TRIBUTES
IN MEMORY OF POE
He was just a small chestnut Arab gelding that had obviously seen much, much younger days. A man and a young girl stood next to his cramped stall at the horse auction waiting to talk to anyone that might be interested in taking the old guy off their hands. The young girl explained how she learned to ride on him, but that she now had a younger, faster horse. Ponita (her name for him) was sidelined to a stall now that she had a “better” horse.
There was something in his eyes that said, “Take me home.” My interest in him was mainly for safety reasons. The fact that he was a small horse made him appear to suit the younger beginner riders in my family (shorter distance to fall off of). I bought Poe before he went through auction and brought him home to live with the rest of the throw-a-ways I had collected.
I expected a horse with knowledge of the working cues, and the experience that makes a good saddle horse. What we ended up getting during that last year of Poe’s life was much more than I expected.
We knew he was aged, Doc told us he thought somewhere around 27 years old (or young, if you were to listen to Poe, himself). He wasn’t much to look at, but he sure had a heart of pure gold.
My nephew, Matthew, was a mixed-up kid with anger issues. He came to live with me to work around the animals because his mother didn’t know what to do to help him.
Poe became Matthew’s horse and his responsibility. Matthew was willing to do everything for this old horse; and Poe definitely needed someone to care for and love him in his twilight years. Matthew showed Poe he cared and, in turn, Poe was everything a kid’s first horse should be. Poe taught Matthew much about horses and gave him confidence in the saddle and in his own life.
He followed Matthew around like a puppy and even suffered through wearing hats and costumes for this young kid. Together they went on camping trips, rode in parades, participated in trail trials and sensory clinics and enjoyed just plain wonderful, peaceful rides together. He was always ready to go with Matthew anywhere and at a speed that belied his many years. Those around Matthew saw the change come over him as he met people sharing his interest in horses, made new friends and worked at meeting his responsibilities.
Poe’s age finally caught up with him, and, of course, it was
heartbreaking to let him go. But, Poe’s job here on earth was done and
I truly believe this old horse changed Matthew’s life, and for that,
we are grateful to this little horse for sharing his last year of life with
us. He did what no person could do to reach a troubled kid. He will always
be in my heart and I still think of him often.
If there were a moral to this story, I guess it would be not to overlook the
old friends, because they have much to teach.