I Cry

At first sight you were a gangley young colt, contentedly grazing beside your dam. As I neared, you raised your head and with long lashed eyes you invaded my soul.

You raised your head as I neared,
The long lashed eyes searching mine.
No flight in mind, nothing to be feared,
A lifelong bond that would not fade with time

.

As you grew you would walk with me of your own accord, sometimes playful and wanting to run, at others standing quietly close by as I sat in the shade of a gum tree and wrote down my thoughts.

You would walk with me unbidden,
playful in your delight of spring.
Or stand quietly, your energy hidden,
while my fantasies in writing took wing.

The time came for you to be educated to saddle and bridle, until now, you had always run free. You willingly accepted me on your back when you came of age, prancing the yard in your excitement, but often turning your head to me for re-assurance.

Then the day you came of age,
for me to sit astride your back.
Your trembling excitement was hard to gauge,
my loving assurance you would never lack.

You grew in your magnificence, month by month, and had your times in the spotlight of the western arena, showing off your pure white coat splashed with black, on your strongly muscled body.

You would stand proudly in the arena,
Appalloosa was your repute.
Your muscles rippling, no competitor keener,
your superiority, no-one could dispute.

The plasticity of the showring was not for me and you made the transition to rodeoing with enthusiasm. You loved the chase of the steer, the twisting and turning at the barrels, the leap from the box as we raced to pluck a rosette from a yearling's neck. Oh how you loved it all.

With gusto you took to the chase of a steer,
and leapt from the box as you raced to undecorate.
Pounding hooves, violent horns, you never showed fear,
your power and speed, no-one could ever underate

.

Peaceful bush tracks gave us so much pleasure and we'd walk quietly through dappled shade. Your ears would flick forward at the sound of birds singing their symphony and you'd raise your head as though to watch the trees sway in rhythm to the tempo of the breeze. You stood still and watched young lambs frolick together, as though in a choreographed dance. The music of the buish was always there for us both.

We walked the quiet bush tracks of the land,
your curiosity always to the fore.
The breeze, the birds, all animals at hand,
you appeared to respect the land and its law.

Your growing years proved your incredible speed and we would gallop at full tilt across a clearing, jumping logs and leaping ditches, then slow to an easy lope that devoured distance.

You loved to gallop in the freedom of a field,
mane flying as a sail upon the sea.
We would race with the wind, our exuberance revealed,
both delighting in our right to be.

Often, we would swim togetheer in the rivers and you seemed to be ever mindful of my human fragility, never placing me at risk of your awesome strength.

The water cooled our sun hot skin,
as we splashed and romped and played.
The river gave release to our whim,
our departure we often delayed.

You have been contented in your twilight years, quietly standing in the shade, watching your offspring discover it all as you once did. But time waits for no-one and the years rushed on. I look at you and I'm reminded of our life together - the beauty, the excitement, the quiet times.

Your contentment with life is for all to see,
as you watch your mares and foals.
Your days are numbered, what will be, will be,
rest now mighty one - you have reached your goals.

You no longer have a glossy coat, your weight is rapidly dropping and the passing of years has taken its toll, I know you will soon have to leave me. I have stayed by your side now for two days, constantly re-assuring you that as you travel through the fading of your senses, you will not be alone. You rest there on your bed of hay and I lie with my head on your chest - I can hear your heartbeat slowing. There is no pain for you in this slow journey, just a final sigh.

You gave to me, without condition,
a love that lasted for life.
Your gentle ways, ever with prediction,
calming as a softly lilting fife.

I CRY