When the World Grows Quiet: Finding Stillness with Horses

This weekend, we turn the clocks back. The evenings will arrive sooner now, the last light slipping behind the mountains before I’m ready to say goodbye to the day. There’s a hush that comes with this shift- an invitation, really-to let go of the pace of summer and settle into a slower rhythm.

At the ranch, the horses seem to know. They move less, conserving energy as the chill deepens. I watch Grace beneath the cedar trees, her breath soft and steady, her eyelids half-closed. The rest of the herd shifts with the sun as it lights up the paddock, warming their bodies from the cold darkness. The quiet between them feels so natural it’s almost sacred. Their stillness reminds me that peace doesn’t need to be earned-it’s something we return to when we stop trying so hard to hold the world together.

When I stand among them, the noise of my own mind begins to soften. The long list of things to do, the endless motion of modern life, dissolves into the sound of breath, eagles soaring, and wind through the trees. Horses have a way of pulling us back into rhythm with the earth. They don’t resist the shortening days or the coming dark. They trust that this too is part of the cycle and that rest and quiet are not empty spaces, but essential ones.

I used to resist this season.

The darkness felt heavy, the quiet uncomfortable. It interfered with all the things I thought I needed to get done now. But over the years, the horses have taught me that stillness isn’t something to fear. It’s a doorway. Beneath it lies clarity, renewal, and a deeper kind of peace- the kind that grows roots in the unseen soil of winter.

This is a season for rest. Not the kind that comes from exhaustion, but the intentional rest that restores what’s been worn thin. Rest isn’t weakness; it’s wisdom. Just as the trees conserve their energy and the horses slow their pace, we too are invited to gather strength quietly. It is time to let your body and spirit recalibrate and to restore balance before life blooms again in the seasons ahead.

When the world grows quiet, we finally have space to hear what’s been whispering all along.

So as we step into this season of longer nights, I invite you to slow down with me. To light a candle in the dark. To breathe with the horses, or simply breathe with the earth. To trust that peace is not something we find when everything is perfect-it’s something that finds us when we stop running and let the moment hold us.

As we lean into this quieter season, it can help to ground our reflections in small rituals-simple ways to bring the peace of the paddock into our own daily rhythm. Here are two gentle self-care practices inspired by the wisdom of the horses and the stillness of November.

1. Evening Candle Ritual
As darkness settles, light a single candle and sit in quiet for three breaths. On the first breath, release the day. On the second, welcome calm. On the third, invite stillness into your body. Let the flicker of light remind you that warmth and peace can exist even in the quietest seasons.

2. Grounding Walk with the Earth (or Your Horse)
Bundle up and step outside in the late-afternoon light. Walk slowly, matching your breath to your steps or to the rhythm of your horse if you’re together. Feel the ground supporting you, the cool air cleansing you. With each step, silently repeat: I am slowing down. I am safe to rest.

These small rituals help anchor us in the wisdom of this time of year when both nature and horses remind us that slowing down isn’t a pause in life’s rhythm; it is the rhythm.

* Written in gratitude to Skye, whose spirit continues to guide my work.