CATCH AN EYE
In the Summer of 2012 The S.E.C. purchased a promising six year old buckskin mare named, Honey, for the lesson program. Hollywood romanticized girl/horse crushes over her beauty seemed to quickly trump any affection most of our female riders had for the other horses. They ALL wanted to ride her… pet her… give her treats… groom her! I’m sure when every girl on Salem campus saw here playfully gallivanting out in the pasture for the first time, strains of the composition “Run Free” wafted through their heads as they imagined effortlessly galloping bareback through open fields with their hair blowing in the wind behind them. What horse crazy young girl wouldn’t?!? Salem was totally enamored… and inspired by this beautiful, curious, friendly and engaging new horse.
But Honey was still young, and according to policy, in training with the Stable’s instructors for the next few months as she settled into her new home, learning how to be a calm and mannerly beginner lesson horse. So the girls stood by and “drooled”… coveting that day when they would finally get to ride the horse that looked like, Spirit, from Disney’s “Stallion of the Cimarron”.
During this time Honey caught one young ladies eye in particular. Anne had arrived at Salem earlier that summer in such a state of depression that she avoided eye contact, conversation, or any visible signs of interest in the world around her. Through the months of June and July Anne came to the stable as a participant in Salem's Summer Program. She slowly climbed out of her depression in Salem’s safe environment, but continued to treat the world around her with indifference, pushing away kindness and refusing to get involved with the horses... until Honey arrived. The first time Anne saw Honey, is the first time I saw a "light" in her eyes.
Honey was not available to ride yet, but she was in need of someone to take care of her, groom her and help her settle into her new home. Anne took on the job with eagerness!! She continued to arrive with her Summer Program group, increasingly with a spring in her step and her chin up, ready to spend time with Honey. At first all she really wanted to do was spend time quietly and meticulously brushing Honey until her coat gleamed and there was not a speck of dust in sight. She began to take pride in her work, and obviously enjoyed and coveted Honey’s quiet, curious companionship. She often expressed joy in the fact that Honey recognized her and began to blossom under the acceptance and support that Honey offered.
Eventually the day came when Honey was ready to enter the lesson program, and Anne was asked to be her first rider. Anne was ready! She had grown in trust and confidence through working with Honey. Since their first ride together in 2013 Honey has formed a special bond with Anne as she has worked tirelessly to improve as a rider. As Anne has progressed with Honey she has grown in joy and blossomed in personality. Today she is a humorous and sympathetic individual, a competent rider and conversationalist, and a good student with an interest in music, riding, clothing design and jewelry.
Only God knows what went on in Anne’s heart as she weekly spent solitary time grooming Honey in her stall. All I can say is that I am glad Honey caught her eye, and was able to help heal her heart!
Recently for a writing assignment in school Anne wrote of her own experience with Honey with great confidence. Here is what she had to say:
“I’ve changed Honey and made her into a better horse. I’ve trained her to walk straight and not to let her neck go sideways, and she is getting better at that. She has a problem with her back (straightness) because she was not fully trained. She gets jealous very easily and every time I see her outside in the pasture she always has the biggest thing of hay. She will even push the other horses out of the way to get their hay… or when someone is petting another horse, she will push the other horse out of the way because she wants you to pet her! She can also be stubborn at times, that’s why she is my horse, because I can be stubborn at times too. Sometimes I wish I could just take Honey with me when I leave. I would just ride her up the hill and have a trailer at the top of the hill and take her to my new foster home… and I would spoil her. I would get a black horse too, and a white horse… an all-white one with little gray spots… so she will have someone to play with.”
