A/N: I found this and I LOVED it so I'm going to share with you all.
The Horse
by John Anthony Davies
I saw a child who could not walk,
sit on a horse, laugh and talk.
Then ride it through a field of daisies
And yet he could not walk unaided.
I I saw a child, no legs below,
sit on a horse and make it go
through woods of green and places he had never been
to sit and stare, except for a chair.
I saw a child who could only crawl,
mount a horse and sit up tall;
then put it through a degree of paces
and laugh at the wonder in our faces.
I saw a child born into strife,
take up and hold the reins of life.
And that same child, was heard to say,
thank God for showing me the way.....
Chapter 2: Thoughts and the Radio
On the ride home Tala was deep in thought. It just seemed like it was all a dream, there was no way that Jeff could be dead. He was one of her few real friends. Because of her disability she scared off a lot of kids her own age. She had found that the people who really were friends were the other jockeys at the track as well as her horses.
Ever since she was little Tala had a deep connection with horses. Until her accident she had never been hurt on a horse, and seemed to know what they wanted, not like shoe could talk to them, but she knew when they were happy or sad or hurt. She had been riding since the time she was 5. After her accident she wanted to ride again, but her parents didn't want her to. After a lot of coaxing though she proved all the good that riding could do, she had done extensive research, and when she first got back on a horse she found that horses were one thing that didn't change when you couldn't walk. You could still do all the things you did before, and it was one of the few freeing moments for her. When Freedom's Song came to the rehabilitation stable where she rode, she fell in love with the majestic animal almost immediately. He was an off the track race horse who had broken his left foreleg, and was going to be put down. The owner of the ranch Sam Carter, had rescued him, and brought him to the farm. There Tala decided that she wanted to take care of him. She remembered the first day that she saw him. He was trembling in his stall, with a huge cast on his leg, he tried to walk around, but he stumbled and almost fell. When she tried to pet him, he tried to bite her. For 2 weeks he wouldn't let anyone near him. Then one day, 2 days after his cast came off; he let Tala touch his sleek black coat. After that small breakthrough friendship came quickly, and soon Tala could easily lead Free, as she now called him, around. After a month she was able to ride him, but Sam was planning on selling Free, so she convinced her parents to buy him.
When the received Free's racing papers, they found out that he was an extremely well bred horse, and decided to fulfill the dream of owning a horse ranch. Tala then decided to be a jockey, and her parents supported that decision, but the other people involved weren't as pleased. She had to prove herself over and over again, but was finally accepted as one of the best jockeys in Nevada. Jeff was the first person who believed in her, and after a few races they became friends. 'Now he's dead' she though 'and I'll never see him again'. She turned in the driveway to her house, and noticed the song on the radio it was Tears in Heaven. "Well that's certainly a fitting song," she said to no one in particular. The song ended and she shut off the engine. As she slipped out of the truck and into her chair, her dad came walking up.
"Hey Tala, we just got a new rider, name's Mark Doble, want to take him out for a spin on Wind Chaser? See what he can do?" He asked.
"Sure thing, I'll get right to it, oh who should I ride?" She replied.
"Give him a challenge ride Mist, besides don't you ride him this weekend?" He answered.
"Yeah I have 2 races with him on Saturday, and 1 on Sunday, he'll love to stretch his legs anyways." She said as she wheeled off to the 100-horse barn that housed 86 horses at the moment, including Free and 29 of his sons and daughters.
She tacked up Mist, and led the horse out to the track that was directly behind the barn. Mist followed with no trouble, considering that he had no lead rope on and was not restrained in any way. Because Tala needed the use of both hands, she had taught the horses that she worked with most to follow her wherever she went. When they arrived at the track, she saw Mark already warming up Wind Chaser. She watched the dark haired boy take the horse through a series of slow collected canters gradually accelerating to a light gallop, along the backstretch. She went over to the mounting block, and called Mist to her, she easily pulled herself up onto the horse, and attached the leather straps that kept her legs in place, and then gently guided Mist to the barren dirt track. Tala was one of the main trainers for the farm, and her main strategy was gain the horse's trust, and don't force them into being something that they aren't. More then a few of Free's children had gone to be something other then a race horse, 3 had become working horses, providing mounts for the police, because of their gentle and easygoing nature, not fitting of a race horse, but perfect for a working horse. Even more had gone to been steeple chasers, and show jumpers, because of their excellent jumping skills and agility. Some had even gone back to Sam Carter to be mounts for the children there. And then there were the racers, for a stallion Free had produced more great racehorses then almost any other stallion, and his sons also carried the ability to pass the traits of the father. One speculation on the tracks was that it wasn't the bloodlines but the training; Tala used an innovative training technique, teaching horses to love winning. A horse that loves to win is a horse that will run with heart. Also Tala never beat her horses, because she needed to use both hands to ride, she couldn't hold a crop, but whenever she ran her horses, they always seemed to get better times then when the other jockey's ran them, so she got rid of all the crops, and told the jockey's to urge the horses on with words like she did, and the horses ran better. Because of this they had a hard time keeping jockeys, because they felt as if they were worthless if the horse could win without them involved, and that was the reason Mark Doble was sitting in front of her right then.
"Hey you must be Mark, I'm Tala, nice to meet you" Tala said as she extended her hand. He shook it, and she noticed that he had a nice firm grip, one of the most important things for a jockey. "You think that Wind is warmed up enough?" She asked.
"Yeah, she's pretty good, got a real nice stride. Who are you riding?" He replied.
"This is Freedom's Misty Morning, he's my baby, I've raised him from a colt, and well now he's pretty big!" She answered. "He doesn't need a warm up, he's been out all day. So let's go. We're going to do an easy mile, not too hard, but not to easy either, don't let her go all out. After that we'll do a ΒΌ mile at top speed, and then a cool down mile. Oh and loose the crop, you don't need it, she'll run if you ask" With that said Tala rode Mist to the starting pole for the mile. Mark followed after her, dropping his crop at the line. "Ready, set, GO!" Tala yelled, and they took off. The horses were neck to neck, until Tala, gently urged Mist to g a little faster. Mist easily took the lead. Tala looked back to see if Mark figured out how to get Wind to go faster without a crop. He hadn't. 'Oh well his problem' she thought. They came to the half-mile pole with Mist still easily leading Wind. Then suddenly Mark came up on her right side, and once again the horses were neck and neck. Tala smiled to herself. 'Looks like we got a winner here' she thought as she slowly eased Mist out of his gallop as they reached the mile pole. Soon both horses were stopped and Tala walked Mist over to Mark and Wind.
"Good race. We're going to skip the rest, because it's getting dark, and we both need to eat. Get Wind cleaned up and in her stall, then meet me in the tack room." She turned and Mark left the track. She then took Mist for a slow gallop around the track. She easily dismounted and led him back to his roomy box stall. There she cleaned him off, and put on his blanket. After she gathered her tack, she wheeled off to the tack room, to find the door open, and light streaming out into the hallway. Inside was Mark who looked up when she entered, and she saw a look of surprise plant itself on his face.
"You.you can't walk." He said in utter amazement.
"Well no, I can't, doesn't mean I can't ride" She said a bit defensively.
"I didn't mean it like that," He said "It's just well."
"Don't worry, you aren't the only one to have this type of reaction, a lot of people think that people who can't walk can't do a lot of things that they really can. So how did you like riding Wind?"
"She's a great horse, has a lot of potential" He said
"Well we better get to dinner, you're invited by the way" she said as she wheeled off towards the house.
The Horse
by John Anthony Davies
I saw a child who could not walk,
sit on a horse, laugh and talk.
Then ride it through a field of daisies
And yet he could not walk unaided.
I I saw a child, no legs below,
sit on a horse and make it go
through woods of green and places he had never been
to sit and stare, except for a chair.
I saw a child who could only crawl,
mount a horse and sit up tall;
then put it through a degree of paces
and laugh at the wonder in our faces.
I saw a child born into strife,
take up and hold the reins of life.
And that same child, was heard to say,
thank God for showing me the way.....
Chapter 2: Thoughts and the Radio
On the ride home Tala was deep in thought. It just seemed like it was all a dream, there was no way that Jeff could be dead. He was one of her few real friends. Because of her disability she scared off a lot of kids her own age. She had found that the people who really were friends were the other jockeys at the track as well as her horses.
Ever since she was little Tala had a deep connection with horses. Until her accident she had never been hurt on a horse, and seemed to know what they wanted, not like shoe could talk to them, but she knew when they were happy or sad or hurt. She had been riding since the time she was 5. After her accident she wanted to ride again, but her parents didn't want her to. After a lot of coaxing though she proved all the good that riding could do, she had done extensive research, and when she first got back on a horse she found that horses were one thing that didn't change when you couldn't walk. You could still do all the things you did before, and it was one of the few freeing moments for her. When Freedom's Song came to the rehabilitation stable where she rode, she fell in love with the majestic animal almost immediately. He was an off the track race horse who had broken his left foreleg, and was going to be put down. The owner of the ranch Sam Carter, had rescued him, and brought him to the farm. There Tala decided that she wanted to take care of him. She remembered the first day that she saw him. He was trembling in his stall, with a huge cast on his leg, he tried to walk around, but he stumbled and almost fell. When she tried to pet him, he tried to bite her. For 2 weeks he wouldn't let anyone near him. Then one day, 2 days after his cast came off; he let Tala touch his sleek black coat. After that small breakthrough friendship came quickly, and soon Tala could easily lead Free, as she now called him, around. After a month she was able to ride him, but Sam was planning on selling Free, so she convinced her parents to buy him.
When the received Free's racing papers, they found out that he was an extremely well bred horse, and decided to fulfill the dream of owning a horse ranch. Tala then decided to be a jockey, and her parents supported that decision, but the other people involved weren't as pleased. She had to prove herself over and over again, but was finally accepted as one of the best jockeys in Nevada. Jeff was the first person who believed in her, and after a few races they became friends. 'Now he's dead' she though 'and I'll never see him again'. She turned in the driveway to her house, and noticed the song on the radio it was Tears in Heaven. "Well that's certainly a fitting song," she said to no one in particular. The song ended and she shut off the engine. As she slipped out of the truck and into her chair, her dad came walking up.
"Hey Tala, we just got a new rider, name's Mark Doble, want to take him out for a spin on Wind Chaser? See what he can do?" He asked.
"Sure thing, I'll get right to it, oh who should I ride?" She replied.
"Give him a challenge ride Mist, besides don't you ride him this weekend?" He answered.
"Yeah I have 2 races with him on Saturday, and 1 on Sunday, he'll love to stretch his legs anyways." She said as she wheeled off to the 100-horse barn that housed 86 horses at the moment, including Free and 29 of his sons and daughters.
She tacked up Mist, and led the horse out to the track that was directly behind the barn. Mist followed with no trouble, considering that he had no lead rope on and was not restrained in any way. Because Tala needed the use of both hands, she had taught the horses that she worked with most to follow her wherever she went. When they arrived at the track, she saw Mark already warming up Wind Chaser. She watched the dark haired boy take the horse through a series of slow collected canters gradually accelerating to a light gallop, along the backstretch. She went over to the mounting block, and called Mist to her, she easily pulled herself up onto the horse, and attached the leather straps that kept her legs in place, and then gently guided Mist to the barren dirt track. Tala was one of the main trainers for the farm, and her main strategy was gain the horse's trust, and don't force them into being something that they aren't. More then a few of Free's children had gone to be something other then a race horse, 3 had become working horses, providing mounts for the police, because of their gentle and easygoing nature, not fitting of a race horse, but perfect for a working horse. Even more had gone to been steeple chasers, and show jumpers, because of their excellent jumping skills and agility. Some had even gone back to Sam Carter to be mounts for the children there. And then there were the racers, for a stallion Free had produced more great racehorses then almost any other stallion, and his sons also carried the ability to pass the traits of the father. One speculation on the tracks was that it wasn't the bloodlines but the training; Tala used an innovative training technique, teaching horses to love winning. A horse that loves to win is a horse that will run with heart. Also Tala never beat her horses, because she needed to use both hands to ride, she couldn't hold a crop, but whenever she ran her horses, they always seemed to get better times then when the other jockey's ran them, so she got rid of all the crops, and told the jockey's to urge the horses on with words like she did, and the horses ran better. Because of this they had a hard time keeping jockeys, because they felt as if they were worthless if the horse could win without them involved, and that was the reason Mark Doble was sitting in front of her right then.
"Hey you must be Mark, I'm Tala, nice to meet you" Tala said as she extended her hand. He shook it, and she noticed that he had a nice firm grip, one of the most important things for a jockey. "You think that Wind is warmed up enough?" She asked.
"Yeah, she's pretty good, got a real nice stride. Who are you riding?" He replied.
"This is Freedom's Misty Morning, he's my baby, I've raised him from a colt, and well now he's pretty big!" She answered. "He doesn't need a warm up, he's been out all day. So let's go. We're going to do an easy mile, not too hard, but not to easy either, don't let her go all out. After that we'll do a ΒΌ mile at top speed, and then a cool down mile. Oh and loose the crop, you don't need it, she'll run if you ask" With that said Tala rode Mist to the starting pole for the mile. Mark followed after her, dropping his crop at the line. "Ready, set, GO!" Tala yelled, and they took off. The horses were neck to neck, until Tala, gently urged Mist to g a little faster. Mist easily took the lead. Tala looked back to see if Mark figured out how to get Wind to go faster without a crop. He hadn't. 'Oh well his problem' she thought. They came to the half-mile pole with Mist still easily leading Wind. Then suddenly Mark came up on her right side, and once again the horses were neck and neck. Tala smiled to herself. 'Looks like we got a winner here' she thought as she slowly eased Mist out of his gallop as they reached the mile pole. Soon both horses were stopped and Tala walked Mist over to Mark and Wind.
"Good race. We're going to skip the rest, because it's getting dark, and we both need to eat. Get Wind cleaned up and in her stall, then meet me in the tack room." She turned and Mark left the track. She then took Mist for a slow gallop around the track. She easily dismounted and led him back to his roomy box stall. There she cleaned him off, and put on his blanket. After she gathered her tack, she wheeled off to the tack room, to find the door open, and light streaming out into the hallway. Inside was Mark who looked up when she entered, and she saw a look of surprise plant itself on his face.
"You.you can't walk." He said in utter amazement.
"Well no, I can't, doesn't mean I can't ride" She said a bit defensively.
"I didn't mean it like that," He said "It's just well."
"Don't worry, you aren't the only one to have this type of reaction, a lot of people think that people who can't walk can't do a lot of things that they really can. So how did you like riding Wind?"
"She's a great horse, has a lot of potential" He said
"Well we better get to dinner, you're invited by the way" she said as she wheeled off towards the house.