Prologue: The Passage of Time
One may look out across a field and spot the lonely bay gelding that stands vigil over the patch of grass that’s just a slight bit different from the rest. The ground is slightly sunken in, settling upon what rests beneath the surface.
To anyone who passes the pasture, it just looks as if an elderly gelding is simply taking a lovely nap in the shade of the grand cottonwood tree in the back corner of the field. It’s not entirely wrong, but those who are blissfully unaware of the perpetually grieving horse’s almost unending vigil of the final resting place of his best friend.... are both lucky and unlucky.
But for those who did know, they were the ones truly blessed with the privilege of knowing the horse that lay resting just underneath the slightly sunken soil. Those are the ones who understood the bay gelding that stood solemnly over the small rough cut square of uneven ground would eventually make his way back to the gate of the pasture, where he would wait with the utmost patience for a young man to halter him and lead him back to his stall of many years. Where he would receive his evening mash and a good groom.
The young man will talk softly to the bay gelding, remembering the time before the elder horse became unsteady in his gait. Both enjoying each other’s company in the cooling evening air.
Rarely do the pair consider what the passing of time will soon bring them, but they both understand there will be a day when the uneven patch in the pasture will be extended.
A day the young man will dread, but the elder bay gelding will welcome with a soft breath.
