Breathtaking. Seismic. Awesome. Thrilling.
Watching Odin run around takes my breath away. He put on a show for me today, and it was a sight to see. I wish I had my camera in my hand; it was in the car, and my iPhone stayed in my pocket. (This photo was taken last year, one of my favorites.)
It was an exciting day for Odin. It was hot, very windy, and when I got there, I led him out of the pasture and over to give him a bath. I don’t usually bath him. I would rather brush him well and let the rain be his cleaner. But, he’s shedding and I’m not there to brush him every day, so I gave him a bath in hopes that it eases his itchiness in my absence.
It was hot today, well into the 80’s, and it was a perfect day for it. As hot as it was, the water coming out of the hose was still ice cold. So, Odin was a little dancy. He found the sound of my hands rubbing his lathered hair a bit strange at first too. The wind blew, gusted and at one point, a big plastic bag flew by and wrapped itself around the trunk of a tree not 10 feet away. A lot of things were flying at Odin all at once, and he handled it well. His winter hair is so thick that, even with the wind blowing, it took awhile for him to dry.
Then, a round bale was delivered, set in his pasture. That is one of Odin’s favorite sights to see. He stood while I chatted with my friends and remained the center of attention, so he was happy. But, he kept his eye on that round bale.
As if that wasn’t enough, it was time to haul big plastic bags filled with leaves into Odin’s pasture where the garden will be plowed in a few weeks. When I led Odin back to the pasture, his head was up and he resumed his dancing. When I let him loose, he circled the round bale, pawed at some of the hay on the ground and snorted at those big black bags over and over. One last bag to come in, one little shake of that bag and Odin was off and running his own little Kentucky Derby around the pasture.
Yeah, Odin felt good. He treated us to sliding stops, twisting bucks, flying lead changes, roll backs and dead runs for a good long time. Once in awhile, he’d stop with his head up high and blow before taking off for another round of his playful antics.
Yes, Odin felt good, and watching him, I felt better than I’ve been in months.
Thank you, Odin.
