Copper

  The giving and receiving of affection between human and beast is pretty unique, in my opinion.  There is a special comfort in taking care of an animal physically and being emotionally cared for in return.  The connection is so rewarding.  I've always loved animals.  All kinds.  If I hadn't already decided that a mothering agenda was most important to me,  I would have been a plausible applicant for vetrinary school. 

On the other hand, my appreciation for horses has never been enough to make me desire one.  Their commanding presence and enormous size have always been a little bit frightening to me.  My only memory of riding a horse is comical, at best.  My family took a vacation to the Rocky Mountains when I was 12 or 13.  There, we ended up on horseback on a ranch in Wyoming.  What was a wonderfully memorable experience for my family ended up being a frustrating and slightly scary experience for me.  I was assigned to a horse named Joe who showed no respect for his rider.  While the line of riders in front of me traveled in tidy procession, Joe was trying to turn around or veer off the beaten path.

So when my young sisters expressed interest in horses and my mom announced that they'd be owning one, I was anything but thrilled.  I helped build fence out of the kindness of my heart and kept negative thoughts to myself.  And then his home was ready and Copper became the newest family member.  The first day, I designated myself photographer as an excuse to keep some distance.  The following day I ended up outside by myself and decided to give Copper a chance and go say "hello".  Hello turned into a touch, then a response, and suddenly there was a connection --the human to beast kind that I never expected or hoped to have with a horse.