🐎 Begin Again

A Road Trip to Vermont, the Evolution of Horsecraft, and a Love Letter to the Brave

I’m heading out.
Not because everything is ready.
But because I am.

This August, I’m taking a spontaneous road trip across Ontario, into Vermont, and into the unknown.

I’ll be pulling into barns and back roads, reconnecting with old horse-world allies, meeting new ones, and listening closely to what wants to evolve — in the horses, and in us.

This isn’t a clinic tour, not really.
It’s a call-and-response to the quiet truth in so many adult amateur horse lovers I work with:

“Something isn’t working anymore. And I’m ready for a different way.”

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🎧 The Mission

This trip is a living conversation.
It’s about the evolution of Horsecraft — both outer and inner.

• How has our relationship with horses changed?

• How do we restore “feel,” softness, and magic in an industry driven by pressure?

• What happens when we reclaim horsemanship as a co-regulated, science-backed, soul-centered practice?

I’ll be talking to bodyworkers, riders, and mentors like my old friend Noel Aderer, a Vermont based breeder of performance horses and (hopefully!) Denny Emerson. Their lived experiences trace the arc of horsemanship over decades and their perspectives as elders in this polarized time of change, promise to be meaningful and insightful.

Along the way, I’ll be sharing the raw, vulnerable truth of my own “begin again” moment — how I’m coming back to this work after trauma, reinvention, and healing.

This road trip is the beginning of a bigger vision:
🎥 A future documentary about the evolution of Horsecraft and the courage it takes to change — for horses, and for humans.

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🧱 What to Expect Along the Way

Each week on this Substack, you’ll find:

• ✏️ Essays, reflections, and field notes from the road

• 🎧 Interviews with horsepeople and healers

• 🐴 Behind-the-scenes glimpses of pop-up Horsecraft sessions

• 💌 Notes on fear, trust, and nervous system repair

• 🏱️ Bonus content for paid subscribers: deep dives, lesson plans, and practices

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💡 Why Now?

Because so many of us are standing at the edge of the familiar, sensing that something else is possible.

Because aging, injury, and burnout have left their marks, but so has wisdom.

Because the world doesn’t need more “heels down, jump the jump” riding lessons.
It needs space for softness.
It needs people willing to stop performing and start listening.

This is for all of us who are learning to trust again.

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📖 This Week’s Reflection: Fear is the Stranger Here

In this first entry, I’m sharing a handwritten essay that poured out of me late one night last fall.

It’s about fear.
Not the loud kind. The quiet kind that creeps in when you dare to do something brave.

I wrote it not to get rid of fear, but to understand it.
To let it speak.
To thank it for its service — and then move forward anyway. The process could be useful to anyone facing fear, or intrusive negative thoughts about the future.

What fears are YOU facing?

📝 Free preview:

Thank you, fear, for doing your best to keep me safe.
I know you were trying.
Even if it didn’t always work —
Even if I was taught to deny you or ignore you —
You were just doing your job.

Fear is a message from the Mayor of Thinkytown.
It comes on behalf of your nervous system.

The Mayor is interpreting incoming signals based on past data, and sometimes those interpretations are wrong. They’re designed to keep you safe, but to the Mayor and your body, almost ANYTHING can spell D.A.N.G.E.R.! So what do you do?

🔐 Paid Subscribers Only – Read on to find the Full Essay Below ➔
Includes a journaling prompt and a somatic reflection.

Enjoy!

In the meantime …

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🧱 How You Can Join Me

If this work speaks to you, here are a few ways to support and stay connected:

🔸 Subscribe – Free or paid, you’ll receive updates, stories, and real-time road notes.
🔸 Share this post – Help spread the word to horse lovers, healing seekers, and nervous system nerds.
🔸 Book a session – I’m offering 1:1 pop-ups, small group coaching, and storytelling gatherings across Ontario, Vermont, and beyond.
🔸 Become a paid subscriber – Your support helps fund the podcast, documentary project, and future retreats. Plus you’ll unlock all the good stuff.

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💫 Because...

Anything is possible.
Together.

Take a chance,
Paige
The Magic of HorseCraft™ – Inspiration. Direction. Connection.

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🔐 BONUS SECTION FOR PAID SUBSCRIBERS

📄 Fear is the Stranger Here – A love letter to the part of you that’s still afraid … but going anyway.

Originally handwritten September 26, 2024

🎧 Coming soon: Guided audio breath + reflection