In Remembrance, A Quite Wonderful Horse

As most of the regular readers of this blog are aware, my horse, Natural, died on December 1 of last year.  Shutterfly,one of my favorite (user-friendly) photo memorabilia companies, very recently offered a free 8x8 photo book.  I spent a bit of time yesterday gathering some of my favorite photos of Natural to take advantage of the offer.

I'd like to share just a few of them with you.

I thank good friend Brenda for spending time with Natch and me last September to snap a slew of  candid pictures, and, Archie Neil for his time and talent in October capturing some heart-breakingly lovely moments.

Apollo (on the right) was always in the vicinity

Spring's Pitfalls

Its that time of early spring when one's boots step into inches of water and mud and one doesn't quite know if boots will follow the feet for the intended next step.  Delightful.

  And one has to be a Houdini to find dry and clean spots to feed donkeys.

The sled has been replaced by the wagon to haul water.  Let me assure you dragging a wagon up the driveway through the mud is not an easy or enjoyable task.

As I ponder these changes  I ask which would be preferred (albeit a rather senseless exercise) -- the chilling cold temps, the ice which appears each morning as the previous day's thaw freezes at night, or the boot-sucking oozing mud.  Questions to ponder.

One can only hope the pondering period is brief and solid dry ground emerges soon.  Please!

Friendly Visitor

It's time for you to meet Jasper.  I'm his Friendly Visitor.

After Natural died, I approached the barn owner to see if any horses needed some extra visits -- perhaps their owner couldn't get to the barn for whatever reason.  Instantly she thought of Jasper.  His owner is experiencing health problems and was delighted that I could go out and provide lovin' and treats.

As it turns out Jasper is a senior (29 years) and was on the periphery of Natural's posse.

So I've been visiting the sweet boy on Sundays.

A nice bowl of hot slop on a cold wintry day is always a good thing.

By now, you should all be familiar with the preparation for hot slop, and yes, there will be a quiz later.









Admittedly I don't have the emotional commitment I did with my own horse, whom I still miss like blazes.  So visiting only once a week is fine.  But I do believe the visits are good for Jasper and they're good for me.
To stay connected to my friends at the barn and to still be able to get a horse hug.

Donkey Photo Ops

Temps were a wee bit warmer the other day, allowing me to take the "good" camera out for a spin with the donks.

Here are the results.  (Franny was too busy wanting head rubs and checking my pocket to allow for a photography session.)

Luigi in all his Eyeore glory

The boy in a nice tight CU

Gabby illustrates the wonder of yellow teeth 

More pics as the warm-up unfolds...