It is midnight and you toss and turn in your rumpled bedcovers. Your partner lies next to you, obliviously snoring loud enough to wake the dead. The day's events tumble through your mind as you painfully try to sleep. It is not working. You cannot sleep. Resigning yourself to an awakened state , you crawl out of bed, put on your slippers, throw a sweater on make your way in the dark to the back door.
The night outside is warm and clear. The moonlight dresses the trees in soft hues of yellow. A breeze gently brushes your face as you open the back door to go into the night. As you look out to the paddock you hear a soft nicker. The bay mare has raised her head to look at you as if wondering what you are doing outside at this unusual hour. Scooting under the electric fence, you greet her with a soft murmur of hello and scratch her neck. She gently nudges you with her nose in return. All the turmoiled thoughts have left your mind as it is washed with contentment. You bury your nose in her mane and smell the soft, musky scent from her warm coat. The world begins to fade into a shadow where nothing exists but the bay mare and yourself. You turn to walk to the barn where the halter and lead hang on the stall door. The mare quietly follows you then holds her head down low so you can slip on the halter. She gives you another nudge then trustingly follows you out to the back pasture where she sidles up to the mounting rock. As you settle yourself onto her back, she waits patiently, never moving an inch. You inhale deeply and pick up the lead rope. The mare walks out.
The moon causes a soft shadow to be cast upon the ground which follows you like a silent cat. A nightingale sings out a quiet song as the mare's hooves step out rhythmically. The night is hypnotizing and before long you have begun to dance with your mare. Step to the right and circle slowly. Step to the left and go into a soft trot; One-two, one-two. You move as if one -- You and your mare, caressing the night. The music in your mind that has been flowing in rhythm with the footfall slows. You now exhale and your mare slows to a stop. Turning back toward the barn the shadow has lengthened. The moon is seeping into the horizon.
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