Next year's goal is working on "feel"

John told me my goal for next year, regardless of competition schedule, is to work on "feel".  And by feel, he means recognizing, responding, and reacting to Duke's change in movements.  So he might be going around a circle, and then bulge his shoulder out, and so my job is to work on feeling that his shoulder is bulging and then using the appropriate aid to react.
For today, we worked on getting Duke more round and connected in all three gaits and the transitions between canter and trot.  This was, like our prior lessons, an opportunity for John to tell me the aids at the appropriate moment, so I could feel the response, which is - still frustratingly - pretty impossible for me to articulate.  I don't know if I'm not going to "get" it until I can explain it, or if it is because it is about feel, and so can't really be written down.
We worked on the 20 meter circle, then on 10 meter circles with changes in direction.  For transitions, my goal was not to move my hands or let Duke go above or below the bit.  Then John had me lengthen his canter with my hips, and then bring him back without pulling back on the reins.  Duke did all of this really well.
Even with not being ridden much this week, he was really a trooper and tried hard to figure out what I was asking and then do it.  He is a fun horse to ride.