Great Quotations
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​These are a few of the thoughts of horsemen, mentors and others, and how they apply to my passion for horses in general and dressage in particular.
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Do what you love
– Henry David Thoreau
Don’t be afraid to look for a little excitement in life. Do what you love, and don’t ever stop.
- Bob Darch, internationally known ragtime piano player
Does the musician work the violin? Of course not! We too should always endeavor to “play” the horse, then it will work for us.
- Erik Herbermann "Dressage Formula"
Horses that do not startle were all eaten long ago.
- Charles de Kunffy
Nothing good comes from something bad.
- John Lyons
Anything I can vividly imagine, whatever I intensely desire, whatever I firmly believe in, whatever I enthusiastically act upon, must inevitably come to pass.
- Jack Brainard
Do you know that disease and death must needs overtake us, no matter what we are doing? What do you wish to be doing when it overtakes you? If you have anything better to be doing when you are so overtaken, get to work on that.
- Epictetus
Therapeutic riding “. . . is that kind of training you do, where you take a handicapped horse, so to speak, and you improve this animal to such an extent that at the end of his training, it looks like a super horse, worth a million. You build muscles where there are none, you strengthen the weak parts of your horse, you change his temperament, and you transform the whole body and the mind. In short, you make the horse into something which it wasn’t before. The entire training process has a healing effect on the animal, and this I consider the ultimate goal of horsemanship.
- Karl Mikolka, Oberbereiter, Spanish Riding School
Argue for your limitations, and sure enough, they’re yours.
– Richard Bach, “Illusions”
Patience is the essence of success.
– Dennis Williams, trailer spotter, central Post office, Detroit MI
If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment.
– Marcus Aurelius
Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “Press On” has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. – Calvin Coolidge
There comes a time when all the cosmic tumblers have clicked into place and the universe opens itself up for a few seconds to show you what’s possible.
- Ray Kinsella, quoting Terence Mann, in “Field of Dreams”
Life is never what it seems; it is always so much more.
– Famous Amos,
the cookie maven
The truth of a thing is the feel of it, not the think of it.
– Stanley Kubrick
Dressage to a horse and rider are like the blueprints to an engineer who must build a bridge. You must know the fundamentals of building in order to create a structure of durability, strength and ability.
- Eitan Beth-Halachmy
If you look at a person’s checkbook and datebook, you know what their religion really is.
- Ravi Ravindra “Daily Life as Spiritual Practice”
Walking the wire is living. Everything else is just waiting.
- Karl Wallenda, tightrope artist
Pay attention to the transitions. They are not without glory.
– Karl Mikolka
Every day’s a holiday, every meal’s a banquet.
– Robert Heppi, steel hauler
Technique kept his vision from being blurred.
– protégé of Rudolf Serkin,
after his mentor’s death
Ask him to find his limitations
– Karl Mikolka
Prior planning prevents poor performance.
– Stuart Candis, truck driver
There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord. The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord
- Proverbs 21: 30-31
Always work from a position of strength.
- Montie Eagle
Always better your best.
-Craig Cameron
Outlaws are can openers in the supermarket of life.
- Tom Robbins, “Still Life with Woodpecker”
Horses are not impressed by money. They are impressed by how you approach them. You have to ride a horse from the inside out to penetrate his soul.
-Karl Mikolka, Oberbereiter, Spanish Riding School