Horse Wisdom Ranch

Progress is being made! Visit here to read the Lean Canvas Q & A for a beginning to the business plan. This is gonna happen before I die…

Horses are all about healthy relationship and playful discovery. They slow us down by showing us how to live in the present moment (unless it is close to mealtime!) and invite us to explore our innate animal bodies. The smells and sounds of a barn can reset the stress of daily life and bring appreciation for all that we have around us.

HORSE WISDOM RANCH

Project: Intentional Community focused on trauma resolution for residents and the clients of those who do healing work within the collective.

Beginning Vision

The Property

Organic dirt for gardening, maybe a flower-growing business or hemp crop;

Horse facility for up to 8 animals, so that we can have a therapy horse or two and some boarding income;

10 – 20 acres, with large main house for 4-6 to share;

Organic garden;

Hot tub/ sauna/ pool for water therapies;

Outside shed/ garage/ music space;

Large living space for dance/ workshops;

Outdoor living space with fire pit;

Small caretaker’s cabin or a functional living space in the barn;

A few, select therapy animals;

Eventually growing our meat: Chickens! A hog, a dairy cow or two?

Recycling, composting goes without saying…

Living Environment

Feng shui focus for decor, temple space-type scene in common areas;

One room dedicated to healing/ guest room for travelers;

Another space committed to art projects, sewing, library/ study space;

Big, maybe industrial kitchen, group meals organized so that everyone has  a turn cooking and cleaning up;

Diet focused on healthy eating;

No tobacco products;

Environmental consciousness about reduced toxicity in cleaning products, etc;

Shared vehicles, shared trips to town;

Co-op groceries.

We will want support for all involved for moving through trauma, so everyone will want to understand how trauma works, and be willing to experiment with the most healing environment for all within the collective. 

The Participants

A collective of ‘wise ones’ as permanent residents;

Others who come and go more fluidly as clients, guests, housemates or temporary residents;

Selected respite clients, who stay for a period of time as they go through a transition, or start into their healing journey.

Beginning Agreements

We will work with co-creative development of a code of ethics and agreements for the tasks of living together. Here are a few to get us started:

Minimalist living, in other words: fight the clutter, keep things simple!

Weekly check-in meetings, where we work with safe, co-creative, artistic expressions of emotional content and processing as needed;

Honesty, integrity, desire and respect for, and patience with experimentation;

Some students, some working folk, some elders (‘retired’) – perhaps a few that work as therapists in the field of trauma resolution.

We will work with Starhawk’s book, The Empowerment Manual ~ A Guide for Collaborative Groups. There is also a chapter about meetings that was not included in the book, which can be downloaded. We will use this suggested structure in our meetings, so all interested parties are asked to read the material.

Tasks

Finding the right property, with owners that are appreciative of what we are doing, and flexible with rental income. Lease for one year as a ‘test.’ Figure out how to purchase the property, if for sale, in that year. Develop a non-profit? Find an Angel Investor? We could become a model for creating healing space for both residents and clients coming to us for respite and healing. Perhaps we can eventually offer residential immersion for those with more severe trauma/ environmental illness, so that they can stabilize and get better.

We can also experiment with small housing techniques: yurts, tepees, straw bale…tiny houses for those of us that need retreat time in our own space.

To Do

Create liaisons with realtors that specialize in horse properties. We will be looking for an owner who knows the value of good tenants, that will keep on top of maintenance and enhance the property’s value, with the owner’s financial participation in any necessary repairs for that first year.

Create a ‘portfolio’ of who we are, what our intentions are, and how we intend to make this work. It might be good to have some students, and some working folk, so that there is some assured steady income.

Thoughts or ideas? Desire to participate? Input for forwarding these conversations? Contribution in any form? Please…Connect with Jade Beaty