God gives us horses and compels some of us to love them. Yet why does the
horse, an animal with such a big heart, live such a short life?  Perhaps
it's because if our horses lived any longer, we wouldn't be able to bear
losing them. Or, perhaps it's because God wants to ride.

Perhaps God looks down on the fine horses we raise and
decides when it's His turn to ride. He gives us a few good years to care for
and learn from them, but when the time is right, it's up to us to see them
off gracefully.

O.K., perhaps not gracefully. Blowing into a Kleenex is  rarely graceful.
But we can be grateful.

To have a horse in your life is a gift. In the matter of a
few short years, a horse can teach a person courage, if he chooses to grab
mane and hang on for dear life. Even the smallest of ponies is mightier than
the tallest of children. To conquer the fear of falling off, having one's toes
crushed, or being publicly humiliated at a horse show is an admirable feat
for any child.  For that, we can be grateful.

Horses teach us responsibility. Unlike a bicycle-or a
computer-a horse needs regular care and most of it requires that you get
dirty and smelly and up off the couch. Choosing to leave your cozy kitchen
to break the crust of ice off the water buckets is to choose responsibility.
When our horses dip their noses and drink heartily, we know we've made the
right choice.

Learning to care for a horse is both an art and a science.
Some are easy keepers, requiring little more than regular turn-out, a flake
of hay, and a trough of clean water. Others will test you-you'll struggle to
keep them from being too fat or too thin. You'll have their feet shod
regularly only to find shoes gone missing. Some are so accident-prone you'll
swear they're intentionally finding new ways to injure themselves.

If you weren't raised with horses, you can't know that they have unique
personalities. You'd expect this from dogs, but horses?  Indeed, there are
clever horses, grumpy horses, and even horses with a sense of humor. Those
prone to humor will test you by finding new ways
to escape from the barn when you least expect it. I found one of ours on the
front porch one morning, eating the cornstalks I'd carefully arranged as
Halloween decorations.

Horses can be timid or brave, lazy or athletic, obstinate or
willing. You will hit it off with some horses and others will elude you
altogether. There are as many "types" of horses as there are people-which
makes the whole partnership thing all the more interesting.

If you've never ridden a horse, you probably assume it's a
simple thing you can learn in a weekend. You can, in fact, learn the basics
on a Sunday-but to truly ride well takes a lifetime. Working with a living
being is far more complex than turning a key in the ignition and putting the
car in "drive."

In addition to listening to your instructor, your horse will
have a few things to say to you as well. On a good day, he'll be happy to go
along with the program and tolerate your mistakes; on a bad day, you'll
swear he's trying to kill you. Perhaps he's naughty or perhaps he's fed up
with how slowly you're learning his language. Regardless, the horse will
have an opinion. He may choose to challenge you (which can ultimately make
you a better rider) or he may carefully carry you over fences...if it suits
him. It all depends on the partnership - and partnership is what it's all
about.

If you face your fears, swallow your pride, and are willing
to work at it, you'll learn lessons in courage, commitment, and compassion
in addition to basic survival skills. You'll discover just how hard you're
willing to work toward a goal, how little you know, and how much you have to
learn. And, while some people think the horse "does all the work", you'll be
challenged physically as well as  mentally. Your horse may humble you
completely. Or, you may find that sitting on his back is the closest you'll
get to heaven.

You can choose to intimidate your horse, but do you really want to? The
results may come more quickly but will your work ever be as graceful as that
gained through trust? The best partners choose to listen, as well as to
tell. When it works, we experience a sweet sense of
accomplishment brought about by smarts, hard work, and mutual understanding
between horse and rider. These are the days when you know with absolute
certainty that your horse is enjoying his work.

If we make it to adulthood with horses still in our lives,
most of us have to squeeze riding into our over saturated schedules;
balancing our need for things equine with those of our households and
employers. There is never enough time to ride, or to ride as well as we'd
like.
Hours in the barn are stolen pleasures.

If it is in your blood to love horses, you share your life
with them. Our horses know our secrets; we braid our tears into their manes
and whisper our hopes into their ears. A barn is a sanctuary in an unsettled
world, a sheltered place where life's true priorities are clear: a warm
place to sleep, someone who loves us, and the luxury of regular meals.  Some
of us need these reminders.

When you step back, it's not just about horses-it's about
love, life, and learning. On any given day, a friend is celebrating the
birth of a foal, a blue ribbon, or recovery from an illness. That same day,
there is also loss: a broken limb, a case of colic, or a decision to sustain
a life or end it gently. As horse people, we share the
accelerated life cycle of horses: the hurried rush of life, love, loss, and
death that caring for these animals brings us. When our partners pass, it is
more than a moment of sorrow.

We mark our loss with words of gratitude for the ways our
lives have been blessed. Our memories are of joy, awe, and wonder.  Absolute
union. We honor our horses for their brave hearts, courage, and willingness
to give.

To those outside our circle, it must seem strange. To see us in our muddy
boots, who would guess such poetry lives in our hearts?  We celebrate our
companions with praise worthy of heroes. Indeed, horses have the hearts of
warriors and often carry us into and out of fields of
battle.

Listen to stories of that once-in-a-lifetime horse; of
journeys made and challenges met. The best of horses rise to the challenges
we set before them, asking little in return.

Those who know them understand how fully a horse can hold a human heart.
Together, we share the pain of sudden loss and the lingering taste of
long-term illness. We shoulder the burden of deciding when or whether to end
the life of a true companion.

In the end, we're not certain if God entrusts us to our
horses or our horses to us. Does it matter? We're grateful God loaned us the
horse in the first place. And so we pray:

'' Dear God,
After You've enjoyed a bit of jumping, please give our
fine horses the best of care. And, if it's not too much, might we have at
least one more good gallop when we meet again? "

Happy Trails

 

Author Unknown