to those we lost this month...

Cavan: this is the painting I did of him a few years back. I was his groom at Woodcock Hill Riding academy and I was his friend. He enjoyed his retirement at my brother's farm and he loved working the fields with him. He also carried my niece to victory in a local horse show: Reserve Champion! I loved him for over twenty years. He was a very, very good boy. We all miss you, Little Man! (that was a nickname his great friend Nikki gave him many years ago and it stayed with him. It fit him so well).

Ah, steeds, steeds, what steeds! Has the whirlwind a home in your manes? Is there a sensitive ear, alert as a flame, in your every fiber? Hearing the familiar song from above, all in one accord you strain your bronze chests and, hooves barely touching the ground, turn into straight lines cleaving the air, and all inspired by God it rushes on! ~Nikolai V. Gogol, Dead Souls, 1842, translated from Russian

This is my Nim Nim. CRF took him away from me and we sent him to his green blankie throne in Heaven this past Saturday. He was always there, for 15 years, and now he is gone. I thought I heard his claws clicking on my floor...I swore that any minute he'd be howling at me demanding his breakfast. There is no more breakfast time. But, he is out of his agony. Daddy and I miss you and the tears will easily come for a long, long time.

I'm Still Here

Friend, please don't mourn for me
I'm still here, though you don't see.
I'm right by your side each night and day
and within your heart I long to stay.

My body is gone but I'm always near.
I'm everything you feel, see or hear.
My spirit is free, but I'll never depart
as long as you keep me alive in your heart.

I'll never wander out of your sight-
I'm the brightest star on a summer night.
I'll never be beyond your reach-
I'm the warm moist sand when you're at the beach.

I'm the colorful leaves when fall comes around
and the pure white snow that blankets the ground.
I'm the beautiful flowers of which you're so fond,
The clear cool water in a quiet pond.

I'm the first bright blossom you'll see in the spring,
The first warm raindrop that April will bring.
I'm the first ray of light when the sun starts to shine,
and you'll see that the face in the moon is mine.

When you start thinking there's no one to love you,
you can talk to me through the Lord above you.
I'll whisper my answer through the leaves on the trees,
and you'll feel my presence in the soft summer breeze.

I'm the hot salty tears that flow when you weep
and the beautiful dreams that come while you sleep.
I'm the smile you see on a baby's face.
Just look for me, friend, I'm everyplace!

Author Unknown