What a handsome boy you
were! You gleamed like a new copper penny in the sunlight and had that massive
quarter horse build. Although we came together under strained circumstances,
you eventually won me over.
You were two and I was twelve. I wanted a show horse and you wanted to run
and play. You ignored every attempt the trainer and I made to mold you into
a western pleasure horse. You had too much fire for that and so I finally
gave up trying to make you into something you didn't want to be and I instead
followed you on a path I had never been down before. I was disappointed I
wouldn't have a show horse, but you taught me to be true to myself.
Oh how you loved to run. I can remember the first time I let you run full
speed. I had never been on a horse as fast as you as I was only a child myself.
When I pulled you up, I had tears streaming down my face from the force of
the air. You loved to match race and you were good at it, who would have
thought some little girl riding bareback could have beat them at their own
game.
Over the years you were best at doing things I never imagined we would be
doing. Your stops and spins were phenomenal, you carried me through countless
queens runs and grand entries, and you were never allowed in the pasture
with the cows because you would work them until they were out of
breath.
It's strange looking back
at our time together as we have been through so much. I remember the time
Gramp tied you out with a nylon rope. You panicked and when I came home I
was sick at the sight of burn on your fetlock. The veterinarian said I would
have to clean your leg every day, along with wrapping it and giving you
injections...but I'm just a little girl! I would go out to give you your
injection and I would spend thirty minutes crying first because I was afraid
I would hurt you. The whole time I was crying, you were just standing there
waiting to have your bandage changed and get your shot...patience, you had
lots of patience.
I think my grandfather and mother must have thought I was crazy the
year you got really sick. I thought I would lose you and I had our priest
come out and bless you with holy water. I left my rosary in your stall and
prayed for you to get better. You surprised everyone and pulled through after
staying in intensive care for two weeks. I thought I would lose you again
the day it snowed so bad and you had a case of colic. The thirty mile drive
in the deep snow to the surgery center and watching them untwist your intestines
through the window is one night I will most likely never forget. I remember
my mom on the phone to Gramp borrowing money so you could have the surgery
that would hopefully save your life. Four days later, you came home and made
my life miserable with your antics of bucking and rearing in the stall, as
I was supposed to keep you calm.
You were there for me the day that Gramp died and I sat in the corner
of the stall and cried. And you were there for the months that followed when
I would cry myself to sleep on the floor of the stall....you gave me
unconditional love.
At some point in your late
teens, you developed arthritis in your shoulder, probably from the cow work
and I decided that you should just enjoy life. You loved "your horse", Skipper.
From the day I brought him home, it was not a match made in heaven, but you
two were inseparable for the twenty five years you spent together. I loved
to watch you two play-fight, you would bite him and he would take off after
you running through the yard. My mom was sure one of you would come through
the sliding door one day but you never did. I loved to watch you two groom
each other when you thought no one was looking and sun bathe side by
side.
The hardest decision of
my life was to let you go.
I miss you, Mr. Pie. I
miss the way you slurped when you ate apples, how you would play with Crash
over the fence even though everyone else thought he was just an obnoxious
colt, and how you rubbed your head on me even though you weren't supposed
to. I miss your smell, the feel of your muzzle in my hands, and your breath
on my face.
I would like to tell you
one last time how much I loved you! I am grateful for all the things you
have given me and for all the times you were there for me. For the last
twenty-seven years you taught me patience, gave me unconditional love, and
kept all of my secrets . You were a safe place for me to run to when I needed
comfort. You made my good days better and my bad days bearable. On more than
one occasion you gave me the ride of my dreams and taught me that life is
something to be treasured. Your resilience and zest for life is a quality
that I will always appreciate. Thank you for all the wonderful lessons, the
memories, and for enriching my life...but most of all, thank you for being
my friend. Mama loves you.
June