When a picture means a thousand words...

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black_horse

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This is Delicia (or dee dee) as some of you may know her. I owned her as an unbroken 3 year old and ours is a 7 year journy. I always thought of her as more then a horse. When i almost died she gave me the resolve to fight back, then it was my turn to help her. 3 years ago she contracted a very rare skin infection due to poor quarentine measures at the yard. The infection was covered up and delicia went into spetic shock. She went down in the stable and the vet was called. She was put of massive amounts of IV antiviotics and fluids but could not be moved. Despite my own problems i stayed up with her for days and helped her fight back. It took her 5 months to get over the infection.

But what is so special about delicia? She helped to keep my family together through so many bad times. She created a talking point and a bond where there previously had been none and helped to slowly mend the fractures that were once deep cracks. Here is a picture of my 8 year old grandfather coming to support us in our show. When i was very poorly in hospital i shut off from the world and let no one in. My grandad came to visit me and took my hand, and explained that life isnt fair, that bad things can happen to good people and sometimes there is not reason as to why, but that with love, family and hope, there will always be a future, but that if i were to give up on what i love most (delicia), then i might as well recide in my coffin. Life is for living, life is for loving, and we must strive every day to make sure we live our lives and love those within it.

My grandad suffered huge heart attack years ago and had a tripple by-pass opperation. He tells everyone he is fine...but i manage his medication in my place of work and am bound by the data protection act, but i know his heart is failing. He is looking older, and i am begining the face the fact he is, indeed aging, and indeed i will lose him one day. When the pain was/is too much he has always been there with words of wisdom to help guide me. I do not know what i will do when he passes on to be an angel.

Horses are more then animals, 'dumb beasts' or 'beasts of burdan', they are the soul catchers and joy givers. Sorry for an emotive post, but this photo has really shown me in such a small space of time home old my grandad has gotten.

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I don't know you but my word that has touched me. She is obviously such a special horse to you and you're family.

Horses are truly mysterious how they can put up with so much and yet give everything to us and with you two it is obviously a two way street. Lovely picture of you two and your grandad. He looks so proud.
 
black_horse said:
Horses are more then animals, 'dumb beasts' or 'beasts of burdan', they are the soul catchers and joy givers. Sorry for an emotive post, but this photo has really shown me in such a small space of time home old my grandad has gotten.
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A beautiful post and photograph... Memories BH, we never really stop to think about cataloguing them as we tootle through life but we really should...

After my son died I spent two years pretty much locked away from the world... Then spotted a pretty little yearling when livery hunting for a friend... Said yearling had a pair of eyes that wove a special bit of magic and I bought her - the start of venturing out into the world again and a new way of living for the whole family as a loan pony for the kids and a neglected TB joined us...

We were devastated when that gorgeous little girl had to be PTS due to a gut torsion... She came along when we all needed her and once her job of setting us on a new path was done, she moved along... People and animals come through our lives for differing periods of time and being grateful for the time we do have with them rather than fretting about the time we won't have is probably one of the hardest things we ever have to do...

Get your special painting... :)
 
Ladydragon said:
A beautiful post and photograph... Memories BH, we never really stop to think about cataloguing them as we tootle through life but we really should...

After my son died I spent two years pretty much locked away from the world... Then spotted a pretty little yearling when livery hunting for a friend... Said yearling had a pair of eyes that wove a special bit of magic and I bought her - the start of venturing out into the world again and a new way of living for the whole family as a loan pony for the kids and a neglected TB joined us...

We were devastated when that gorgeous little girl had to be PTS due to a gut torsion... She came along when we all needed her and once her job of setting us on a new path was done, she moved along... People and animals come through our lives for differing periods of time and being grateful for the time we do have with them rather than fretting about the time we won't have is probably one of the hardest things we ever have to do...

Get your special painting... :)
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I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your son and your filly. There are no words that i know of that can help comfort other then they were both too special for this life. I sm glad you found your filly when you did and she allowed you to enter the world again. *hugs*
 
That's a really moving post, and such a beautiful horse. And what a lovely picture. Your Grandad is a very wise man. Horses are very special, there is defintely something magical about them. Well, I believe that anyway. Beautiful post, beautiful picture, thank you for sharing your feelings. x
 
I couldnt agree more "Horses being soul catchers" my old horse caught my sould when i lost my mum I was 14 and had only him that post was so moving I hope your Grandad health stays stable pardon the pun and he has many years of life to share with you
 
beautiful story and a beautiful photo

grandads are incredibly special people and I miss mine every single day

horses are definitely more than just an animal
 
Some years ago a friend who kept her Welsh pony at livery with me got breast cancer. Not only did she have a masectomy but the cancer came back twice more. She was at such low ebb after the chemo etc, but her husband said to me that he thought it might cheer her up to ride - if she was strong enough to stay upright in the saddle.

So he would drive her out to our place. I'd get the pony ready - the most enchanting little fellow you could imagine - but my friend was so weak and tired that once, when I popped back into the house to get my gloves, she'd fallen asleep on the mounting block in the two minutes I'd been away.

That pony was so wonderful with her. He was actually her LDR pony, on which she had won innumerable rosettes. He was normally feisty and sharp, but he carried her round the lanes for months as if she had been a baby. She was so weak that I used to ride close alongside, a lead-rein hidden inside my shirt, in case I needed to 'take charge', but I never needed it. He never spooked, stumbled, got keen; and his delight on seeing her was tangible.

She has made a good recovery - her little man lived to be 30, and died with his head in her arms. I cried almost as much as her!
 
Awwww, now have tears in my eyes and a huge lump in my throat, along with a chocolate biscuit in my mouth which I'm now probably going to choke on!

Seriously though, a lovely post.
 
Dammit woman, that's twice this week you've moved me to tears! What a wonderful tale of success with Delicia, and what a wonderful Grandad you have 80)

Just remember that those pearls of wisdom will last forever and carry as much meaning, even when there comes a day that your Grandad no longer has the voice to share them with you. The greatest things in life inevitably end, and grief is the price that we all must pay for having something so wonderful with us. Until you have to face that, and I hope it's even longer away than you imagine, you have to enjoy what you have, and internalise the person, so you can still hear their advice when they're gone.

What a beautiful photo and sentiment m'dear 80)
 
Thank you everyone. I truly believe horses are more then a work animal and indeed should be treated as such. Delicia is so pampered it's unreal but not to the extent that she doesnt live like a horse should. :)

I just hate the inevitable :(. Grandad loves coming to shows even when dee is naughty. It makes him smile (because he's not the one on top of her!)

Q Q
 
Awww, that was lovely!! I don't know you but that bought tears to my eyes :( It was very touching and beautiful what you said about your grandad. I still have all 4 of my grandparents but I feel like this when it comes to my nan. I really don't know what I will do!
 
What a beautiful post and photo... currently weeping :p im such a softie.
My grandad meant the world to me and when i lost him suddenly to a heart attack without saying goodbye it left a huge space in my heart. My grandad always wanted me to pursue my horsey career so i'm doing all of this for him :)
 
That bought tears to my eyes,what a lovely post and beautiful picture. I have seen many of your Dee dee threads and shes is a very talented and gorgeous horse, i agree so much with that horses are more than animals, because they really are. Last year when i went through a rough patch i stopped eating and started to try to make myself sick,But when i went down the yard bought in my loan pony and sat with her while she stared out into the field i gazed over at her frail owner, she was once his baby his everything and now he was struggling to walk. It was at that point when i thought you know what i've got to stop, and thats exactly what i did, and that day i promised myself i would never give up on my pony nor let her owner down and promised myself that i would be there for her for forever. Fast forward to now, her lovely owner is no longer with us, he was diagnosed with the dreaded C and recently passed away, i still expect to see him come through the gate and to have a chat with him about our progress,the thing that upsets me most is i didn't get to say goodbye nor thank you for the opportunity of a life time that may have just saved my life,through the lows and bulling in my early secondary school years being allowed to become a member of the yard offered me friends and more importantly my pony of a life time:) she is so special to me sometimes when i see her i just cry because i really am so lucky to have her, we may not be dressage diava's or show jumpers but we are happy hackers and look after each other and i wouldn't have it any other way:)
Thank you for sharing that post it was lovely to read and a beautiful picture:) xx
 
Thats so lovely, it will make a lovely painting too!

Totally agree- the first time i went down the yard after giving birth to my beautiful little baby girl my mare spent the whole time sniffing my belly and nudging it, it was so wierd!! then months later when my baby tragically past away the only place i wanted to go was the yard and spent hours and hours just sitting with her and she would be the sweetest horse ever, its like she knew what was going on.

Horses really can heal a lot of bruises and scars but when you take that for granted they can make them...
 
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