Prompted by Poet's Place Cafe

Empty Stable - Write an Ubi Sunt (Where have they gone?)

Empty Stable

Cobwebs prink the corners of the stalls
and the hard packed floor
has long since been scraped
clean of pine shavings and manure.
No more horses in the stable,
it's been a while,

Miss Mike was our last to go,
she slipped away
while lying in the pasture
with her head on my lap.
A catty cow-pony
who took me on the ride of my life
chasing a calf fleeing castration.
In the pecking order
she was queen of the herd.

Our first was rank old Dolly,
she bit and spit
and would try to rub off her rider
on the nearest tree.
She never dumped me
probably because I didn't ride her much.

Then there was Nugget who woke up
in a new world every day.
A pinto with gold nuggets painted on white,
none prettier but he was the dumbest
thing I've ever known.
Once he fell in a well,
took a tractor and 10 men
to get him out.

Pride was our baby, my mare's foal,
a black,
17 hands and a handful,
only horse to throw
my husband while training.
Spooked by a bear, he broke his neck,
record breaking heat that weekend
and alone with a dead horse
lying in the field was
not my finest day.

But I've saved the best for last,
she was born on St. Patrick's Day,
my love, St. Pat.
A flashy bay
with a single-foot gait,
her stride smoother and faster
than most horses lope.
We were a team,
forged rivers, conquered mountains,
and once even rode color
guard in the Grand National Rodeo.
God I loved her!

I've out lived them all.
My horse days are over
which is probably best,
what would I look like now
trying to get my butt
into the saddle?
                    ---Judi Van Gorder

"Form of the week: Ubi Sunt"   Exercise 11-9-17