Forget Me Not Robinwood and yours truly in 2011
Twenty years ago I was driving to church and heard an interview on NPR that would impact my life in more ways than I could imagine. The Arkansas state director of Personal Ponies was talking about this national program run entirely by volunteers that shared ponies, free of charge, with special needs kids. “We Believe in Magic” was the motto…spreading pony magic one smile at a time. I was hooked.
Within months I received my two ponies, Robin and Nate (I’ll tell you about him next time). My plan was to have kids come to the farm to enjoy them (check), to take them out into the community to share them (check), and to only have these two ponies and no more (uh oh).
My years with Personal Ponies were a mixed bag, as life certainly is. Looking back I’m most grateful for the treasured friends I made thanks to the ponies. Anyway, this is Robin…
A painting I did from a photo of Robin meeting my Thoroughbred gelding Nova for the first time. They became fast friends and especially enjoyed chasing each other up and down fence lines.
Robin was a natural at driving from the start. Here he is with trainer Sula Robertson, where he spent a month thanks to a generous donation from a volunteer. And Sula driving him at her Oklahoma farm…
One of my first portraits was of Robin when I started painting. Here he is today in his winter coat…
Robin has Cushings, so doesn’t shed in the spring. I clip him when spring arrives and help him deal with summer heat by hosing him on hot days. At 25 he also has breathing problems when it’s very hot and humid. Last summer was rough for both of us.
This boy gives me so much joy. I’ll be introducing you to Nate in the next installment of these pony tales.
Much love,
Dell
How sweet that Nova accepted Robin and they played together.
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