Generosity

I wasn't the typical horse crazy kid. In fact, I made fun of the girls who liked horses up until I was eight or nine. For me, it was never a phase. I fell in love with equines and, while there are days that I don't want to go to the barn, I've loved horses for over a decade now. One of the ways I developed my never ending love for horses was by reading every horse book I could get my hands on. 

Justin Morgan Had a Horse, Misty of Chincoteague, and a series about Race Horses.

Maybe why I love Arabians so much?

Not sure where the cover of Black Beauty went!

I've read each of these books, and many others, more times than I can count. Before I had a horse, books were the closest thing. Heartland (while fictional and not super accurate) was one of my all time favorite horse series. I didn't like the show as much. But the book series formed much of my horsey dream, with the combined influence of two other books. 

  

I forget which book comes first and which is the sequel, but these two books are a collection of short stories from a real ranch in Oregon. Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch is a ranch based on the christian faith that rescues abused, neglected, and otherwise unwanted horses and rehabilitates them for therapy purpose. The stories of hope from both dying horses and humans suffering emotionally, physically, or mentally are so encouraging. For a long time I wanted to start my own ranch like CPYR. 

As I've gotten older, that dream has faded. Now I hope to someday own a farmhouse and pasture in the country where I can rescue and retrain horses, as well as open my home to people who need a place of comfort and security. It's a long ways away, but I'll see what happens in time. 

There are a lot of other places like this particular ranch. Spread across the U.S. and I'm sure other countries as well, they seek to offer hope and comfort to horses and humans who have been mistreated. It's "Giving Tuesday" today, but I would strongly urge all members of the equestrian community to find a worthy cause and give generously on a regular basis, not just once a year. Horses are incredible creatures. They do something for us emotionally that is difficult to explain to someone who hasn't experienced it. If we understand that powerful connection, we ought to do what we can to spread it to people who need it. 

I also strongly recommend reading these books. They are for sale here and here, for $8.00 plus shipping. You could also get them off of Amazon, but the proceeds go straight to the ranch if you purchase them from the store on the CPYR website. 

**Disclaimer: I'm not being compensated or anything like that. This is a cause I have been passionate about for many years. (I'm actually a little nervous about copyright laws with the photos copied off the internet)**