly, he passed away last week at the very respectable age of 31. His death may not have been completely unexpected, but it has been keenly felt by everyone who loved and cared for him. I am grateful that I was able to visit Gally a final time at the beginning of 2017, and he was as impressive and sweet as the first time we met about 15 years ago. At that first meeting, my friend asked if I would like to sit on him after their training session. She knew that I used to ride when I was a teenager and loved horses. The opportunity to get on a horse again and even trot him around on a lunge line for a few minutes was too good to be true. I admit that the idea of riding a stallion (!) was thrilling, and it still tickles me that I had that experience. That ride also was the beginning of my re-introduction to horses and riding as a passion and life-style. The following year I started taking regular riding lessons again and bought my first-ever horse. I now own a Lipizzaner/Arabian gelding named Galahad whom I affectionately nick-named “Gally-had” a few months before Gally died. I don’t know why I started calling my boy that, but I will continue to do so in loving memory of that tremendous stallion who brought horses and riding back into my life all those years ago.

·         Geeves. I bought him from my trainer at Silvergate Farms when I turned 35. As I liked to say, I knew I loved him before I ever met or rode him. Having lived in England for seven years I was a fan of the Jeeves and Wooster novels and television series. As soon as I heard there was a horse with that name at the barn I knew I had to meet him. My trainer was surprised when I asked to ride Geeves, but we soon became recognized as a kind of item at the barn: “Sara and Geeves.” At 16.2 hands high, the dark-brown gelding was (and remains) one of the biggest horses I have ever ridden. He was always very gentle with and even protective of me, as I was of him. He taught me how to enjoy every aspect of loving a horse—not just riding but grooming, hanging out on rainy days and worrying about every little thing that horse owners worry about, often unnecessarily. Geeves and I were together for nearly eight years and it’s nearly six years since he passed away. I still miss him every day, and I remember every lesson he taught me.

·         Candy. I leased this sweet part-Arabian mare for about a year after Geeves died. I had actually been riding her at the end of Geeves’ life because his arthritis was getting worse. I wasn’t ready to own another horse yet, but the schooling mare and I were a good fit as far as size and my riding goals/ability. She took me to my first horse shows and even though I knew she wouldn’t be a permanent part of my life, I am grateful for the time I got to spend with her while I was grieving for my horse.

·         Galahad. I met Avalon’s Galahad in 2011. Our introduction was similar to how I discovered Geeves. A friend (former trainer) owned a training barn and Arabian-horse breeding facility; when I finally started looking for a horse of my own, she gave me a DVD of some of the horses she was offering for sale at the time. My interest piqued the instant Galahad appeared in the frames. Learning about the horse’s part-Lipizzaner pedigree was like a dream come true. The dancing white horses of the Spanish Riding School symbolized the ultimate of classical dressage training, and I could have a chance to become part of that story. The first time Galahad was brought out for me to watch him work at liberty, even my trainer agreed he seemed to be flirting with me in a way he didn’t behave with another prospective buyer. The first time I got on him for a ride, the gelding cocked a hind leg and dropped his head, waiting patiently as I adjusted my stirrups. “Well, he’s made up his mind!” My trainer said with a laugh, noting Galahad’s relaxation with me on board.

So had I, and we’ve been together ever since.

Special Offer!

Save 15 percent on all a la carte (individual) phone and Skype hypnotherapy sessions, including the 2-hour introductory First Session!

*This offer may not be combined with other promotional discounts/session packages and is not redeemable for cash. Offer expires on June 30, 2020

Sara R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified hypnotherapist based in Southern California. She graduated with honors from the Hypnosis Motivation Institute in 2005. In July 2019 she was voted the Best Hypnotherapist in Santa Clarita, California. For more information about Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up an appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/.

© 2020