When I Am An Old Horsewoman

First saw this poem hung up in the bathroom of a local barn in Santa Fe. I had attended a Centered Riding clinic there about a year ago. I think of it often and wanted to share…

When I Am An Old Horsewoman
I shall wear turquoise and diamonds,
And a straw hat that doesn’t suit me
And I shall spend my social security on
white wine and carrots,
And sit in my alleyway of my barn
And listen to my horses breathe.

I will sneak out in the middle of a summer night
And ride the old bay gelding,
Across the moonstruck meadow
If my old bones will allow.

And when people come to call, I will smile and nod
As I walk past the gardens to the barn
and show instead the flowers growing
inside stalls fresh-lined with straw.

I will shovel and sweat and wear hay in my hair
as if it were a jewel.

And I will be an embarrassment to all,
Who will not yet have found the peace in being free
to have a horse as a best friend,
A friend who waits at midnight hour
With muzzle and nicker and patient eyes
For the kind of woman I will be
When I am old.
- Patty Barnhart