How did I get here?!

I've been thinking about how events have transpired that I should find myself in the place where I am. Though going through a bad spell, this place isn't all bad. I have more good friends then the ones that try to suck the life out of me. That's a good thing. I have more opportunities ahead of me then behind. Though I feel kind of beat up, it's still better then the alternative.

There have been a couple of big turns in my life that have brought me here. One really big turn was when Dad showed up. I don't think he liked kids much at first, but I guess we kind of grew on him. We must have. He married Mom and adopted us. This gave us a new set of grandparents as well. Grandma could be cranky but Grandpa made us a part of the family in the blink of an eye. I remember one day asking Grandma about a family crest that hung on their wall. She said she had sent away for it. It was probably a scam as she was pretty sure Grandpa came from a family of horse thieves. Being a horse lover, I thought that was alright! Sometimes a person has to do what they have to do, in order to get a horse. I thought that someday, I might need to steal a horse too.

Another big turn was, of course, getting married myself. It wasn't until later that I found out what the distant McFarland family was like. It seems that over the ages the McFarland family was known for two characteristics. One was for throwing predominately female offspring and the other was for cattle rustling. My three daughters and I had a really good laugh over this. The McFarland's antics over the local cattle got so bad that a full moon was referred to as a "McFarland's Lantern". Apparently, you could bank on the fact that they would be out and about when night time visibility was at it's best. The McFarlands were known for bravery in battle but when nothing was going on, they needed to find their own excitement. Eventually the neighborhood got tired of the thrill seekers and drove them out. Some settled in towns and started pubs. The rest moved to Ireland, probably in the hope of finding new and improved breeds of cattle.

Mac denounces his need for cattle and he says he certainly doesn't want me to have one. I think that in reality, one day, I will wake up and find Mac will have stolen a cow just for me. I might name her Leona.

The majority of my friends now are my horsey friends. I've met some through a couple of driving clubs , but most through Parelli. So far I haven't heard of any horse thieves among them, but you never know. If there are, I'm sure I will meet them. I seem to be cosmically drawn to the more illegal form of animal lover. Sometimes a person just has to do what they have to do.

louie