"No 'h', don't ask me why..."

I've loved horses ever since I can remember. I started riding in pre-k (age 4?) with a friend of the family who has always had horses. I would ride a little shetland named Zorro, who was probably not the best kid's horse. At age 5/6, I took a few lessons in basic western (as basic as any 5/6 year old would be, lol). My memory is quite spotty on specifics at that point. From 1st-3rd grade, I participated in playdays with my friends on their horses. Cantering to and trotting around barrels was the best we ever did. I'm looking at a first place ribbon I have back then and the time says 33 seconds. Wow.

I got my first horse when I was 8. Her name was Wisper (no H.. don't ask me why). She was a goofy sorrel mare that was 14. She was lazy, and she often bucked. Cantering for me was a rare experience, because it happened in short bursts followed by bucking. I did a few playdays on this mare, and I even went through a jumping phase where I trotted her over tiny "jumps" made of bricks and an occasional pole stacked on one another. I eventually sold her because I was bored of having no goal to work towards and little time to ride.

Before I sold Wisper, I got a horse named Lucky. He was a QH gelding, bay... age unknown. If I would've seen him today, I would've known he wasn't quite right. He was stiff on his legs and his coat was dull. He had a strange odor to him, that of medicine. The man that sold him was a shady character, to top it all off. Anyway, he was as stubborn as they come, and he ended up getting equine herpes viris (or so we suspect. Our vet knows nothing it seems...). He went down one day in the pasture (his back legs seemed to not work). He was put down.

Since then I've had a miniature horse, just because I love horses. He was really easy going and let me do what I wanted to him, but in the end he was sold too.

I've missed riding more than anyone but a true horselover could know.