The following conversation took place this afternoon, after both horses had been on separate rides. Tyra was chowing down on her hay and Hrimmi had just joined her. I listened in on the conversation as I cleaned their enclosure.

Hrimmi: May I join you?
Tyra: I suggest you join Raudi. She has a far bigger hay pile than I do.
H: I walked past her, and she laid her ears back.
T: So she wasn’t up for sharing her late afternoon snack.

Alys and Tyra

H: Nope.
T: She must be quite hungry.
H: She’s always hungry.
T: True, true.
R: And obviously not in the mood for conversation.
T: Equally true.
H: She’s a bitch.
T: But she’s not going anywhere.
H: This is because Alys loves her.
T: That’s Alys’s problem.
H: Alys doesn’t see her greed and insolence as being a problem.
T: Love is blind.
H: And Tinni over there is losing his eyesight.
T: Did you hear what Alys’s friend Cathy Foxley said yesterday?
H: That she’s going to have her horse Traveler put down.
T: Why?
H: Because he’s a liability. He stumbles badly when ridden even a short distance.
T: That’s no reason to have him euthanized.
H: Alys did ask Cathy why she didn’t just put him out to pasture.
T: Let me guess. Cathy most likely said she has no access to pasturage.
H: And Alys said that this is a big problem here in Alaska. And when asked, Cathy said that while she feels bad about this, that this is the right thing to do. She added that she believes that if a horse can no longer do its job, in this case function as a riding horse, that it should be put down.
T: No.
H: Yes.
T: You sure you heard her right?
H: Positive.
T: I’ll bet Alys, after hearing about this, nearly asked if she could have Traveler.
H: Nearly. She did not. She is lacking in room but not in compassion and empathy.
T: Tinni will be relieved to hear this.
H: Seems to me that a horse with physical problems should be allowed to live out
its final years in peace and tranquility.
T: Amen sister.
H: Yes, Amen sister.
T: I wonder if Cathy or anyone else has asked Traveler what he thinks.
H: Most likely not.
T: You see Hrimmi, this is the problem. People acquire horses and assume that there can be no two-way communication.
H: I’m glad that Alys thinks otherwise.
T: Yes, she has a big heart. And so does Pete.
H: I like it that Alys is always talking to us.
T: And I like it how some mornings she greets us with a song.
H: Some mornings. I wish she’d do this more often.
T: Did you hear what the black goat said?
H: No, what?
T: That right after Alys milks her, that she sings her a song.
H: Too bad she’s tone deaf.
T: Yes, this may be one of life’s greatest unfairnesses.
H: Indeed.

148. 5/30/22: A Memorable Memorial Day