Saving The Wild Horses

“My mother used to tell me a story about the horses that once lived near our home. They lived in the wild open pastures that used to exist before more people came here to live in the beautiful land we call home.

“There were so many of them, Sammy, and they lived there for thousands of years.” She would pull out a little black book that told the stories and the histories of each horse. She says the names and tell me about her favorite mare, a beautiful golden palomino that led the herd. “She was the one that thousands of people tried to get a hold of, but they could never catch her. She was as wild as they could come.” She said down the book and smiled. “That is one that I will never forget and what my grandma and I did to save her life and the horses with her.”

Now back when she was still alive, she would lead me about the barn and show the mare that I could read all about in the little black book. But since she is no longer here, I will tell you about the story and why it still sticks in my mind. And this is it…

*

My mother had first come here when she was a little girl. My grandmother would show her the horses that wandered the area. She would tell her who the mother and father were, and if the horse were still in the same herd as they were born in, she would point out the mother and the father, who of course was the lead horse of that herd.

Every year, my mother came to visit the horses, she was fascinated to learn about each of the new horses, but she did not like it when not a single one would catch her attention. It caused her to come home that day in tears. She wanted to have one of the many horses in that herd catch her attention.

Now when she was fifteen years old, she returned and searched once more for that one horse that would catch her attention. Finally, one of them caught her attention. It was the palomino mare. She stood out among the other horses because she was the center of attention. Every horse would stop and look at her, but the problem was my mother was not the only one that was interested in the mare and the horses around her.

There was a group of men that wandered the area looking for horses to capture and sell. They wanted to make some quick money, and the horses would be an easy profit. Most people around the area did not like the horses as my mother and grandmother did. They wanted the horses to go away and leave the land, but my grandmother stood against it. She did not know how she was going to save the horses. She only had about twenty thousand dollars, and that could only save about fifteen of them, but there were thirty of them living in the herd that my mother had watched since she was a little girl.

She was bound and determined to save the horses and wanted to find out how they could use that money to save them all. There had to be another way.

“They belong here, Mother. They were here before us and have a right to continue to be here long after us. There is no reason for them to leave anyway. The area that they live in is covered in wild grasses that no one can control. It is why the horses have been able to live there for so long, to begin with. You cannot…”

“I am not losing faith, Christina. I want to save those horses as much as you do, but it is hard.”

My mother shook her head. “Instead of saying it is hard, you should start helping me think of ways to save them. There is no way we can lose those horses. They will sell them to anyone who will take them, and that includes meat buyers.”

My grandmother’s mouth dropped open, and my mother knew then that she would not back down until the horses were saved. “I cannot believe…” She shook her head. “Never mind, I can believe you went there because you know I like nothing about that and how that should have stopped a long time ago.”

“Now that you are on board, what are your ideas? I know you have some.”

She placed a little black book on the table and smiled. “We are going to tell the story of the horses and how they got here. That money is the perfect way to get people to help us. We can not move those horses somewhere else. That is their home. We do not need to buy them. We need to save them. We can use the money to make t-shirts and put on a fair that will bring attention to them.”

“Now that is what I am talking about.” My mother stood up and walked out of the room. She headed to the small den where she kept her colored pencils and paper. She grabbed several drawings she had already down and laid them down on the table.

“What are these?”

“I have focused on drawing some pictures of the different horses that I see when I come. We can use these to get attention for the fair. Each horse deserves to have some for them. Do you think we can get close enough to get a lock of hair?”

She shook her head. “No, I cannot, but I am sure you can find someone who can.”

My mother nodded her head. “Each person could get a small lock of hair and a picture of the horse that sticks out to them.”

“I love that idea, but that is going to take some work, and you may have to be the one to gain their trust enough to do that.”

My mother smiled. “I know.” She leaned back in the chair. “The reason I want to do this is that I fell in love with horses when I was a little girl, and it was only when I found one that caught my attention that I fell in love with them even more, and that was when I discovered what going on.”

She laughed. “The palomino; the one that was born this spring. She was the one that caught your attention.”

“She was. It is just something about her.”

“She is different from the rest and stands out when the others can blend in and hide. They do not have to worry about people seeing them as much as she does.”

“Do you think the group started looking at the herd more because she is in it?”

She sighed. “Yes, I do. I do not think they would sell her for meat. She would make someone a great riding horse or broodmare if she can produce her coat color.”

“She should be able to stay with the herd.”

“I know, but again, that means we need to save them.”

Over the next few weeks, my mother and grandmother went out to the herd to check on the wild horses and see how they were doing. My mother had to work extremely hard to get close enough to each horse to get a small lock of hair from them. It was a challenge, but the horses seemed to understand what was going on. The only horse she was having a problem with was the palomino, who always seemed to be able to get away from her.

After an hour or two, they headed over to a hill where they would have a nice view of the horses. My mother pulled out the sandwiches and chips while my grandmother continued to write all she knew about the different horses and their individual stories in the little black book.

“Which horses have you talked about so far, Mother?”

“The stallion, of course. He was one of the reasons this herd exists, to begin with. He is the reason why they came here. He had to find his own home and his land that was nowhere near his father’s.”

“But the herd does react with other horses, or there would be inbreeding which have been none of.”

“You are right, Christiana, but they have never run into his father’s herd. The horses that interact have lived around here in other parts, but for some reason, have not been able to adapt to living among the wild horses.” My grandmother smiled.

While they had gathered more information about horses and drawings of them, the two women still had another task on their hands that would be harder than the one they were dealing with right now, finding a way to make the fair a possibility.

On the weekend, they headed into the small town and posted some of the drawings of the horses to try and grab attention about what was happening.

“Why are you trying to save those horses?” A young lady walked over to them. “They do not represent this town. The people who live here do. We are the ones that keep this town running.”

“That may be true in some ways, but the horses have been here for a lot longer than we have. They deserve to continue to live here.”

“She is right about that, you know, Rebecca. My mother used to tell me all about those horses. They do not cause anyone any problems, and they live among the wild grasses.”

“I know that Elizabeth, but we do not need them here. What is the harm of that group taking them away from here?”

“Because they do not care who they are sold to. The horses could be sold to anyone, including meat buyers.”

“That would not happen…”

My mother walked up to her. “Yes, it could. We need to save them, and I will not let you stand in our way.”

“How much money have you raised?”

“I was planning on using the twenty thousand dollars, and we could run a small fair to do more.”

“You won that money in a lottery a few months, and you have not touched it. Why touch it now?”

My mother turned to my grandmother. “You just got the money. You never told me that.”

“I did not think it mattered where I got the money. I just know that it needs to be used for a good cause, and this is a good one.”

She smiled. “True.”

*

Now that you know some of why this story will stay with me forever, you will be able to understand why it was essential to save the horses. There may have been some people who did not want the horses to stay, but the ones that did come together to fight for them make sure that they would win. It was a victory that has continued to bring joy to the people who get the experience what the horses can mean to them and find that perfect horse that catches their attention.”

Samantha looked over the crowd of people stood in front of her that had come to the fair that year. It was the story that was told at the beginning of the fair every year, and it would continue to be told. She set down the little black book and smiled. That money that her mother had told her about was the reason the first fair was even possible, and without it, the horses would not still be here.