I always, for as long as I remember, have been fascinated and CRAZY about horses of all kinds. I played cowboys and Indians all the time. We used to tie strings or ropes or strips of leather to our handle bars on our bikes and pretend it was reins. Let me tell you, that can make for some big wrecks. My mom would get so mad when I wrecked doing that, she forbade me to keep doing it, but I did it anyway. We all had stick horses and we would find boards and draw horse’s faces on them and nail them to our sticks. then we would tie strings to them for reins. And I will confess to you that I did this up through junior high. My parents would joke that I would tie my stick horse up to come in and get ready for a date. It really wasn’t quite that bad. We could never afford horses, or had no room for them, or some other excuse. My mom just flat did not want us to have horses. My dad would have allowed it but she was kind of the boss. When I was in high school he did buy a colt, and it died. I don’t know why but it sure hurt me when it happened. Any time I had a chance to ride a friend’s horse or go to a state park, etc. I did it. When I was at Ball State I took a horsemanship class for PE.

Then I met a guy who was into showing barrel horses. I really don’t think that was the reason I married him but it might have been part of it. Together we had a few contest horses, some brood mares, an awesome stud and colts. I realize now what a great horse that stud was for us to be able to handle him showing, etc. and breeding mares and he never caused any trouble. I liked keeping the horses legged up and I tried running barrels but I really didn’t have the guts to do it well. And I never had any real help. I needed riding lessons and horse handling lessons but never got them. My husband was just one of those naturals at it. He could ride very well and got along very well with the horses. I still loved to ride and to do anything with the horses but sometimes it got discouraging because I would get hurt or scared and it didn’t feel all that fun. I bought a western pleasure horse and that was more my style and I had some success with it, but I still knew what I didn’t know.

Well for a variety of reasons I got divorced in 1983, moved to a condo in town, bought a sports car and left horses behind me. I met another guy in 1989, he was getting interested in horses and we got interested in each other. We married in 1990. He liked trail riding, and he liked rough riding. I had been away from horses for quite a while and was never real brave anyway so there were some “issues” at first. I borrowed a nice little mare that I trusted and enjoyed. He bought an aged Arabian and they got along famously but Beebe, the Arabian, got really lame and unridable. He bought another Arabian named Shamrock and I bought a 16 hand barrel horse named Popeye. Now, my husband is a good 6ft; I am 5’1”; Shamrock was 14.3, Popeye was 16.1. After a couple of months we decided to switch, that is if I could handle Shamrock. He was 12 when we bought him, he really hadn’t been ridden since he was 5. He was 100% fire breathing, high stepping very proud, always lived on one farm Arabian. I had grown accustomed to peanut rolling pleasure horses. So, the first summer I rode him and cried. He scared the you know what out of me. A very good friend (Yvette) had tried to introduce me to Parelli Natural Horsemanship but I was a doubter. Finally I went to a study group in Martinsville. After a couple of sessions, and realizing if I quit fighting this guy things would be better, things got way better. He had the most wonderful, fun loving, people pleasing attitude and we developed a great relationship. I would go to the pasture and hide behind a tree, when he would come up I would jump out and growl and he would run a few feet and stop. I would hide and he would find me, it was crazy. He was always the first one to come see me when I went to the pasture. I could turn him loose anywhere in the woods and he would just hang around. He and Popeye became the best of friends. When they would be apart for any length of time they would wrap their necks around each others’ and hug.

In October of 03, Shamrock was hit by lightening and killed. It was instant. He was 24 years old and had begun to have times of being off his feed. He had not gotten so bad yet that I was exploring it with a vet. I think he just told the Lord, I am ready. I found him about 11pm that night, we had been gone and I didn’t see him at first when we came home so I went to check on him. Those who say an animal does not have a soul cannot be referring to horses. I felt his spirit leave him and go to God. I was sad but it was also a triumphant feeling of knowing he was in green pastures and still waters. Now when I read the 23rd Psalm, it is about a horse to me, not humans. We cannot bury animals here so it was a couple of days before his body was removed. We had him covered in a corner of our yard so the truck could get to him easily. Popeye stood almost the entire time and stared at the body of his old friend. He mourned for a long time. We have my other gelding here, Rusty, but Popeye stayed by himself. Shamrock taught me so much and I think of him often.

Now I am using Rusty for my Parelli studies and we are having a great time. He is now 23 so I had better hurry and get my second level passed. He is an ex-team roping horse and has had his own set of challenges. I would have thought he would be used to more stuff than he is, but I guess he didn’t really travel much. He is from Montana and there is a roping arena about every mile so he could do a lot of roping and never leave his neighborhood. He was hard to catch, pulled back bad when tied, is scared of anything with wheels and no motors. But he is so willing. When I took roping lessons he would come out hard if you wanted to, but you could hold him back with one finger. Now, don’t let “roping lessons” be misinterpreted. I did that in Montana a week each year for about 5 years while my husband was at a cavalry camp. One week a year won’t teach you to rope. The only time I caught anything I just threw my hands up and screamed. I remain quite the chicken hearted. Parelli Natural Horsemanship is helping me with that.

So, here I am about to embark in another venture with like minded ladies and I am really looking forward to it. My husband is still into the cavalry thing when he can he has done the Little Big Horn reenactment in Hardin, Montana for the last 11 years. He also has a rancher friend out there and he likes to go out and help out some. Last year he was gone for 7 weeks. A group of those guys are planning a ride in June 2006 from Ft. Lincoln in Mandan, North Dakota to the Little Bighorn Battle site. They hope to take the same route, as much as possible, that Custer took. We also camp and trail ride. We have a 24 foot with a complete living quarters and a 16 foot with just a dressing room. We really do need to find younger horses since Popeye is now 20 and Rusty is 23. It is hard to give up on the old guys. I do have a coming 4 year old half Belgian Paint but he is going to be way too big for me, and is still learning that he is supposed to be ridden. I would like to get him started and sell him to someone who really needs his size.

Maggie Whitlow