Spirit Herd

Had to say good-bye to a couple of great horses.
Redundant, there; they're all great horses.
Every damn one of them...

They're not mine and the decision to let them out of this world isn't mine, either.
Hard decision, no matter what, and I'm not second-guessing.

One seems to have been dancing his last dance for the last week or two.
Lost weight. Not interested in eating much.
Eschews company.
Been lying down all the time.
Has that 2000 yard stare in his eye...

Yesterday, I saw him upright in the afternoon, facing the setting sun.
Then he went down.
Tries to get up, like a finished fighter trying to beat the count.
But he hasn't got anything left.

I'm glad he had that last moment in the sun.

Good-bye.
The hardest word in the English language.


sj