Whenever I travel, I try and regularly check the daily news in The Forum online (InForum). Glancing over the InForum site daily is the way that I stay grounded in the sensibilities of home.
Today I read a heartwarming story of a girl's commitment to her blind horse. The horse is a 23-year-old show horse registered as Positive Vibes. Vibes lost his sight in May, but has competed in eight shows this summer. His ability to do that is due to his owner - 10 year old Mercedes Schueler of Willmar, Minnesota.
I love this story. It is a story of compassion, patience, respect, commitment, perseverance, and adaptation; and, it is all delivered via the relationship between a young girl and an old horse. There is so much that we can take away from the story of Vibes and Mercedes. Their story is a parable of sorts that reminds of how far gentle kindnesses can go to righting a challenging situation.
Others might have put down Vibes - that is what most folks tend to do with blind horses. The loss of function is seen as catastrophic and so diminishing to life function that they think it to be more humane. But from a 10 year old we have a lesson, a reminder that adaptation is a matter of commitment infused with a whole lotta' love.
This is a lesson that carries far beyond the relationship between this young girl and her horse - this is a lesson for all of us in our dealings with each other and our views on the value of life. Life is all about adaptation and love is all about acceptance and commitment - when paired together they create a beautiful reality. In this case it is a young girl whose love and respect for a blind horse have found ways around what others would consider a debilitating disability. Look around your life and ask yourself where you can apply this lesson. Ask yourself how you can be more like Mercedes Schueler and Vibes.
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Positive Vibes...positive vibes indeed.
Day one thousand one hundred and twenty-seven of the new forty - obla di obla da
Ms. C
