I’ve never read “The Horse Whisperer” or seen the film, but the idea behind it is very interesting in my line of work.
Now I don’t saddle kids, or feed them hay, but there is an element of being a kid wrangler about what I do. They have to trust you for it to work. They need to feel relaxed, at ease, to be themselves completely. Sometimes it is just a case of you letting them know they are allowed to be kids.
You have to engage them, know what makes them tick, judge the early signs of a tantrum or force 10 meltdown. It happens. It’s part of who they are, and you need the patience and the calm to ride it out, bring them down and back into the process again. But always willingly.
Kids are smart and very savvy judges of character. They know a fake without having to make eye contact.
BUT if you can do all of that, gain their trust, engage their imaginations, allow them the freedom to be themselves and have the confidence to capture it all as it happens, well then you find yourself indulging in a passion instead of a job.
When it all comes together you can create a image of pure joy – a moment in time with feet kicked up, eyes squeezed shut, roaring with laughter fun.
These are four toddlers who became little old friends before they were two.
On this day of being a kid wrangler, no sugar lumps were dished out, but the biscuit barrel got a hammering.
