All of us started somewhere.
Most start at the beginning.
Because without them there would be no beginnings. Everyone was once a beginner in Paso Finos. We all must start by taking the first step. Honestly if there was no beginning, would there be an ending? If we were all on the same path at the same time would the breed end when we stopped? I think it would.
I see newcomers as people who put something into motion; they "begin". I often forget the enthusiastic pursuit of understanding newbies bring into the life of my breed. Unlike most old timers, they are not relying on the inertial forces built up and put into motion years ago. Newbies rejuvenate by bringing back the excitement and joy of equine companionship. They provide the energy because they are still actively seeking to understand what it is that drew them to pasos in the first place.
I enjoy meeting newcomers because they are so open and share their delight of being with the horse. Untarnished, their interest is as innocent as the horse they desire to be with. As a self-proclaimed old timer, I am often reminded that I really don't have any better understanding of what the Paso Fino is than I did the first day I was introduced to the breed. Many times the questions a newbie asks me are the same questions I still ask myself even after decades of involvement. I wonder if my perception is a result of better understanding or years of varnished illusions I created so that I may appear knowledgeable.
Newcomers bring a thirst for the truth and a desire to serve; to do what is best for the horse. They are believers in the breed; they carry the faith. Maybe we old timers should stop and remember the day when we were first introduced to a Paso Fino. Maybe we should treasure those times. How soon we would forget what this is all about if it were not for the newbie.
Coming Soon
- A Gringa's How-To for Beans and Rice
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Even my former Puerto Rican boyfriend said that I cooked one mean bean, but how to get it to be the "real deal" escaped me until I mentioned how it lacked that beans and rice look to a young Cuban-American coworker. What I thought was a secret kept from gringos isn't....
- DNA Testing--Is it helping or hurting?
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I once thought DNA testing was manna from heaven. Lately, I have had second thoughts about it and how breed registries use it. It is one thing to prove genealogy. It is another matter entirely when it is used to determine purity....
- Term of the Month: Encastar
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The English translation of encastar means "to breed". In Spanish, the meaning goes beyond the act of breeding or conception. It also encompasses what it is "to breed" or to be a breeder. A Paso Fino breeder does more than just select individuals for planned matings....
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