RSS
Home
My friend Lilly
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
I am a wild horse advocate-it seems any animal will do; we say “let’s save the earth”, or save the Silvery Minnow” and forsake our water supply; I’ll admit I sometimes question my own motives. One day I went into wild horse country then wanted to save a bunch of old wild horses; maybe some of us just never found what we really wanted.
Really we just think we need a reason to get out of town, that cabin fever and city fever -untreated, could get serious. Or maybe some of us really think we can make a difference. I don’t want to push myself on to the all-ready crime filled streets .........protecting my two foot by two foot square piece of sidewalk on the overcrowded streets, this area also known as “turf”. Here seeking my fortune in illegal commerce or cooking books for a once legit corporation
I gathered my thoughts and found a wild horse rescue, yes I placed myself right in the center of the ’used’ hay and critters- they were starved, some abused and wild. They too have a problem- “humanism”. Seems we two legged critters are predators to them. Something I sure didn’t realize. I became involved with wild horses when I first photographed wild horses in Valencia County; pictures published in magazines and newspapers bringing the National Geographic Explorer team to do a series on them.
I found them to be cultural significant in that they were off spring to the famous war horse of Spain, the Spanish Barb-and that they were the first horse in North America in 8000 years. I also found a lot of wild horses running in the outback. I found that Juan De Onate road these horses into a strange land bringing with him a knew culture, laws with little love for the Native American. But I thought that was that, no more wild horses or history-I had done what I could do..
The women operating the rescue told me she runs it and finances it herself, buying some of the sick horses from the auctions. She related their stories to me. They were profound histories, hate for animals, a disregard for history and animal life..... including Lilly! Yes; Lilly a white donkey; huge wand ears standing at attention, ears you could launch a ship from. One of the friendliest critters in the pens. She loves everyone, though had been mistreated.
Walking through this wild horse barrio-walking from pen to pen talking intellectual horse jargon, listening and learning, and having short chats with so called ‘wild horses‘. All the time Lilly was at my back-taking notes. Literally nudging me on. She would not let me out of her sight. I pet her; yes but not pretend I liked her.
This beautiful, not always patient donkey loved people but, she didn’t know how to put it into words.
I heard our state bird-the Road Runner sitting in the lower limb of a tree must- have been watching Lilly and me bond. I set up the camera to take photos of the bird. I raised my camera slowly so as not to frighten the foul, my eye piece framed the bird; within a second all went black. I peeked over the camera and there, in front of my Tacumar lens was Lillie’s big nose and brown eyes glaring at me.
This was truly a day of reflection, one couldn’t help but like Lilly, she thought she was people too. Maybe more intelligent than most of the horses, or some people. It was my first day with a donkey, no less a white donkey. I photographed Lily for possibly an album; but because Lilly wouldn‘t let me photograph anything else-an album on Lilly. She was indeed part of the homeless animals in that barrio and had to find her own way and her turf-she was a central attraction at the horse rescue in Casa Colorada and was in time adopted.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
