After having attended 2 weekends of intense 3 day courses I am now a zenpractitioner! Very exciting and simple stuff, the Zen practice was developed by a retired minister from Sri Lanka, and is basically a humble healing method that everyone can benefit from and perform. Obligatory is daily meditation for all practitioners and you offer your help to everyone that wants it, and always free of charge. The courses I have done are also for free. The person behind the zen movement in Spain is a irish lady called Suzanne Powell that was diagnosed with a fatal cancer in her twenties. She was told by the doctors she had 1 out of 100 percents chance of survival. She said 'No way, I have no time to die' and went to Spain. She survived, (obviously) and has since then dedicated her life to helping others. She studied all kinds of healing teqniques and did voluntary social works. But there was always something missing until she started to practice Zen. How does Suzanne make a living? She wrote a book called 'The Collective Reset' and whenever she gives a lecture or treats a patient you can buy her book if you want to, it is 10 Eur as she does not accept payments for her treatments, lectures nor courses. I have attended lectures and took my dad to her clinic so I know this is so. Suzanne has worked with several medical practitioners who have offered her employment but she rejected them all as the basis of zen is working to helping people unconditionally. How about that.

Some time ago when I was suffering from severe fibromyalgia symptoms and basically 0 energy in my body, I told my mother that I just needed someone to put their hand on me and heal me, I am not religious but I was referring to someone like a Jesus, someone that just fixed me basically. I had reached the point of too tired to do it myself (the doctors gave me no real help) and I felt like I had tried it all. As the health system told me I was fine, I turned to alternative methods such as, homeopathy, serious buddhist 10 day retreats, anthroposophy (through the waldorf degree), acupuncture, osteopathy, I bought self healing cookbooks and tried microbiotics, you name it, I had tried it.  Zen is that hands on healing and I had no idea it existed. This saturday I got a 5 min of hands on zen healing and today I woke up and I had no pain in my body whatsoever. I felt like a 'normal' person! I can't describe the joy of feeling light and no pain in the morning, it was such a surprise and absolutely incredible for me. This evening the pain came back because I was exhausted but I am still thrilled about the morning! All seems possible now I have a new hope I will get 100% well! I also sat through the hours of the course also comfortably, normally I get excrutiating pain from sitting in the same position. So I will definitely keep up my zen practice, I will tresure it as a beautiful gift and if you are interested and want to know more I am happy to answer any questions, you are also welcome to go visit Suzannes blog for more info; http://suzannepowell.blogspot.com.es/ the page is in spanish but here's the link for videos in english; http://suzannepowell.blogspot.com.es/p/suzanne-powell-videos-in-english_14.html

Lots of love to you all on this windy and rainy sunday night!     

Working day at the finca, floor is in the making, it is still raining alot and I have been shoveling water and mud to prepare the patio where the girls will hang out meanwhile we wait for floor. Floor in patio is inclined so remains dry except in one corner. Sun came out early this evening and you can really feel how everything is getting ready to start growing and sprout! 

Preparing fluffy beds and haybar with a delishious mix of alfalfa, hay and green oats :)   

Evening view

Phew what 3 days, it hasn't stopped raining one minute and we have had grey skys. Whilst our stable is getting renovated we have been out with USA visitors that has not seen any spanish countryside because of these foggy days, good thing we had horses to see and indoor arenas to use! And lovely people with a great positive attitude helps alot to endure kilometres and rain!

I have also been arranging and coordinating transports of 4 horses that are leaving for their new destinations, payments had to be done, issuing of healthdocuments and it has been non stop from 7 am to 2 am, so today I came home and crashed, but now revived again. A spanish breeder called me to book Festivo for two of his mares so next year more F babies will be born in Spain!

Super FEI PSG PRE - candidate for USA

Halagador warming up with Kate yesterday evening

Getting ideas for stables..

Here's Donoso's son today before leaving, a big boy now with grown out hair and trimmed ears :)

Beautiful Pinturero BAT ready for his journey and new home in USA, safe journey, be good and shine!

This morning the vet told me he thought Pica was due anytime now, I have a feeling it's not quite time yet but difficult to say as it is her first one.. 
Today I saw Festivo's chestnut son, he already about 165 cm!

And he moves like this

We had a lovely springday, all day working in our 'finca', girls went discovering their new fields and Viggo and Betty started their job as guarding their farm :)
I present our humble little place! 

Novedosa and Picara, two sisters that get on very well even though they want the same grass :)

Nova today in new field
       

Yesterday forage de luxe arrived; hay, green oats on straw, alfalfa and golden straw

And,,, the time has come to send the little Donoso-swimmers off to other continents, Donoso VII is now booked by breeders in USA and Australia!
So yesterday with an absolute contentment I drove into the regal Cuetara farm in royal Aranjuez, with almond trees starting to blossom. And when Mrs Concha Cuetara, traditional topbreeder of pure carthusian PREs and a veterinarian expert in reproduction that has worked with the best of the best PRE stallions, looked at Donoso said he had developed into a impressive stud, I felt so immensely proud. I very much respect Concha and her opinion as a professional. Donoso knew exactly where he was even though last time was 3 years ago, he got a deluxe suite, reared and said; Hey everyone, I have arrived :) It's real hard to leave him but Concha knows he is my everything and no doubt he will be in the best hands. 

Donoso ready to do leave Escorial to do his job

Donoso in Aranjuez 2010

Here a greeting from Reina Vikinga in Norway, she has had a tough recovery from a complicated operation and we are all very happy to see her now working again with her owner! 

RV was raised at our farm in Sweden and is now 5 years old by Firme AP and Reina XXXIV
                         

Snowy day today! Oh well, not a big deal, it will be gone tomorrow again. I put the boys in the walker whilst I took in the ladies for a good grooming. Boys back with winter rugs on and then ladies for some hairdressing. Nova is a highly strung girl, kicks and swings her toy ball if her routine is broken but then she's super cool with the trimmer, it's alright even inside ears. Pica is more delicate, she really prefers the scissors, and definitely no machine between or near the ears, no Thank You she says regally, one fine lady with a growing belly.... I so love that belly  

My dad has arrived, he and some friends are going to see his dream-team playing 'el clásico' - the Real Madrid-Barcelona game, now I know who Leo Mezzi is as we watched the game from yesterday. Retired people do know how to enjoy themselves, it's great. I am also taking my dad for a reset from Suzanne Powell next week, I hope it will do him good. Now I need to take extra care of him so he can help me with................... Our new horse home! Yes yes yes, the stables where mares are living right now will now be OUR stables, Picara's baby will be born in her own home!!! I have wanted to have my own place for a long time now, then suddenly this oportunity arrived, lookilook how things come to you when only you ask for it! The 'finca' is a small farm with 4 big stalls for mares and 6 smaller ones, a traditional spanish stable that has had pretty much no maintenance (ever) so we need to polish it up from scratch. Boys will get their own paddocks, we have 4 hectars under the beautiul spanish oak trees and fresnos for babies to grow and stallions to stretch out in, not sure who will enjoy most, me or them.. It will be a new life for horses and much work for us, but it will be worth it. This will be mainly be our base for our own horses and breeding but we also look forward to be able to have a small selection of horses we can offer our clients directly from our own hands. We do have a small but exciting line-up of horses to fill our new home.. So from now on you will be able to locate us in beautiful El Escorial, north west Madrid, 40 min from Barajas airport and 30 min to central Madrid, very welcome and you will always be recieved with a smile!   

Pastures in our 'finca', El Escorial, Madrid

I appreciate so much my life right now, the people around me my family, friends, my horses and my job. I decided to give all my energy to what is positive and rather than be upset or try to push away the negative parts. Instead I just ignore it, turn my back at it and give it no energy. I have have noticed to my surprise that like that unwanted things falls away naturally.. and I am abit surprised, I somehow thought I had to work hard for everything..? 
Having a very interesting and rewarding job helps alot to focus on the positive. I get to know so many different people, all passionate in their own special ways about horses, and it is pure pleasure to be able to share my own passion in this way. I try my best to answer all emails and inquiries in a personal way. Of course I make most effort with clients that are communicating openly and have a genuine interest in finding a suitable horse. And I can't help  getting very enthusiastic about finding the best possible horse and the best possible personal match, it's a very creative job!

Just as there are more or less serious and professional horse-mediators, there are also more or less serious horse-buyers. I see the buying/selling process as a cooperation. Many times I get emails asking about prices of horses and nothing else. But I take my job seriously and work in a personal/professional way and I need information to be able to match a horse sucessfully with a person. Most times I answer; Please send me your requirement in as much detail as possible. If a person is interested only in the price it will be very difficult to match them with a suitable horse. Some are just wanting to know prices and location to be able to locate the horse by themselves. I respect they want to do the job themselves, it is a different journey, but then my job has to be respected for what it is, a professional business. We don't go to IKEA to ask for the distributors prices and contacts, do we!?   

Breeders/horseowners and brokers doesn't just communicate about horses we also discuss clients and the horsemarket in Spain doesn't work like many seem to think. Horses are not a finished product ever and the prices can seem very difficult to understand. If we have sold horses from one particular breeder/owner we obviously have a better relation to this person and would be given better prices. They also know which quality horse we are interested in offering our clients. There are many ways to cooperate and we cooperate with many people. In Spain a very good reputation is required and I mean real reputation, no bullshit.
At times a person turns up at a stud get a much higher price than the one we have. This can depend that we have had a long time negotiation over this particular horse or with the owner in general, they can have a personal interest in us selling their horses, for different reasons. It is not the same to send your 'products' abroad to a prestigeous rider or studfarm as it is to sell it to the next door neighbour where it will be hidden away.
Sometimes a horse have one price one month and another the next. The reason for this is that horses get reevaluated and prices can only be maintained over a period of time becuase of new merits, level of training, keeping your horse in prof. training is expensive in Spain.

Our horses are selected with much seriousness, many years of work lies behind being able to source quality horses from professional people and achieve reasonable prices. And we are always able to justify the price of a horse that we offer our clients. And you are always very welcome to ask any questions!

Today a swedish client has made my job being an absolute pleasure and it makes me want to do my absolute outmost for that person. By now there have been quite a few of you, I appreciate you all alot and I want to thank you for making special horse-connections happen!

Nina-A's new pure carthusian passed vetcheck today, I wish you much happiness together, you have the possiblities but now it up to you to make happiness happen :)