Horses
I have always loved the west. The photos above are from my former home in Arizona. The top one is of the wild horses that lived in our area. The sunset was taken from my front yard. It was a place of beauty and wilderness and I will never forget my time there. Sadly, there are things that happen in the west that I am not thrilled about. This story was inspired by my time in the west.
That damn rooster woke me up again. It's not his fault, he's just doing what he does. I had my shower and threw on my favorite jeans, my blue t-shirt, and my boots. I fed Katie and she wagged her tail appreciatively as I put on the coffee. I was heading out to Renee's this morning. Dan had already left, and I was just fine with that.
As Katie and I went outside the sky and ground were washed in golden light as the sun was rising behind the mountains in front of my ranch. We got in my truck and headed to the res. Renee lived on the Ak-Chin reservation just outside my town. We met at the grocery store several years ago and we both seemed to have angry men in common. We met weekly for coffee down by the river where the wild horses roamed.
I saw her at the bottom of the hill offering a carrot to a pretty buff-colored horse. She looked up and grinned with her missing tooth on display. It was a daily reminder of her husband. I went down with my bag of apples and carrots to see if I could make some friends. A thin mare with a coffee colored coat approached me cautiously. I offered my snacks and ran my hand along her nose. The other horses wandered in the area getting their water and looking at us suspiciously.
"It's getting worse," Renee said as she took a cup and filled it up from the thermos that I brought. "He used to stop but now he's drinking all the time." She rolled up the sleeve of her shirt displaying a deep black bruise. Her buff mare whinnied and sniffed at Renee hoping for more treats. "Dan's been a bastard, but what else is new" I sighed. She laughed and we enjoyed our coffee and fed the horses.
The following week I didn't leave in peace. Dan was angry because I didn't have the money to pay the electric bill. He screamed in my face while I tried to feed Katie. I packed his lunch and ended up leaving much later than I planned to. When I got to the river area I didn't see Renee. I cuddled with Katie as I stayed for a bit to watch the horses. They ran across the field in a wave of manes and tails. They were so beautiful and I envied their freedom to run as they pleased. The dust kicked up from the horses and we headed out.
I decided to stop by Renee's house to apologize for being late for our coffee. The sheriff's car was parked out front, along with an ambulance. I stopped the truck and ran to the door. The Sheriff was standing in the doorway. "I'm so sorry, Renee's passed." I peered through the doorway and saw blood all over the floor. There were two body bags. Renee did not just pass. I later found out in the newspaper that her husband had beaten her so badly that her lungs collapsed. He had then shot himself. I would miss her sweet smile and gentleness for the rest of my life.
For the next few weeks, Dan and I fought constantly. It was probably because of my grief that I didn't have the patience to walk on the eggshells that I usually did. Yesterday, he grabbed my neck when he became particularly upset. I shut up so that he would stop and that seemed to work. I decided to take Katie for a ride to the river so that I could think. The horses were not there. It was quiet and lonely at the river and I was really glad that I had Katie with me. On my way back to the truck I ran into Ken Doyle, a cattle rancher in the area. "Horses moved on?" I asked. "No, the BLM took them for slaughter," he replied.
Tears trickled down my face as Katie and I headed back to the truck. Those horses have been in this area for thousands of years. My sweet coffee mare and Renee's buff mare were gone. The ranchers had influence and the beautiful horses paid the price. They were amazing beings that did not deserve to be treated that way. "Fuck the BLM and fuck everything else." I looked at the road and headed away from the direction of my house. This horse was going to run free.
For information on domestic violence https://www.thehotline.org/
For information on wild horse roundups https://americanwildhorsecampaign.org/media/upcoming-wild-horse-roundups-what-you-need-know
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