All I want for Christmas is a horse [to canter]
Emma Simmons
(1/2020) Every Christmas for the past 10 years. Well, maybe not quite that long since I’m only 10 years old and babies can’t write letters to Santa. But for at least the last six or seven years.
But have I gotten a horse for Christmas? After all those letters to Santa? Even after meeting with Santa in person? - - and there was a long, long line of kids in front of me waiting to talk with Santa. I wonder if they were asking Santa for horses as well. Maybe he ran out. Either way, no horse for Christmas.
But to make this clear, to be really honest, I have gotten horses for Christmas. Every Christmas. Every Christmas I get a horse. But not the kind I wanted.
When I was five, my grandmother got me a rocking horse. It was chestnut brown with a white blaze down its face, light brown mane, and amber eyes. It neighed and rocked me back and forth. I love that horse. I still ride it sometimes now, even though it seems so much smaller than when I got it.
For my sixth Christmas, my parents gave me a broomstick horse. It is a white horse with black mane. He has black eyes and black riding stick. I named this one Rascal. He had a beautiful neigh when I first got him. But it’s gotten quieter each year until now it’s a whispering neigh. Guess I’ll have to put him out to pasture.
On my seventh Christmas, Santa got me a singing and walking horse. It’s bay brown horse with black mane and a brown halter. Kind of plain, but how it can sing. It sings "ride’m cowboy," shakes his tail, and trots along at quite a brisk pace. I attached the horse to a Frozen sleigh I got the same Christmas and boy could he pull that sleigh
fast. When I tried to get him to pull the sleigh full of Frozen dolls down the stairs (like down a mountain), what an amazing crash it was!
When I was eight, I opened a Christmas gift from Mama and Daddy. Yes, it was a horse, but it was a stuffed horse. It’s a liver chestnut brown horse with white spots and black mane. Now, I really love this horse. It’s super soft and cuddly. And I still play with it some even today.
At nine, I got books about horses. Yes, books. I love to read, and these are really great books. But, they’re books. What else is there to say. I asked for a horse.
As great as all of these Christmas horses are, they’re not what I meant when I asked for a horse. What I meant was a "REAL" horse. One that I can ride. One that neighs. One that is big and soft. Now that might sound like what I’ve gotten for Christmas these past years, but they are not "REAL!" I want one that walks without winding, neighs
without pressing his ear, and one that, well, smells like a horse.
This year, I’m ten and still no horse. I was beginning to give up on my wish of getting a real horse to ride, to take care of, and to love.
But everything changed in the blink of an eye. Last fall, I was at my school’s science fair standing beside my project and wearing this really great shirt that read, "Just a Girl Who Loves Horses" (of course). And one of the judges walks up to me and my parents and asked if I rode horses. I said I wanted to learn to ride but didn’t have a
horse. I gave my parents my best sad look. Then he told my parents that he and his wife sometimes gave kids riding lessons and said we could come over and ride some time.
We went to their farm and it was a wonderful place. He has three horses and some dogs and cats too. I get to ride and he’s teaching me all about horses and how to take care of them.
And that’s how I got my first horse. Well, he’s not really my horse, but I love him just like he was my very own. I’ve learned a lot in the past months. Having a horse is a big responsibility. It’s not just about me and having fun. It takes a long time to learn about horses, how to care for them, and how to ride properly.
