Softness means to allow ourselves vulnerability A deep opening of the wounds that have been caused by past hurts and a willingness to let down our barriers As I ponder softness around my horses more and more I notice the thoughts that cause the hardness, the gentle but noticeable pressure I place on myself and then to achieve, even if it’s something as simple as achieving “softness” I am forced to visit the wounds that have caused the barriers in the past, the times when my heart has been shattered into pieces from loosing a horse and the then hardness that was formed as a way of protecting myself but ultimately not allowing love to fully come in I realise that when we really do let down those barriers, open to softness there’s more to our relationships than we can ever imagine, but there’s a risk there too, a risk of being vulnerable, of opening to all the feels including hurt, failure and ultimately pain But if we harden ourselves, try to protect ourselves against this hurt what does that do to our current relationships, with horses and humans and this world? As I process these thoughts and feels the horses feel the shifts, their energy softens, opens and as I allow myself the vulnerability they do the same, they allow themselves to be vulnerable and open too And that is the best reason ever to practice this more, to delve deeper and to release the hardness that I have carried for so many years