My Heart Really Misses Her

Aidrian didn't look like much here.  I'd had her home about three months, and at about 16 years of age and having been shown briefly in halter (northern Indiana) and having a life as a brood mare I decided on becoming an endurance rider (which has never fully come to fruition) and changed her name to Puddin'.  The previous owner had tried to put her under saddle, got tossed and broke her (rider) tailbone in the process.  So Puddin' and her wayward offspring were looking for a home on the cheap.  I bought her on the internet sight unseen other than a crappy photo on the sales page.  I was assured she was healthy, blah blah blah blah blah.  But anyway.  I just had a soft spot for her the moment she stepped off the trailer with that husky nicker for her baby.    She was out of JR GWARLINA by RAIDARR.   Her topline went kind of like this Raidarr, Radio, Ferzon, with comar Garnet, Azraff, and Raffles on the sires tail line.  She was the daughter of JR Gwarlina, by Gwar, by Comet, with her tail line following Gilleyna, Shalimar Gillette, Garaff.

We learned together.  I was dedicated to the idea of getting this horse ready to take us on our first distance ride.   Boy did I take a few knocks in the process.  She was sensitive, fearful, and at the time I had not figured out that she was losing her eyesight in one eye which seriously effected her depth perception.  We managed to get through most of all that, she took me the summer after to my first intro CTR in second place, then her first and last 30 mile LD at Cave Country in eleventh place.  Shortly after that I became aware that she had a serious issue with her eye.  But the two summers we rode together I logged nearly two thousand miles on this lovely horse.  To this day, I look at her picture and my heart does a little twist in my chest.  She was a lovely mare, and she trusted me like nothing I've ever seen.  We'd ride like heck and she'd meet me at the gate the next day and nicker, like what are we doing today?   It was about this time of year that she went completely blind, and the hard decision had to be made to put my terrified mare down.  God she looked so beautiful that day, standing there strong, the wind lifting her mane, head up so, so lovely.  She was the best.    I miss you Puddin' girl.  I always will.