Today has been such an eventful day. My daughter, Maggie had my third granddaughter this morning. But it has sure been a bittersweet day. I have been a fortunate man. I have had some really good dogs. You know the kind most folks only have once in a lifetime: Ive had several. I have also had some really good horses. But there were only two horses in my life that really touched me somewhere deep inside. To a non-horse person this probably doesnt make any sense. All my life Ive been around these marvelous creations of God. I spent many years breaking colts, spent 18 years as a professional farrier. When I came to Oklahoma in 1980 I was a wrangler for a large 60,000 acre ranch. Somewhere there is a picture of me riding while still in diapers. I had a really good horse when I was a teen. Her name was Go-bar Sugar and she was a granddaughter of Sugar Bars and out of a Yellow Jacket mare. That mare would do anything I asked of her, she was all heart and would never, ever quit. When I was in my 30s I had a good dog and a good horse. One time my dog, my horse and I sent 60 head of yearling steers single file across a beaver dam. Then down beside the highway we went; the dog on their heels and me and the horse about 60 yards off their flank with the nylon, lead shot filled bullwhip echoing its report through the timber. There were actually cars stopped on the highway watching that particular show. We never needed any help, one good dog and one good horse was all that was needed. This morning my Kiger stallion died. His name was Beau Cephus, or just Bo for short. He was something special. When I watched him in the pasture, he touched me. Its hard to explain. He was so magnificent. He appeared to float above the ground. He was proud, aloof and had such a gentle soul. And now, at almost 1:00 am the significance of that loss is almost overbearing. A 55 year-old man sitting at a computer terminal, tears streaming down his face over a horse he never even rode. Shoot, I never even led old Bo, he was too aloof and too good to be brought down to the level of a domesticated animal. I never even had a halter on him. Never needed to humble him or make his dignity suffer. He would stand there all day and let me talk to him. Occasionally he would even let me brush or pet him, but he would never stoop so low as to let me put a halter on him. Wasnt really necessary though, if I needed to get him out of the pasture and away from his harem, all I had to do was open the gate and call him. Perhaps that is what saddens me most. I always thought there would be a tomorrow for me and Bo to make that bond where he trusted me implicitly. I wanted to have him be my endurance partner. Maybe God will let me ride old Bo in my dreams sometime.
Posted on: Mon, 15 Dec 2014 07:00:04 +0000
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