I'm in Love

Yep, I admit it.
I'm in love.
He's tall, dark, and handsome, a big galoot by the name of Cochise. He's a black brute who stands 17 hands tall.
Of course Cochise is a horse.

I recently met a lovely lady by the name of Pat who lives just a couple streets down from me. My husband did some remodeling work for her. She's a retired school teacher whose real passion is for horses. She has several of her own, and boards a few more.

Pat thinks it's just great that she got to meet me - a real live author.

I've been jonesing to get back on a horse ever since we moved here to the White Mountains with a stable and corral in the back yard - but no occupants. With a signed copy of Golden Enchantment in hand as a bribe, I casually mentioned to Pat that if she never needed someone to ride her extra horses, I was the woman for the job.

Well, she did, and I got to. Ride, that is.

Little did I know she was going to pick this big black brute of a gelding named Cochise for me to ride. The first time I used a stepstool to climb aboard and view the world from up in the clouds. I didn't feel so bad when another riding companion, Rosie, had to do the same to get on her smaller horse.
(That's the three amigas there in the photo - Pat on the left on her horse Ribbon, the 80-year-old dynamo, Rosie, on Bunny in the middle, and me, astride Cochise.)

I was a bit nervous at first. After all, I haven't been on a horse for nearly two decades - almost since I got rid of my own pure blooded Arabian, Nijem Warrior, so many years ago.

"His ride is as smooth as glass," Pat assured me. "You could hold a glass of wine while he's trotting and not spill a drop."

I was skeptical at first. How could such a huge animal be so smooth? But she's right. The big brute is gentle as a kitten and his gait feels like I'm riding a Cadillac.

According to Pat, Cochise loves me. I've taken a big leap and can now mount him without that silly step stool. I trust him enough to let him gallop. He hugs me with a nuzzle from his smooth, velvety face and I feed him a horse cookie to watch his gentle brown eyes close in contenment. I'm falling, fast.

Yep, I'm in love. And his name is Cochise.