My Life and Horses - Part 3

The second horse suggestion we got from our neighbor was from his vet. Another veterinarian whom he worked with had a horse at her parent’s house who was for sale – Zeke. My mom called the number and I kept my ears pricked through her entire conversation. I remember that my grandma was over and we were playing Wii downstairs at the time.

When my mom hung up, she told us what Zeke’s owner, Chad (all names have been changed – except Zeke’s) had said about him. He was free, because Chad didn’t like his type of horse. That was a pro! He was skittish, which was a con. But he was a middle-aged gelding, which was a pro, because that was what I wanted and the kind of companion Chief needed. He didn’t like to be ridden out alone, and whenever Chad got on him, he would back up some fifty feet. CON. But he loved attention and was a “girl’s horse”, in Chad’s words. That sounded pretty cool.


We decided to go and take a look at this Zeke on the following Sunday. After church, I changed into warm, outdoor clothes – it was January – and my dad and I started our long drive to Zeke’s home, which was about two hours away.

When we arrived, there was a skinny chestnut gelding racing back and forth along one side of a round pen. I guessed that it was Zeke and I was correct. I was a little afraid of him and a bit in awe as well. He looked like a wild mustang. I got my first ride on him in a beautiful field of snow. Chad had to get on him first so he could back up his allotted fifty feet. Because I was a little nervous about him, I didn’t go any faster than a walk. My dad and I asked Chad a few more questions and then headed for home.

My dad and I were doubtful, but surprisingly, my mom was all enthusiasm, and she rubbed off on my dad, so I was the only one with unsure feelings. My mom asked me if I thought I could love Zeke. I said, “Yes.” She asked me if I thought Zeke could bond with me. “I said, “Yes.”

However, I had a few fits of doubt – one took place a week or so after my visit to Zeke’s place, in which I confessed to my mom that I didn’t know if Zeke was the Right One. She told me that if I kept on waiting and waiting for the Right One, I’d probably never get a horse, because no horse is perfect. She said that when God answers our prayers, we tend to doubt His answers. In Zeke’s case, we had prayed long and hard; all the circumstances had lined up just right; she thought he should be my horse, and Dad thought he should be my horse. Basically, the gist of her response was – “ELLYN. THAT’S YOUR HORSE. Are you going to take him or not?”

That did it. My parents thinking that way about a horse could only mean one thing – they were right. It only took a day until I was convinced. Zeke would be my horse. Since I disliked the name “Zeke” and thought that his registered name, “Diversified Profit” was even worse, I began thinking about a new name for my near-future gelding. I thought of Copper, Redcoat, and assorted others, but I kept coming back to a name I had picked up a while before, from a horse-search site. I looked at the pictures of Zeke, considered affirmed, and consulted my mother.

“Mom, what do you think of changing Zeke’s name to Indy?”

She thought for a moment before replying. “Yeah, I think it suits him.” I thought so too, and from that point on, I decided to call my lovely Diversified Profit, “Indy” unless a better name came up. No better one ever has. ☺

By now, you may have guessed that Indy became my horse. If you did, you’re right. It was on January 19th, 2009, the day of Indy’s arrival, when I had my second moment of doubt. It was when I was putting the trailering fee, $250, into an envelope for Chad. Yes, Indy was a free horse, but we paid him to bring Indy down for us since me and my family have had zero experience with horse trailers. This $250 was all money that I had labored long for, and there’s something about giving a bunch of money to someone that tugs at your heart. It takes so long to earn it, but so little to lose it. But I knew that a horse would be a hundred times better than a stack of green paper, so I pushed past my moment of doubt. It could also have been the fact that I was finally getting my own horse that caused such a conflict of emotions.


Before the trailer arrived, I was having another conflict – a conflict in the belly. I was so excited and pent up and hyper and worried and stressed, that…whew…I paced back and forth and back again, feeling as if I was going to throw up any second. But after I floundered out into the snow to greet my new horse, I felt fine. Just a little shivery when I saw Indy in Chief’s corral, eating hay as if he had been there all his life. Everything went so smoothly that you couldn’t help but see God’s hand in it. I was worried that Chief and Indy would have a nasty fight, as horses often do to establish the dominant one and the underdog. Or the underhorse. We prayed that this would not happen.

As it was, Chief and Indy sniffed noses over the fence and that was all it took for them to become fast friends. No fight. Zilch! Not even one scream or kick! Even Chad was amazed. (That doesn’t mean Indy – the underhorse – never got kicked by Chief – the dominant. They just didn’t have World War III deciding who would get that privilege.)

Indy was not the nervous, back-up-aholic that we had seen at Chad’s. He was completely relaxed, and my nervousness of him vanished. In fact, the first time I got on him at Chief’s, he didn’t back up one step.

Since then, Indy and I have had many adventures together. We’ve moved (Chief had to get a new pal named Reno), we’ve bonded, and we’ve learned. Once, when he was still boarded at Chief’s, it was raining hard but I decided to go out and see if he was okay. Chief had exercised his dominant position and kept Indy out of doors in the rain so he could have the whole barn to himself. Indy was shivering like crazy and his eyes were rolling, meaning he was scared. I panicked, ran back to the house crying, and loaded up with towels, which I went back to the barn with and attempted to dry Indy off. I put Chief in a stall so that Indy could get in the barn, and I gave him some hay so he’d have resources to keep warm. He was shivering so bad at first that he wouldn’t even let me touch him. I was terrified, but he was okay, and it turns out that horses shiver all the time. All the same, I was glad to be there.

Another time last fall, I was riding Indy at my house when he bolted. I scraped into a tree, fell off, and broke my wrist. Indy went galloping for home, which was on a busy road. He survived and I did too. I went to the ER to get a temporary splint until I was ready for a cast, and that night I asked my dad to drive me over to the stable so I could make sure Indy had been taken care of. I went into his pen and he came right over to me. He followed me all around and when I was petting his neck, he folded it over me just like a horse hug. I’ll never forget that – it was so sweet! By the way, my wrist healed fine, but I still have a permanent scar on my nose to remind me of the incident.

Indy is not a KC. If I had met him at horse camp, I probably wouldn’t have liked him. But since he’s my horse, things are different – he’s my favorite horse in the whole wide world. But also since he’s my horse, I can’t just dismount when things get hard and ask for a calmer mount. I’ve got to stick with it, which is really hard sometimes. When I broke my wrist, I lost my confidence, and I’m still getting it back. Confidence is like money – hard to get, easy to lose

Through Indy, God has taught me to not give up, how to conquer fear (lots of prayer), responsibility, and all about the wonder of His creation. I’ve experienced the terrifying moment of hurtling off a horse’s back onto the hard ground, the excruciating decision to get up and ride again, and then the wonderful swell of joy that follows after you overcome your fear or a difficult part of training. After that, you can say, “Praise the Lord! I DID IT!”

And with God’s help, I plan to keep right on doing it.

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10 Things About Indy

1. His nicknames are Windy Indy (cause he doesn’t like wind), Red Velvet, and Sodden (the rainy day incident, remember?)

2. He can trot at the speed of a lope.

3. I believe he thoroughly enjoys spooking.

4. He was born in Oklahoma.

5. He doesn’t like the indoor arena.

6. He’s a girl’s horse – and a ladies’ man! He has a girlfriend named Blondie – she’s a National Show Horse a palomino, and a flirt.

7. He’s naturally thin – we’re still trying to get more weight on him since Chad’s! Better than naturally obiese, I guess.

8. His favorite treats are butterscotch nuggets and carrots.

9. He’s a fiery steed – in color and personality.

10. He’s the most beautiful horse in the whole world. <3

April 7, 2010