Rarely do I write something that is one of my own experiences in such detail; usually you get the jist of my feeling, but not exact details. What I chose to write about today is one of those moments that is so purely embedded in your mind the memory will never fade, never lose the radiance of it’s color, there is no amount of time that could cause this to lose any of it’s enchantment.

There are moments like this that you remember forever, I can only relay them to when you stare into the eyes of your love for the first time and realize you will be with this person forever, or your child’s newborn eyes, even though I only know what one of those feels like, I know how it moved my soul.

Last night was a special night, two handsome friends took their last ride together, and two lifelong friends were lucky enough to be there for it. Rusty is my friend Tonya’s horse, he’s 21, she’s owned him just about his whole life, and then there’s Carbon who’s been my shadow and heart for 16 years now, Carbon is 20. Rusty came out of retirement for one last summer for Tonya so she could find the wild mare within that she believed she lost. Tomorrow Rusty goes back to retirement to live out his days in relaxation that he has earned with all of his hard work and devotion.

Horses are in our blood, sometimes in life you move away from them, or lose them, or in many cases can’t afford them. Just when you think you will never have them again, you get them back and then you can’t let go. I believe Rusty came out of retirement for this purpose for Tonya. As girls we run wild like fillies, and as we grow to mares, we lose the wild within, but we learn that mares run just as wild as fillies, they are just wiser about where they put their feet.

The moment was pouring rain, the sun had turned the skies the color of ash, thunder rolled in the distance far away in the mountains, the late summer alders filled the air with the scent of fall, and a long stretch of wet road curved before us. Both horses leapt forward at the same moment, their slick muscles bunching and releasing as they sliced through the rain. Two not so old girls went back in time and let go of the reins as the two horses’ one small and red and one huge and black that helped them find their wild within raced the storm. The two horses raced nose for nose, the black with long gliding strides the red with short fast bursts of power each held the respect for the other to race their final race with no winner, just as equals with an understanding of the importance that their job as our horses held. And time, for a brief moment felt as though it has paused for just the four of us, to record the memory in perfect detail so we could remember forever that no matter where we all are in life, we are truly free we only imagine that we are not.

I can only speak for myself when I say I cried and laughed at the same time. Carbon is the one horse who when I ride I feel like it’s my own feet moving and one heart beating, I know that my friend feels the same way about Rusty. There is no trust and faith as pure as that of a girl whose horse has walked the miles as if their lives were your own.

In life there are truly few moments that you remember with such great detail, I thank my readers for letting me share this one and it is my wish for all humanity that everyone has these moments as often as possible, and remember that you ARE FREE, no matter mare, filly, colt or stallion, we are FREE. Farewell Rusty, enjoy your retirement and green grass, we are eternally thankful for your devotion.