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I have been putting off writing about my horse because it usually brings me to tears, 50 years later.
So here goes.
I had wanted a horse since I could remember. Pa told me they were just “Hay Burners”, “Not good for anything except, cussing at”, but that didn’t discourage me. My little brother, Lyle and I walked to country school. Lyle was in 4th grade and I was in the 7th grade. Two weeks went by and we both grew tired of walking. I found an old bicycle out behind my older brother’s barn. I worked at getting pieces of other bicycles from various places and aired up the tires. I bought a basket for the front and it had a carrier on the back for Lyle. Ma had some old paint and I painted it PINK. It looked awful, but it was better than walking. Off we went to school. Going to school hadn’t been too hard but the one steep hill we had to climb, turned the ride into a push it up hill. I knew the ride home would be easier. At the end of the school day, I and Lyle got on the bicycle and proceeded home. That day they had spread new gravel on our road. I topped that hill and saw the gravel, too late to stop and think. The hill had given us enough speed to really get going. We hit the gravel windrow and splat! Lyle flew off and I tried to save the bicycle but landed on both knees. Oh my how they hurt. I left the bicycle lying alongside the road. Bleeding and bawling, I decided I would never ride that stupid thing again.
I had wanted a horse since I could remember. Pa told me they were just “Hay Burners”, “Not good for anything except, cussing at”, but that didn’t discourage me, I kept on dreaming of having a horse someday.
About another 2 weeks or so went by and the walk home seemed to be a bit more pleasant with the wild flowers along the road and a tiny patch of wild strawberries, made the trip (3/4 mile) a bit more enjoyable. Lyle always dilly dallied picking rocks and watching ants or doing some other boy things. As I rounded the corner to our driveway, I saw Pa’s truck backed up to the barn. I thought Pa must have bought a new cow or maybe was selling some calves or maybe ……………………….OH my, I saw two ears sticking just above the rack of the truck.. Could it be………..I knew it wasn’t cow ears. It was…….a horse. I ran to the barn and listened as Pa yelled at the new arrival. Just as my old dog, Pooch, began to bark, he had never seen a horse. The truck backed away from the barn and there stood the most beautiful rusty brown horse. His mane and tall were jet black and he shined like a new penny. He was just what I had wanted. Pa got up on his back and he began to buck and “crowhop”. Pa got mad, he had no patience with horses, I could see. Maybe his years of farming with the animals had caused his disdain for them. Pa jumped down off the horse and handed me the reins. “Here you are, he is a good horse. He came from the Sioux Falls riding academy; he is a Tennessee walker and full of spunk. “ Oh great, I thought, just a bit afraid to get on him. I didn’t let Pa see the fear. I got on his back and he walked around as nice as could be. I think he knew Pa didn’t like him. He was such a Prince, and that is what I named him. I rode him till it was way after dark. It was Saturday the next day and I spent all day riding him. My legs got so sore, but I never told anyone. Nothing was going to get between me and my new love. Monday rolled around and I couldn’t wait to show the kids at school. I got on and Lyle got on behind me. We got to the end of the driveway and Prince started to buck. Off went Lyle into a pile of rocks and he was bawling and I was scared. Some horses will not ride double, (two riders) and Prince was one of them. Lyle was not hurt so we just went on to school. Boy did everyone love him. My friend Donna’s little Shetland pony looked pretty shaggy compared to mine. Oh I was so proud. I tied Prince to the fence which circled the school yard and brought him a pail of water at noon. He patiently waited for me to come and put the bridle on him and head home. He wanted to go home FAST. We would walk for a time then it was off to the races as we got closer to home. He was terrified of the big orange and black school bus which passed by us each day taking the kids from town school home. I would have to get off and cover Princes eyes with my hands so he wouldn’t bolt and run through the barbed wire fence. The bus driver soon realized this and would honk his horn to warn me he was approaching. I rode Prince every day and on the weekends I would spend the day brushing and talking to him and riding to our other farm place. I taught him to jump over bales of hay and soon could jump 3 bales high and boy was it fun. That summer was the best summer of my life. I was in country school, seventh grade and had my very own beautiful bay horse. As the years went by, I never tired of riding and when I went off to high school, Prince was mostly a weekend thing. But I still rode whenever possible, winter and summer. In my junior year, Pa and Ma decided to move off the farm, as Pa had retired and rented out our land. They bought a house in Dell Rapids, about 13 miles away. I wondered about where my horse was going. I begged to live on the farm and care for the animals and finish school, but of course that was out of the question. We would go out to the farm on weekends and I would ride Prince and play with my old dog. Pooch was getting very old and slow, but he kept up with Prince and even slept right next to him, waiting for our return.
We moved before school started. I came home from school and on the dining room table sat a brand new typewriter. My heart sank…I knew, that Prince was gone and this was to take his place in my life. I was heart sick and ran up stairs to my room to cry for hours. I never asked where they had taken Prince but whenever I saw a horse I would secretly hope it was Prince. I know now that it was the only thing that was practical then. Pa and Ma did the right thing, but at that time I sure didn’t understand. Time has stilled the want of going out for a ride but I will treasure that childhood experience for ever.