Tribute To A Fallen Friend...
This thread is not under "pet general" for the fact that 90% of the PT population does not visit that section and Spirit is extremely special and needs to be honored. :)
Today (October 14, 2005) marks the six month time period since I lost my friend Spirit. Spirit was a plucky Welsh pony who lived with 52 other horses at a YMCA camp I volunteered at. Before Spirit came to Camp he was privately owned by a little girl and her family and served as a pasture pal for the little girl's show horse- he was not as special and wasn't as spoiled. When Spirit arrived at Camp in 2002 he was very wild and unpredictable. Certain people were given permission to work with him and ride him- me being one of the few- that is how I came to meet the little fella. His mane was incredibly long, his coat was luminescent and copper in color, his hooves were tiny and delicate- he appeared fragile but had the spirit of a wild mustang...which often showed. Spirit was shunned by the other wranglers and dubed a "crazy, stupid pony", he frustrated and outsmarted many people- but he attracted my attention and stole my heart. He was the smallest equine of the herd but he had the biggest heart and determination of Lace Armstrong. Spirit and I quickly became a "team", we were the best of friends. He recognized me and knew that when I was around it meant he was going to get doated apon and spoiled rotten...extra treats, a nice long groom, and a good workout. From time to time, Spirit and I would ride around with the other wranglers and check gates before we would let the herd out for the evening- I remember one time us wranglers decided to have a race, Spirit outran 5 of the 7 horses- he may tiny but his stride was long. Another fond memory is the time I stood next to Spirit in the corral and leaned over his back- I remember the smell of his body, how his coat glistened in the sun, the sound of his heartbeat, feeling his barrel (chest-area) rising and lowering with each deep breath- I remember all the little details as if it just happened yesterday, it was such a relaxing moment. My absolute favorite memory of Spirit is taking the herd out. Every evening the wranglers have to take the horses out to pasture (the property is 350 acres, some of the pastures were on the opposite side of the property). We would be mounted bareback and wranglers were appointed as "leaders" , "middlemen" and "shaggers"- leaders ran in front of the herd, leading the herd to the location- middlemen just moved within the herd to keep them moving, and shaggers would follow behind the herd to insure no horse was left behind. The experience of taking out the herd was amazing, fast-galloping within a herd of 53 horses is incredible- you are overcome with a sense of awe and power- the noise created by 212 hooves pounding the ground is undescribable...undergoing that experience while riding Spirit made it even better. Eventually, Spirit made a complete turn around with lots of training and determination on my behalf, he was no longer "unsafe" and "un-rideable" and soon was being used as a child's mount for small children- he was as gentle as a fly. I was so proud of Spirit.
Friday, May 13, 2005 would be the last time I would see Spirit alive. I was at Camp for a work weekend- extremely excited to be there after 7 months of absence, I was so anxious to see Spirit (and Jack- my other equine friend) again. The horses were out-to-pasture so Heather (horsemanship director aka "head honcho") and I took a walk out to the pasture to check on all the horses. Most were a little thin from enduring the harsh winter and their coats were in-between the winter and summer stage- they looked mangy. I scoped out Jack and paid my dues to him then quickly looked for Spirit...it didn't take long to notice the little pony on the opposite side of the pasture alone with his head held low...I quickly ran over to him, to discover that he had gone blind in both eyes and had a puncture wound between his cheek bones- like he punctured himself on a stick- he looked so ill and old- the copper shine to his coat was gone, the twinkle in his eyes were replaced with creamy white cataracts, his long flowing mane was tangled and matted, his head was drooping- I almost didn't recognize him, I had to fight to hold back tears. Heather and I stood there debating on bringing him back to the corral and keeping him in a stall overnight to have him looked at by a vet the next morning. We decided to let him stay with the herd overnight and we had planned on calling the vet first thing Saturday morning. I have him a hug and many kisses, said "I'll see you tomorrow bud, we'll make you better"- that was the last time I saw him alive. Saturday, May 14, 2005 started off normal- wake up, eat breakfast, head down to the corral and bring in the herd from the pasture. After all of the horses were in the corral the routine headcount was done and it was quickly noticed that Spirit and a few other stragglers were not in the corral- I immediately felt a pit in my stomach and my heart ached- I knew it could not be good. One wrangler, Scott, pulled Heather to the side to have a private talk with her- I knew it was about Spirit and I yelled "is he out there? he's dead"- Scott looked at me, I could tell by the look Spirit was gone- Heather looked at me and said "I am sorry, Laura". I ran out to the pasture as fast as I could- I didn't see him anywhere, as I rounded the corner- there he was...about 75 yards down, laying on the trail. I ran even harder screaming and yelling the whole way- it felt like I was running in place and not getting any closer. I finally made it over to him and hit my knees. I slumped over his body and cried like a baby. I looked up at the bright blue, sunny sky and screamed "why?". His eye was open, I placed a leaf over it as I did not like looking at it. I sat by his side for 45 minutes saying my good-byes, reminiscing about good times, thanking him for the many memories and wishing him well in Heaven. I stroked his radiant coat which was slightly warm from the sunlight that shone upon it, I played with his long beautiful mane and tail. I sat there in shock. About an hour after I found him the camp director drove into the field to pick me up- I gave Spirit one more kiss on the cheek and got in the truck- as we drove away I turned around to silently say "good-bye".
I cannot believe it has been 6 months, it seems like it just happened yesterday. 20 years down the road I still won't be able to believe it either. Spirit may not have been my own horse, but I sure as hell loved him- I loved him like he was my (human) child. I had the intention of purchasing Spirit from the Camp and boarding him at the local stable down the road to live out retirement in my care- but sadly that dream wasn't able to come true. This winter (when I will be 18) I plan on getting a tattoo of Spirit in memory of him, a real small one in an easy-to-be-covered location...call me crazy if you want, but I don't care. I just felt the need to express my love for Spirit, hopefully he knows how much I love and miss him, I cannot wait until we are reunited one day. Thank you all for reading, I appreciate it greatly.
Here are some photographs of my beloved "Tater" (my silly nickname for him, derived from the word tater-tot, lol).
http://members.aol.com/DesertArabian87/mybaby.JPG
^ Bad picture of Spirit and I before checking gates about 3 summers ago.
http://members.aol.com/DesertArabian87/buds1.JPG
^ Taken before a nice grooming session 2 summers ago.
http://members.aol.com/DesertArabian87/buds2.JPG
^ Going out to check gates, fall of 2004.
http://members.aol.com/DesertArabian87/spiritbuck.JPG
^ VERY old picture from when Spirit just arrived to camp, that foal (Buck) is now 4 years old- just for a time idea.
http://members.aol.com/DesertArabian87/spirithead1.JPG
^ All-time favorite picture of Spirit, having this picture (just the head, no background, lol) tattooed on me.
I miss you bud, hope you are running hard up above. <3
