That ten penny ride at my sister's school fete, at the age of four, was the start of the lifelong passion, the obsession and the compulsion. Since then I have spent a lifetime with horses and horse people.

I have followed the conventional routes of ownership, of professional riding teacher, competitor, equine journal writer, equine lecturer, healer and equine massage therapist but more importantly the horse has been at my side as I have asked the deep and meaningful questions of life; emotional attachment, ego driven aspirations, the meaning of life, the reflection of self, the role of the horse throughout the history of mankind, riding and harmony and movement, pain and relief, a new and better way of doing things for each other and for our horses, oneness, etc, etc.

For me the horse has had a role in acting as a gauge. I get to understand my actions and my secrets through the highly reflective nature and sensate being of the horse. The communication of horses can be understood often more clearly than the more deceptive communication of people. The horse does not lie and has no need to be anything other than real in the presence of the moment and from this I/we are able to form a picture which illuminates more of 'the truth'.

It was through riding that I got my first whiff of 'energetic connection'. Too young and green to have any understanding of the meaning of classical training there was the day when I made that small postural adjustment that 'changes everything' from stiff, resistant and 'against each other' to a harmonious movement, through-ness and connection. An early insight into what I was able to recognise and understand later on and that which I continue to explore.

For me and for many people, the link between us and our horses has a depth and strength we are often not able to comprehend fully or consciously. I think that when we are able to truly listen we have an opportunity to gain a reflection of ourselves that brings us closer to universal truths. The many roles that the horse has served for humans are too innumerable to mention, but at some stage in their career most horsepeople would agree with 'horse as healer and teacher'. It is this relationship I wish to explore. If we empower the horse to be more fully a horse in the fullest sense, we then have an opportunity to bathe ever more fully in the essence of horse, which is what drew us there initially.

I have been lucky enough to have more than one significant mentor. Dr Shen Hongxun has provided me with a depth of teaching, patience and encouragement over the past fifteen years and has perhaps given me back my relationship with horses when I was about to leave the equine arena, having gotten disgruntled and despairing of the way we do things.

I had a riding mentor who always emphasised the importance of being practical when dealing with horses. In my own development I have sought the practical along with the esoteric.

My main mentor has been generous and loving to a fault. I thank her.