A Rare Gift

In 2022, Anne’s teenage sons were at home when an active shooter tragically killed five people in their neighborhood. Just a few days before, Anne read an email about Unbridled Way Forward’s Herd Meditations. As a therapist herself, she specializes in supporting people who are grieving difficult losses and changes in their lives. Because of her expertise, when the event happened, Anne thought the Herd Meditation was something her family needed to process and heal.

On a warm fall day, Anne and Tate traveled to Unbridled Way Forward to participate in their first Herd Meditation. “With some experiences,” Anne shared, “words feel inadequate. Spending silent, intentional time with the horses felt like soul soothing, soul healing.” She continues: “Communicating without words--using touch, gentle movement, soft eye gazing, feeling the horses' soft fur, warmed by the sun--somehow helped me feel grounded and safe again, after a harrowing act of violence in our neighborhood and on the beloved greenway trail on which I walk daily.”

Anne’s son,Tate, was moved by the vastness of the pasture as well as the time given to wander around the horses. He also enjoyed sharing his thoughts with the group after the meditation had concluded. Tate is not new to meditation; it is his primary function for mental health. However, Tate shares that Unbridled Way Forward is different: “I chose to visit Unbridled Way Forward because their approach for meditation appeared radical and fresh when compared to any of my previous experiences. I could not possibly forget the time I spent with the horses and the team at Unbridled Way Forward.”

Anne and Tate attended two Herd Meditations together and treasured that sacred time together. She concludes, “I left the horse farm feeling somehow lighter, having released something there I wasn't even fully conscious I was carrying. Being with horses compels us, in a beautiful way, to be right here, right now, truly savoring the moment just as it is. A rare gift indeed.”