Horse Poems I have written over the years

Here are a few poems that I have written over the years that I would love to share with everyone, and hopefully hear some critiques.

#1 - Before You Go
In loving memory of Barbaro, and written for him in the last few weeks of his life, when there was talk about whether or not he should be humanely euthanized.

Let us not keep you here
Just to whisper in your ear
To tell you that we love you
And not let our actions say we do

But before you go
Let the moments slow
As I rest my hand upon your neck
And feel it slide slowly down your back
Let me stand and look at you, in all your might
Say they not that we gave up, instead, see them the end of this fight

And before you go
Let these precious moments slow
As I wrap my arms around your neck
Go, go, and don't look back..."

#2 - Lost On The Track
In loving memory of Eight Belles, written following her death in May of 2008.

"A dozen horses pound around the track
Having leapt from the gates, they never look back
The hooves hit the ground in a rhythm of four
As one leaves off, to start again no more
Eleven horses pound around the track
The twelfth has fallen, but they never look back
Under the wire they go, to claim their prize
A tarp covers the horse, as a small child cries
And I see her stumbling again in my mind
As all the other horses left her behind"
#3 - Never Let Go
This poem is about a horse I knew a few years back, that stole my heart. He was a lovely liver chestnut stallion at the time this story started - when his owner (my instructor) had him gelded, I started spending time with him. He had never had a friend before, and he loved me as much as I loved him. I was going to buy him, until he was diagnosed with a heart murmur - then, his owner was going to give him to me. But before I managed to find a place to keep him (I was selling my house) she sold him to someone who bought some of her other horses. I got to the stable, to find that he was gone. Only then did she tell me that I would never see him again.

"With every fiber of my being
I miss you, my darling love
Without the sight of you, there is nothing worth seeing
And each day, my heart aches for that which it is void of

You taught me to love
Sweet and pure, like the morning dove
We shared a bond so strong
That I thought nothing could go wrong

Through times of plenty and of life
And times of trouble and of strife
We made it through together
Each day stronger than the other

My heart was yours
And yours mine
Love that reached all ocean's shores
And would last until the end of time

My last words to you were so sweet
That they burn in my memory with never ending heat
"Goodbye my Prince", that alone was said
Before I left, not even knowing what to dread

Had I known that to be our last goodbye
I would not have left, till the day I die
But another time a few short days later
I found my troubles to be one greater

Till that day I never knew pain
Never knew loss at another's gain
I died that day
As my heart began to decay

To think I forgave her
That dirty traitor
Looking back, I would not again,
I thought I could forget, but that was then...

She took you from me
Together again, never to be
And gave you away
To a man that came that day

She never called, she never tried
She never even let me say...goodbye."

#4 - The Love Of My Life
This is about the same horse as the poem about, written a year after the first. I write a poem for him, every year, to mark the anniversary of that day that I learned I had lost him.

"Let me no longer feel this pain
Which, like violent waves, fades away
Only to come crashing back again
Knocking me from my feet in a fit of sorrow

But I must not cry
Though I can see you not today, nor tomorrow
Or any day at all, for you are gone
Snatched from my arms by a thief in the night

Every day with you just felt right
You were my hero, my prince, and my knight
I love you with all the love left in my heart
And miss you with all the passion that I possess in my entire being
You were my reason to think, to breathe, and to wake up every morning
Lost, with you, is my very reason for living

You were the love of my life
And I shall never let go of all that you taught me
I will never forget you, as long as I shall live
So thank you for the good days, and the bad days
Thank you for the joy, and even these tears
For it is better to have loved and lost
Than to have never loved at all...

I will always love you...
Goodbye....my prince.

That's all of them for now. Thanks.

WOW! VERY NICE! There is no doubt that the words come straight from your heart! Thank you for sharing!

AMAZING! the last one almost made me *cry*...... so touching.

Thank you both so much. These poems mean a lot to me. :)

They are amazing and very touching. You have talent!

Very touching, You got talent, Those words came straight from your heart, Its noticable

Here is a picture of the horse that the third and fourth poems are about. He was a gorgeous liver chestnut Saddlebred with a flowing flaxen mane and tail. His registered name was Red Wings Royalty. Around the barn he was known as Yardchild.

I believe this picture was taken of us in the spring of 2006 - the year I lost him.