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Her Horse |
| Situated on the prairie plains was an Indian village and in it lived a young woman. Because her inner beauty far surpassed her outer beauty she was admired and respected by all. One day the young native woman needed to be alone, for her heart was filled with a great sadness. Whenever she felt this way she would ride her horse out of the village into the nearby foothills. And there upon her favorite hill she would watch the sun set. As the sun went down so would her head and in a short period of time the tears would begin to run down her cheeks. She would cry and cry until there were no more tears. To this day we do not know what made her so sad; but, we do know that this woman had a big heart. The young woman’s horse knew that something was wrong, and sensing her grief, he too that day hung down his head, and in his own way began to cry; horses too, have feelings. The young woman saw that her horse was crying. This moved her very much. She took a deep breath and gave him a big affectionate hug, for she loved her horse. Together, they had been through a lot, and each in their own way, had always been there for the other. By now the sun had set. It was now night and the stars were beginning to shine. The young native woman softly talking to her horse said, “Sometimes it’s good to have a good cry.” Then pointing up to the stars she said, “See those bright shining stars? Well, they were put there to remind us of who we are.” That night she used the light of the stars to guide her way back home. That same night the people of the village were sitting around a large campfire. Each evening they would gather to sing and dance. And each night the village story teller would tell a story. One of the young village children asked him, “Please tell us a story - One which we have never heard before?” Just then the young native woman rode in out of the darkness into the campfire light. It was truly a magnificent sight to behold, and the people rejoiced in seeing her. The story teller was probably the happiest to see her for he was beginning to worry about her being out alone after dark. She too, had provided him with the inspiration for many of his stories, and once again, she had not failed him. Wiping the tears from his eyes and taking advantage of a moment of inspiration, he responded to the young child’s request. Taking a deep breath and slowly letting it out he then said, “I have a new story to share with you!” There was an immediate silence amongst the group, everyone there wanted to hear the new story, especially the young native woman with the big heart whose inner beauty surpassed her outer beauty. Even her horse perked up his ears. And this was the story he told... |
 Timothy E. Stevenson 1995©
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