Philosophy

Tess at a Sage Yoga class in Damascus, Maryland.

Buck Brannaman says it best: "The horse is a mirror to your soul. Sometimes you won't like what you see. Sometimes you will".

From my decades of involvement with horses I wholeheartedly believe that horses are the kindest mirrors we have in our lives. We all seek, in various ways, to improve the clarity of our communication with our equine partners to promote a more harmonious partnership. In order to communicate harmoniously we need to be aware of how our state of mind and body impacts these highly sensitive animals. Tess believes it is essential for each rider to learn how be mindful of the ways they are both consciously and unconsciously communicating with their horse. The horse's various reactions to their rider often goes ignored or misunderstood. Tess seeks to reverse this way of relating to horses. Their voices are always just as important as ours.

Additionally, Tess strongly believes in cross training for both the human and equine athlete. In her effort to better her own position and work with chronic pain from overuse of certain muscle groups, Tess began the practice of Yoga. Yoga has helped her to become far more aware of the blockages, asymmetries and compensatory mechanisms in her own body and how these subsequently affect whichever horse she is riding. The development of her own mindful riding has made her a far more empathetic and effective teacher when it comes to identifying the way her students mental and physical blockages impact their own horse.

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