The Time is Near

The time is almost here. I can feel it. The other day, I came upon a band of wild horses out on the green. At their near flank, I spied a tall palomino, her flowing white mane reaching almost to her knee. As she broke away from the rest to drink from a nearby pond, our eyes met. In her gaze, I saw neither fear nor distrust, but with the piercing curiosity of an equal. I dared to creep closer, the wisdom of past failures washed away by an overwhelming sense of destiny. As I approached and she reared on her hind legs to test my resolve, pawing at the earth with her hooves. I held her gaze, pausing only a moment to let her apprehension subside. I dared not look away, but I could feel my boots sink deeper into the mud as I closed in. Soon, I could see nothing else but her bright eyes, shining like agates in the midday heat. I whispered assurances to her in my native tongue, and reached out to touch her mane. She accepted my offered hand, allowing me to run my fingers through her flaxen locks. For a moment we were one heart. Then suddenly, her ears darted this way and that, finally settling on the treeline. She whinnied, sweating with fear despite my reassurance. There was no more I could do to calm her, and a moment later she turned in retreat with the rest of her number. I dared not linger there to savor this small victory. For whatever malevolent force interrupted our reverie was clearly lurking somewhere in the nearby woods. -Jochi