When We Met a Descendant of Misty of Chincoteague!
When our oldest granddaughter was about to turn 13 in May, Ray and I decided to start a new tradition, taking each grandchild on a trip when he or she becomes a teenager. Our granddaughter loves horses, plays, and music, and she spent many happy times playing with the dollhouse at our house through the years. We invited her to go with us to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, the Stephen Foster Story in Bardstown, and the Great American Dollhouse Museum in Danville, all in Kentucky. Last week was the first time we could go, which turned out great since it was the last week of this year’s Stephen Foster Story play season.
Our first stop was the Kentucky Horse Park.
The park is set in the beautiful bluegrass region of Kentucky, where you drive by one beautiful horse farm after another.
I had a lot to learn because my knowledge of horses is very limited.
My Aunt Emily and my friend Joanne each had a pony when I was young. I used to ride those occasionally; and during Ray’s graduate school days, he and I once visited a church friend who worked on a horse farm.
The children and I went on a field trip to learn about taking care of horses when we first began homeschooling in the early 1990s.
I am pretty sure I have sat on a real horse before.
As I said, I had lots to learn.
First we went to the Hall of Champions show where an announcer introduced us to several of the champions who live at the park. Meet Roy H who retired in 2019, after winning $3.14 million. He came to live in the Hall of Champions this past November.
After the show, we got to meet Western Dreamer, who was born in the Kentucky bluegrass region. He turned 30 years old this year and has been retired since 2001. He was the first horse that our granddaughter got to pet at the park.
Next we went to the Parade of Breeds show.
Most of the horses living in the park’s Breeds Barn stay for a season or more and are on loan from their owners, while a few have been donated or purchased by the park. The park has a Parade of Breeds show each day to teach visitors the history of various breeds. Hands down my favorite was a real live Chincoteague pony, and not just any ol’ Chincoteague pony either, but the great-great-great-great-granddaughter of Misty of Chincoteague! Her name is Misty’s Red Dawn.
It was exciting when our granddaughter got to pet Misty’s great-great-great-great-granddaughter after the show. I’m glad we visited while Misty’s Red Dawn was also visiting and that she was one of the five breeds in the show that day.
When we first started thinking about the trip, I was thrilled that our granddaughter could go on a trail ride. The morning of our visit I decided that I would give the trail ride a try, too. I confess to being very scared as the time to mount came closer. While we waited, I prayed!
I had to take off my sunhat and don a helmet, which sounded like a very good idea to me! The more protection the better.
The trail guide and her assistants walked by the waiting group of trail riders, sizing us up as they handed out cards telling us which horse we would ride. Our granddaughter got Comanche, a 27-year-old Appaloosa who also works as a mounted police horse at the horse park. I got Frankie, who once worked as a lesson horse for young people and was also a race horse. Race horse? I wondered.
Finally the time came for me to mount Frankie, who turned out to be one of the tallest of the 30-odd horses carrying our group of trail riders. Before I put my foot in the first stirrup, I asked my trail ride assistant if it was a good idea for someone my age to ride a former racehorse. She assured me that Frankie would do what he was supposed to do.
He did. It was fun.
Until recently, our two youngest grandsons have been very hesitant about learning how to swim. Earlier this week the six-year-old told me triumphantly about his most recent swimming success. It’s been a long time coming. It can be hard at any age to try something new. Thank you for being patient with your little kids and your big kids as they learn to overcome their fears of all kinds of new things.
For I am the Lord your God,
who upholds your right hand,
Who says to you,
“Do not fear, I will help you.”
Isaiah 41:13
Note: If you have horse lovers in your family, you might enjoy a visit to the Kentucky Horse Park. We three are very glad we went. I think it is best, though, for older children. The park is large and requires lots of walking. We were thankful that a golf cart driver saw Ray’s temporary walker and offered us a ride to the first show. The shows were enjoyable and informative. However, they are more like lectures with real horses as illustrations than what I think of as a show.