haphazardly dumped the rest of the chicken feed for the girls to squabble about and ran off to find the horses. Along the way, she scooped up a few tasty apple treats for her favorite Clydesdale and made her way to the grazing field. Now, let’s pause again for a second here to remember how big a Clydesdale is. They can grow to be 19 hands, or 6 feet tall at the shoulders, and they weigh upwards of 25 hundred pounds. Try holding your hand in front of you (go ahead, no one’s watching) and spread your fingers out wide. That’s the approximate size of a Clydesdale’s horseshoe, from the tip of your thumb to the tip of your pinky.
In contrast, my 5-year-old great grandmother was about 3 feet tall and maybe 30 pounds soaking wet.
You can put your hand down now.
Despite her size, and having no fear (or concept of danger), my great grandmother offered her apples to the gentle giants, who, as usual, accepted her gift without hesitation and continued their grazing. Five-year-old grandma stepped to the side to pet the horse, clearly living her best life. What a sense of accomplishment, right? Fed and pet the horses like it was nothing. Best. Day. Ever. Until, naturally, the Clydesdale moved. “Out of sight out of mind” takes a very literal meaning when you’re a draft horse munching on that sweet, sweet prairie grasses. Unable to move her little legs in time, my great grandmother found herself trapped as the horse stepped forward, onto her foot. Now, here was a dilemma. If she screamed, she’d be found out and get in trouble and perhaps not be able to see the horses ever again, even under supervision. However, she was not wearing significantly protective footwear for the weight of a giant horse. Nor was she strong enough to push the horse off her foot. And this is where the determination (or stubbornness) kicks in: With miraculous patience and self-control, she did the only thing she thought she could do: She waited until the horse moved again.
Any idea how long horses can graze in one spot? Yeah; it’s a while. I’m sure it felt like even longer with a horse on your foot.
HVWP COMMONPLACE 59
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