Howling winds, catastrophic wildfires, infernal heat... Now we have fog each morning that seems to hang like lambswool on the tree branches. What's next for southern California? Oh, that's right, I know: an earthquake. Fortunately, the new shelters over my paddocks have withstood an earthquake already, so I guess I'm good to go regardless of what Mother Nature throws at me.

On a different note, I got some wonderful comments related to my post, "How Long do you Stay in Love with a Horse?" I find it comforting that even if we ride different disciplines or are fans of distinctly different breeds of horses, we can all still relate to how much we love these animals. Here's part of a comment I got from Bryana. She's writing about the day that Cody, a mustang she'd gentled, was finally hauled away to his owner's new stable:

"I sat in my truck, watched until the trailer turned the corner and was out of sight, that I let a few tears fall. I dreamt that night of all the peaceful, happy, stressful, boring days that made that certain chapter of my life complete. I still wake up with his smell in the air, or his touch on my fingertips. Now, in the early hours of each morning, I look up into the sky, find the constellation of Orion, and tell him to comfort Cody, and to help him remember me. I believe that you stay in love with a horse forever. There is no end of love, and I believe a horse will always remember not only you, but the many days of doing nothing that you and him spent together."

Then Mary, a young horse lover, wrote about her attachment to Jack, an Appaloosa senior citizen. At the end of her tale she said poignantly, "Horses bring unexpected joy into our lives and we spend the rest of ours trying to thank them."

See? With such warm sentiments it's not so gloomy outside, after all. In fact, I think I'll pull on one of my lambswool sweaters and take Wally for a trail ride.

If you'd like to share a comment on this autumn day, just click on "comments" below or email me at: hc-editor@bowtieinc.com