Page 87 of All We Thought We Knew

He reached a tentative hand to pet the horse’s neck.

“Dawn’s Rose is one of my favorite horses. She’s very gentle and has one of the smoothest gaits of all the horses here on the farm.”

My speech reminded me of Dad’s sales pitches when potential buyers needed a little push to complete the transaction.

Fred eyed the saddle. “How are we going to do this?”

As Nash explained the plan—he and Dad would walk with Fred on either side of the horse, holding on to the belt he’d wear—I gauged Fred’s reaction. While he didn’t appear as uncertain about it as he had in the yard, he also didn’t seem convinced.

“What if she bucks or takes off running? I’m a goner.”

I patted Dawn’s Rose. “This girl has never bucked a rider. Besides, I’ll be leading her. She won’t have a chance to run. We’ll be in the corral where she’s used to walking.”

Fred took a deep breath. “All right. Let’s give it a try. Even if I fall off, I don’t guess I could get hurt worse than I already am.”

Nash and I exchanged a look, communicating with our eyes. We desperately wanted this to succeed.

It took both Dad and Nash to get Fred settled in the saddle. I held Dawn’s Rose steady, but she never flinched and stood patiently awaiting my instruction. While Dad held Fred by the shoulders from atop the platform, Nash came down the ramp and placed each of Fred’s feet in the stirrups.

“I ain’t gonna lie.” Fred gripped the saddle horn with both hands. “It’s pretty scary up here.” Panic filled his widened eyes.

“We won’t do anything until you’re ready,” I assured. “Nash is going to put the belt and strap on you now.”

When all was in place, with Dad on the right side of the horse and Nash on the left, we waited for Fred to decide what was next.

“How do you feel in the saddle?” Nash asked. “Comfortable? Secure?”

Fred’s grip on the horn loosened just a bit. “Good, I guess.”

“Would you like to walk around here in the barn first?” I asked.

Fred swallowed, staring at Dawn’s Rose. “Yeah, but real slow.”

“Okay. Here we go.” I made eye contact with Nash and Dad. “Nice and easy.”

Both men held on to the belt while the strap across Fred’s lap anchored him to the saddle. I led Dawn’s Rose into a slow walk, and we made a circle, ending up back at the platform. I think we were all holding our breath, as no one said a word.

I looked at Fred. “How was it?”

He continued to grip the saddle horn, but the tension in his face had eased. “Not bad. Can we go again?”

“We sure can.”

We repeated the process two more times.

Fred appeared a little more confident with each turn around the barn. “I think I’m ready to try the corral,” he said.

I led Dawn’s Rose the short distance across the yard. Dad and Nash both encouraged Fred as we made our way to the fencedarea. After we’d completed two full circles, Fred declared he’d had enough for today. His body trembled by the time we got back to the platform where Nash and Dad helped get him into his wheelchair.

I worried we’d overdone things, but once Fred was seated and had a sip of water from the thermos Dad thoughtfully provided, a slow grin inched up his face.

“I would’a never thought I’d ride a horse again, but sure as shootin’, I did it.”

We all smiled at that.

“You did really great,” I said, pleased with how well everything had gone.

“I didn’t fall off.” Fred gave a short laugh, then sobered. “But I felt like I could’ve there at the end.”