07/06/2025
Saraloosa Farm is one of the places where I was able to do a tremendous amount of inner work and learning. Far off the beaten track in quaint Tesselaarsdal, the simple lifestyle and organic nature of the volunteer work helping care for the animals, gave me mental space and clarity to process some of what needed to be processed, release some of what needed to be released, and further develop my deep connection to the spirit nature of everything in existence.
The horses and the dogs in particular were wonderful teachers for me of things that we might usually think of as essentially Human. Chief among them was *non-verbal communication.*
I came to the horses with my only background being the story of Buck Brannaman, the real-life inspiration for the character of Tom Booker in Nicholas Evans's novel "The Horse Whisperer" and the film adaptation of the same name. He developed a unique approach to horsemanship based on empathy and understanding, which transformed troubled horses and, often, their owners. My understanding that managing my own emotional state rather than trying to control the horse's, allowed me to have many magical times with Liezl's beautiful animals.
The same, I discovered, was true with the dogs, many of whom Liezl has rescued and brought to live on her farm, Some of them have been through severe trauma or abandonment before coming to this special place.
Because I was able to be so deeply at peace with and in touch with myself, I found myself holding an "energy bubble" with certain dogs who were particularly drawn to me. They followed me on walks around the farm and while I was at work doing the "Chop wood, carry water" part of life which is so essential to physical and spiritual health.
On one of the most extraordinary occasions, I had taken a walk into a quadrant of the farm where there were not usually smaller farm animals that aroused the hunting instinct of certain of the fiercest dogs - several of whom were my regular companions. I spent a couple of hours working on carrying rocks and building a rock pool for wintertime, and then on our walk back to the main house, suddenly around the corner, we came unexpectedly on the horses and goats, with 3 tiny baby kids bleating vulnerably around their mothers.
This kind of confrontation was known to result in the maiming or death of a small animal, an event I had personally witnessed several times on the farm as primal nature took control.
There was a split second which lasted an eternity - that pause where a person can take control of their thoughts, their choices, and the outcome in the moment.
And then I stepped into Calm, exactly the way I do when taking someone into a deep guided meditation or an hypnotic trance. I connected deeply with Divine Peace and with Purpose, and my walk continued without the slightest hitch.
And those fierce hunters next to me walked right through the horses and baby goats with me, calm, at peace and intent on the shared purpose with me.
Not a word was spoken, there were no ropes or leads to restrain or direct them. There was only the shared energy bubble, which I held surrounding and embracing all of the animals around me like the imaginary orb of energy one holds and moves with in a discipline like Tai Chi or Chi Gong.
And the power and peace and calm almost brought me to tears, it was so beautiful and magical.
And that power and beauty and calm is available to all of us, each and every one, if we cultivate our personal mindfulness practices and nourish our inner being.
That is not magic - it is the essence of Life, when we strip away the unimportant.
It is and and wonderful and and and
