My first encounter with a horse was when I was in kindergarten. I was at the town block party with my parents when I saw the makeshift sign with the words "Pony Rides" scrawled neatly in red paint.
I tugged at my moms arm, pointed and and said the magic word, "Please." She looked down at me with a warm smile and responded by walking me over to the corral. I was beyond excited and a bit nervous but at the time I never would have admitted it. My mom handed the lady wearing a cowboy hat 5 dollars as I picked through the heaping pile of helmets searching for the perfect one. The lady adjusted the black velvet helmet atop my head while telling me what to do when I got on the horse and a few moments later I was off and the happiest I had ever been in my life up to that point. We did a few loops around the corral during which I named the pony, Silver, due to its gorgeous dapple grey coat, and decided I loved horses and my life dream was to own one. Ever since that day I have always dreamed of having one of my own.
I spent the next few years of my life begging my parents for a horse, horseback riding lessons or even to take me to show and the closest I ever got to any of those was a model Breyer horse until the day I turned 8. I was finally old enough to take lessons, my parents had already made arrangements with an equestrian center down the road and that day I took my first riding lesson. Best present ever. The riding instructors name was Shawna, she also owned the entire farm, and did all the work on it herself. I immediately aspired to be just like her when I grew up.
I can't remember when but at some point that farm became my home. Everyday I looked forward to watching the sunrise over the green and white stables as I walked around feeding the horses and turning them out to run in the paddocks. I loved the sweet smell of the feed room as I carfully mixed together each horses's meal, the sound of hooves pounding against the packed dirt of the riding ring and the clip-clop of their hooves as I walked them down the gravel road to the paddocks. I learned to love the smell of sulfur water, the feeling of being covered head to toe in dirt all day, and the sound my boots would makes squished and squashed their way through mud after a rainstorm. But most of all I loved the horses, each and everyone of them equally. I never chose favorites, and I would feel guilty if only one horse got a treat so whenever I wanted to treat one....the who farm got a treat. I bought horse treats in bulk. This was my farm philosophy until a certain thoroughbred mix gelding came into my life.
There was a farm down the street that Shawna's friend owned and one day her friend stopped by with a horse. He was a rescue she took in from someone who could afford to keep him anymore knowing she could find a home for him. He was the biggest horse I have ever seen, standing at 17 hands, he was even taller then some of the draft horses at the farm. His dark brown coat shimmered under the afternoon sun, his black mane and tail being tasseled by the breeze. He had four white socks, one on each of his legs except one which had more of a white stocking going all the way up his leg along with a big blotch of white right on his forehead as if someone to white paint and splattered him with it. He was very shy but he took a liking to me right away, nuzzling my arm with his nose. He was right there in front of me but so far away, I knew I couldn't keep him being 13, i didn't even have the money to board him for even a month! I knew Shawna wouldn't take him in anyway because he wasn't fully trained and she was having hip problems, so there was no way he could do lessons.
"I'll take him" I heard Shawna's voice. Was I imagining things? No, I wasn't. So remember when I said the happiest I had ever been was my first pony ride well scratch that, this was the happiest I had ever been in my life.
"He's all yours, Kate" Okay, now I was definitely imagining things.
"You earned him"
I looked up my eyes watering just from pure joy and I gave her the biggest hug. I did earn him, and I would continue to earn him. I wouldn't let Shawna regret this. She said she would board him for free for me, if I would let her use him for 2-3 lessons a week and continue to volunteer as I had beed. I eagerly obliged assuring her she could use him for as many lessons as she wanted and I would sleep at the farm and work at night if I had to. She just shook her head and told me again how "I earned him" Sticking around for so long and helping because she really needed it even though she never asked for it. I named him, Largo, which is spanish for large, it suited him, he was the biggest horse I had ever seen!
