Saturday, January 27, 2007

Ελληνικά


Some folks are born with the bug, the fever, a burning desire. It's like a calling, really. Others may enjoy it for a little while; they may like to go for a ride, or brag to their friends; yet it's something they lose interest in eventually. But those with horse fever never outgrow it. It's been known to drive people into bankruptcy as well as divorce court. And there's no known cure...


I don't remember when I didn't have that burning desire to be with horses. My kindergarten report card says, "Tracey enjoys animals, especially large ones such as dogs and horses." I remember living in town and seeing a horse go down the street one day; I nearly jumped through the living room window in my scramble to go after it (they make doors for that, as I soon discovered.)


As a lad, my grandfather had traveled from New York State to Washington State, and I used to beg him for stories of the old west. I envisioned him sitting at a camp full of cowboys around a fire of glowing embers with nearby corrals made of logs. I'd always ask if he'd seen any wild horses while he travelled, and he said he had, filling my young head with all sorts of stories. I'd fancied my grandfather taking a wagon train all those years ago, but while it had been a train, there were no wagons. Indeed, as a young adult, long after Grandpa had passed away, I realized most of his stories had been just that; a bit of Irish blarney with which to entertain and amuse his young granddaughter.


I'm not alone when it comes to having horse fever. In fact, you may also be one of the afflicted. As I said...there is no cure...and quite honestly, do we want one?

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