It is through even more tears than I thought I had left that I write this. My soulmate is gone....passed over the Rainbow Bridge to wait for me. I HAVE to believe that he will be in my God's Heaven waiting for me. I could not bear this otherwise!
He was a vital member of our family for over 22 years; saved from the packer in 1988 at the tender age of 8. He was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen the day he stepped off that trailer. A proud representation of his Arabian heritage, and a *RAFFLES GG Grandson (though we would not understand all that this meant for years to come).
He was my daughter's horse for the next 8 years. She did dressage on him and showed him at local shows and rode him in parades. For one Christmas parade we made a banner to hang from his neck. It read,"Revelation 19:11 I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war." He carried it and himself so proudly, so beautifully.
At the age of 16, he was given to me...my first horse of my own...still a horsekrazy kid of 46. I immersed myself into him; falling in love with him fully and studying his pedigree. Only then did I begin to understand what a hidden treasure I had been blessed with.
Our farm was founded to preserve his bloodlines...the CMK Arabian; the Al Marah Arabian bloodlines in particular. It was named SonRise Farm Arabians in honor of my Lord Jesus, the Son of God...and of Jaans Son. There are now three others here to carry his ancestry's bloodlines.
He grew to trust and love me as well. He now welcomed touch where he had endured it before.
He carried all the little kids of our family as precious cargo; never flinching as they crawled around his powerful legs. He taught my granddaughter and her friends to ride.... adjusting himself to correct their balance.They all loved him so... and he them... wearing their braids and ribbons proudly.
I showed him in hand at the Crabbet Alliance of Texas show. He took a Fourth place ribbon, but he was always a BLUE RIBBON winner in my heart!
When he was 22, and I 52, I decided to try my hand at endurance riding (me a beginning rider!). After tying all of my "survival gear" to my saddle (NOT a good idea!) we headed for the trail.
We were trotting along nicely. A rider came up behind us and asked to pass, I told her sure! When her horse's head got near Jaans Son's, he took off like a shot! There was no stopping him....he would not lose this race! I came off and hit the ground hard, breaking two ribs. He stood over me minutes later with a puzzled look on his face; as if asking,"Why are you down there, Mom? Thought we were doing something here?" That day I earned my "One Mile Wonder" endurance title...and I could not have done it without him!
Last fall, I nearly lost him to colic and an ulcer. A dear friend furnished his ulcer meds and I am eternally grateful to her, for it gave me another year with him. Another talked with me endlessly about him, sharing her vast knowledge of horses.
This summer we fought summer sores and steadily declining weight. He was a trooper through it all...enduring my desperate attempts to keep him comfortable and with me..."just a little longer". He loved the special Thrive feed I put him on and even gained weight on it.
On Wednesday October 6, I believe he had a stroke. He was never the same after that; becoming more confused and weak. He gradually lost the ability to keep his food in his mouth. It took a week to understand and accept that he was never to recover from this last unwelcome insult to his tired old body.
I made a 4 o'clock appointment for Wednesday, October 13th with my wonderful, compassionate veterinarian, Dr.Thompson, to euthanize him. We spent the whole afternoon together. I brushed him, hugged him, confessed my love for him, and cried as we waited.
Jaans Son, ever the independent, opinionated boy that he was, chose his own way. He laid down at 3 o'clock and never got up again. He was in obvious pain for the first time and I gave him pain meds as I texted my vet.
At 3:45 PM, with me carressing his head and kissing his soft muzzle for the last time....he slipped the painful bonds of this earth into peace. His equine family here will have to accept his night-night kisses from me now.
Rest easy, my beloved boy. Gallop the pastures of Heaven in your new, youthful body... kick up your heels...flag that beautiful tail... until we meet again. I can with sincerity declare that I have loved and been loved by one of God's most wonderful creations.
Brenda
Jaans Son 
