I Know Your Horse

I know your horse

I know how they like to be scratched and where
I know what time of day they sleep, how their feet and lips twitch while they dream, I imagine of running

I know how their hair whirls and changes over their chest, and their flanks
I know just how they like to be brushed

I know their feet, their growth cycles, and where the flair and cracks show up
I know what is needed to head those off

I know how to soothe them when they get antsy
I know how to draw them to catch,
And how they like me to carry myself a particular way

I know when cold rain makes them shiver
But wind doesn’t seem to bother them much
I know which corner of the pasture they find shade in
And when they’re comfortable, or uncomfortable

I know they don’t like to be cinched fast
And they hate it when my mind wanders
And I know they remind me to stay present
With a stomp of the foot, or meandering away

I know they remind me to let go of what I know
And to observe, and make no assumptions about who they are

You may have your worries spinning round
From an enclosed space, an office chair
An internet article,
A friends recommendation

You may have a program, a series of labels
He’s an introvert, or a naughty boy, or a lazy boy, or a pet

But I know your horse

He is not on the timetable of you and I
And he doesn’t carry our goals or worries or thoughts

And he knows you
And he knows me

no amount of covering up
Can hide who we are from the horse