48 Inches

They say some people miss entering heaven by 18 inches, that is, the distance from their head to their heart.  Those are the people who can't live on faith alone, and therefore never receive the abundant blessings that God wants to bestow on them.  They die without realizing that if they'd opened their heart to God and let Him show them the way to live, the struggles of daily life wouldn't have seemed insurmountable.  They die without ever knowing how wonderful it feels to let God take the reins and direct their life.

I guess Belle missed heaven by 48 inches, since the distance from a horse's head to her heart is much greater than a human's.  No, Belle isn't dead, but she has moved on, and she never got to experience the great things that I had planned for her.  I'm obviously not God, nor do I have a God complex, but I did have a plan for Belle, a direction for her life, and abundant blessings that I would have loved to have bestowed on her.  She was fed hay and grain, but she never got to graze in a lush green pasture.  She had a clean and dry area to spend her days in, but she never got to roll in the mud or wade in the gentle stream.  She had room to move around, but she never got to gallop across the huge, hilly field.  She had a pony for a friend, but she never got to run with the herd.  Belle had the basics, but she never had the blessings.

Belle had more belief in her own opinion of how life should be than she had for my knowledge of how life could be better.  She was willing to take basic sustenance from me, but never a feast.  She was willing to let me touch her, but just barely.  She would take my kisses, but she shunned my embrace.  She knew I was real, but she didn't have faith in me.  She could see the rainbow, but she didn't hear the promise.

Maybe it was my fault, maybe I tried too hard, or maybe it just wasn't meant to be.  I've had to take some time away from the barn to recover from a medical procedure that I had in January.  While planning for this time off, I contacted the wonderful gals at the BLM office in Oregon and asked if they could find another trainer to take Belle.  I knew that without daily interaction Belle would regress in her progress to become gentle, and I wanted the best for her, so I was hoping that someone would take the challenge and pick up where I left off.  Fortunately, a very experienced trainer in Oregon stepped up to the plate, and transportation was arranged for Belle.

It's been six weeks since Belle left.  Her new trainer describes her as "bold, but wanting to connect."  I hope that means there's a chance that Belle will put her whole heart, body and soul in the hands of her trainer.  I hope it means she'll live the life she was meant to live.  I hope it means that 48 inches isn't an uncrossable chasm.  And I hope she takes the leap of faith.

News From Siesta

Well, okay, it was actually Siesta's mom, Barb, that send me nearly a dozen emails today, telling me in wonderful detail and showing me in beautiful pictures and videos how fabulous Siesta is doing.  They've just returned from four days of camping and riding all over the South Steens, in South-Central Oregon, where the wild horses run free.

That is Barb's husband, Brian, on the right, riding Siesta.  Barb is riding her beloved Missouri Foxtrotter mare.  Don't they look wonderful?  Barb and Brian took turns riding Siesta during the four days, and she was as solid a trail mount as a seasoned horse would be.  Barb says she was very surefooted, quiet, and nothing bothered her at all. Siesta even ponied Barb's mare through water.  She hauled like a champ, was quiet at night, and accepted everything that they threw at her.  According to Barb, the Steens Mountain area is a real test of a horse's mind and heart, and Siesta passed with flying colors.  The trail is hard and steep with lots of rock shelves and boulders, but she placed her feet perfectly and never flinched.  They met hikers with tall packs on the trail, and motorbikes on the road, but Siesta couldn't have cared less.  Isn't that fantastic?  I think so, and so do Barb and Brian.  I bet if we asked Siesta, she'd say that she's the lucky one, and things are indeed fantastic.

Siesta is such a pretty horse!  She is much more muscled now than she was when she was here with me; I like the way she has filled out.  She has a strong, yet feminine look to her.  She looks fabulous, and if I didn't know her age, I would never guess that she is only three years old.

Barb has kindly invited me to come visit and ride the Steens with them next year.  I think I just might take her up on that, and I think I know which horse I want to ride...

Adopted!

It's official!  The paperwork is in, the check has been cashed, and the travel plans have been made.  Siesta has a new mom and dad, and you'll never guess where they live.  In Oregon!  Not just anywhere in Oregon, either, but in Burns, right where Siesta came from!  How about that?

So here's Siesta's life story so far:  Born wild in the Palomino Butte Herd Management Area, which is just 15 miles from Burns; gathered at a year and a half of age; brought to the corrals in Burns to stand around and look pretty for fifteen months; hauled to Northwest Washington State to be gentled, trained, and fussed over by a crazy mustang trainer; and now she's going right back where she started from.  Except this time around, she'll be part of a horse-loving family that logs up to 1200 miles on horseback each summer.  Can you imagine such a life?  I can only dream about it.  Siesta has got to be one of the luckiest dang horses out there, don't you think?

Siesta isn't going home until June 12th, so I have four more weeks to play with her and advance her training.  Yes, I'll miss her.  Siesta is one of those horses that will linger in my heart for a long, long time, but I am so happy for her that she gets to go home, the only tears I'm crying are happy ones.  Mustangs and happy tears seem to go hand in hand, don't they?

By the way, if any of you folks here in Washington would like to meet Siesta before she goes home, she and I will be at the BLM mustang adoption in Ellensburg June 11th for a little bit of Show and Tell.  I'll be choosing my next TIP horse from the ones at the adoption, so if anyone is interested in adopting a mustang gentled by me, contact me and we can work out the details.