Today is Prosery Monday in the dVerse Poets Pub ~ MERRIL provides us with a line from Samuel Menashe's ~~ The Dead of Winter
"I was where I am when the snow began"
Bend Oregon ~ photo by Helen
In the solitude of a frozen field, I was where I am when the snow began. A once-mighty team of aging horses stand side by side. Belle & Dobbin, their bodies bearing the wear and tear of decades spent working the fields on my grandparent's farm.
When we were kids, if we begged long enough, Uncle Billy would hoist my sister and I onto their broad backs. Off we'd lumber, up a hill behind the barn, to pastures they loved to graze. These gentle giants, now retired, carry within them the weight of countless seasons, plowing and hauling heavy loads.
This day as snowflakes gently settle on their backs, they embody the tranquility of their winter landscape. In the stillness of the pasture I sense a mixture of contentment and nostalgia in these aging equines, Dobbin and Bell, enjoying their well earned respite.
Dearest Helen,
ReplyDeleteBeautiful equine names—Belle and Dobbin!
Hugs,
Mariette
Such a beautiful tribute to such beautiful horses. I love this so much!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a lovely memory, Helen. Thank you for sharing.Those gentle giants. ❤️ I'm glad they got to end their days peacefully.
ReplyDeletel love the horses and your great nostalgic story. Well done, Helen.
ReplyDeleteHelen, thank you for choosing to share this cherished memory today. I like how you bring the past to the present in it as well.
ReplyDeleteThese gentle giants make my heart melt as you make me see them through your eyes! You can regale me with stories about them any time, Helen :)
ReplyDeleteOld faithfu, giants to kids. Love it, brings memories. But I wasn't around on the farm anymore, didn't even see Minnie whe she was very old. She was old though those two years when I rode her to high school my first two years. She took me three miles, rain, snow or sunshine. Our work horses were Belle and Birdie..
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I enjoyed your lovely memories of Belle and Dobbin, Helen, and the way you describe them with snowflakes settling on their backs embodying the ‘tranquility of the winter landscape’. I love horses and visit some here in hour village. Yesterday it was the little black pony that belongs to an acquaintance, not in snow, however, but soaked with rain.
ReplyDeleteThis is just such a beautiful memory, Helen!
ReplyDeleteMuch love,
David
SkepticsKaddish.com
Belle abd Dobbin How adorable
ReplyDeleteLuv this story Helen
Thanks for dropping by my blog
Much♡love
Lovely to hear of horse being really retired and not just sent to the knacker's.
ReplyDeleteYour story took me back to when I was a child staying on my Uncle's farm. He had two Clydesdale horses that he used to haul farm equipment etc. I remember riding on a huge sleigh being pulled by these giant horses. Thanks for your memories, which in turn ignited my memories.
ReplyDeleteI so loved reading this Helen, a sense of the journey of life in the both horses and child, the season/snow marking the passage of time. I'm thinking by your description of the horses that they were draught horses?
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