Mike’s Passion Rekindled

I went to the ‘barn’ early morning…

“Hi Miya. How are you? Eating all your food and drinking your water? Good girl. I see that Mike is home. When I get done here, I’m gonna run over there and see if I can get some tools for the fencing so you can get out into the big pasture,” I told her.

The aroma of Mom’s cooking filled the barn. I headed back to the kitchen and asked her, “Mom, did you notice that Mike is home? I’m going over there after breakfast to see him.”

“Yes, I saw the lights from his truck late last night, I’m anxious to see how he’s doing, as well,” Mom answered. “Maybe he’ll come over and see Miya; you have so much to show him since he’s been gone.”

I quickly ate my breakfast, and before Mom could say goodbye, I was out the door, running across the street to Mike’s. I knocked on his door anxiously, calling, “Hello Mike, hello.”

Mike came to the door cheerfully greeting me.

I blurted out, “I sure missed you. Did you have to drive again?”

Mike replied with remorse, “Yes, I’m sorry I didn’t come over the other day. I wanted to apologize to you for not keeping my promise.”

“Oh, that’s okay. How soon can you come over? I want to show you everything that I’ve done to fix up the barn. The stall and the fencing are great. And can I borrow some more tools to finish the fencing? My poor Miya is cooped up in that little tiny paddock, and I would love to get her out in the big pasture.”

Noting my excitement, Mike smiled and said, “Sure, let’s go get the tools. Before we do that, I want to show you something special out in my barn.”

Together, we walked out to the barn and opened those big doors. On the left was a tack room full of dusty saddles and bridles, brushes and horsey things. Astonished, I looked at Mike.

“Do you have a saddle?” Mike asked.

Bewildered I said, “No, I don’t have anything. Mom and I got some brushes, but that’s all.”

Mike motioned toward me, “Come over here for a second. Let’s measure your leg, okay that should be just about perfect.” Mike pulled out a western saddle and put it on a saddle rack with a saddle pad and a bridle. “You know all this tack isn’t getting used, so it might as well get used by you especially since you’re sort of related, to a daughter of someone from my family over there.” Mike laughed.

I looked at Mike awkwardly, but I thought, daughter? Letting that go, I said, “Oh Mike, thank you so much.”

Mike loaded the saddle and tack into a wheelbarrow. We both headed across the street with a wheelbarrow loaded with tack and tools. Now we were ready to fix the fence in the pasture. By this time, Miya was out in her paddock. Hearing the rattle of the wheelbarrow coming across the street, Mom poked her head out the back door. Mike noticed

Mom on the porch and said, “Oh, hello Mrs. Peters, how are you today?” “I’m fine, but how are you?” Mom answered.

“I’m very well thank you. In fact, I’m much better.” Mike replied.

“We’re really glad to see you, Mike. Mathew has so much to tell you. Give me a second, and I’ll come out to the barn and join you. I’ve got to turn something off on the stove. Oh, and please call me Marcia.”

Mike said, “No problem, ma’am … I mean Marcia.”

Mike and I laughed as both of us men headed out to the barn. Hearing that noisy wheelbarrow, Miya came into the barn peeking over the stall door wondering what all that racket was.

“Aren’t you looking lovely,” Mike said to Miya. “Mathew, you sure are a lucky young man.”

Just then Marcia joined the crew as they were busily unloading the wheelbarrow.

Mike stopped what he was doing, turned to my mom, and said, “It’s nice that you are here. I wanted to apologize to both of you for leaving abruptly the other night. I hope you will excuse me, but taking that last unscheduled trip has really helped me. It’s been really difficult for me lately. This beautiful Arabian mare here … Well you know, I have to tell you something that will really surprise you both. When I looked at the registration papers for your mare, it was déjà vu. I bred this mare’s mother.”

Mom and I blurted simultaneously, “Really? You bred little Miya’s mom?”

“Miya. That’s what we call her,” I added.

Mike, with emotion, stood next to my little Miya, looked into her soft eyes, and said, “Yep, a long time ago, Countess Majestic, she was one of my first broodmares. I knew that I recognized the quality of your mare. She is so much like her mother. I’m an Arabian horse breeder, Mathew. It’s a long story. You may not think so, seeing me driving my truck all the time, but these horses are deep within my soul. I want to ask you both. Do you believe in God? Because I believe strongly that we were all created together by God. You, me, and our horses. We were meant to come down to earth to be together, ultimately. I don’t know about you, but ever since I was a little boy, I would pray to God and thank him for my family. Since I could walk, I had this passion for horses. I would ask God for that perfect horse to come into my life. I feel like I was really blessed.”

“You know, when Dad was alive, we as a family, including my sister, used to go to church.”

“You have a sister?”

“Yes. She’s much older than me, and she left to go to college about six years ago. Marion would always tell me, ‘oh, horse this and horse that’. I kinda caught the horse bug. L.A. has lots of concrete; whereas here, it’s just big, open spaces. I couldn’t really have a horse down there, only rental horses. That’s why I’m so excited now to live here where my dream has come true. She’s standing next to you, Mike.”

“I think you’re really blessed, Marcia, to have a son like this, who’s excited about horses. Some call it a curse, but it builds a person’s character.”

“Thank you, Mike. I’m glad you could share this with us.”

She winked at me, “Okay both of you, you guys have a horse standing there. I’m going to the house, and I’ll leave you alone