"Grace" by Ronni Sweet

"Grace" by Ronni Sweet

Twilight begins.
The embrace of stars.
I attend to softening edges,
Watch the unassuming beauty of
Horses as they bow their heads
Over sweet, sun-dried grasses.

This is the most peaceful time I know.
Paced by clover-scented, rhythmic chewing,
Content with present abundance
I slow the natural pulse
Of earth and sky.

To simple needs–
Warm breath on hand,
Comfortable intimacy in serene eyes.
For it is the horse's gift
To connect us with heaven
And our own footsteps.

Each evening
I look forward to this transition,
This precious mystery of
Communion with the still Earth
As I gently slip out of this binding human skin
And Dance with child-like grace before the setting sun.

Quoted in Animals as Teachers and Healers: True Stories and Reflections

Joy Harjo - "She Had Some Horses"

She Had Some Horses

by Joy Harjo

I She Had Some Horses

She had some horses.

She had horses who were bodies of sand.

She had horses who were maps drawn of blood.

She had horses who were skins of ocean water.

She had horses who were the blue air of sky.

She had horses who were fur and teeth.

She had horses who were clay and would break.

She had horses who were splintered red cliff.

She had some horses.

She had horses with eyes of trains.

She had horses with full, brown thighs.

She had horses who laughed too much.

She had horses who threw rocks at glass houses.

She had horses who licked razor blades.

She had some horses.

She had horses who danced in their mothers' arms.

She had horses who thought they were the sun and their

bodies shone and burned like stars.

She had horses who waltzed nightly on the moon.

She had horses who were much too shy, and kept quiet

in stalls of their own making.

She had some horses.

She had horses who liked Creek Stomp Dance songs.

She had horses who cried in their beer.

She had horses who spit at male queens who made

them afraid of themselves.

She had horses who said they weren't afraid.

She had horses who lied.

She had horses who told the truth, who were stripped

bare of their tongues.

She had some horses.

She had horses who called themselves, "horse".

She had horses who called themselves, "spirit", and kept

their voices secret and to themselves.

She had horses who had no names.

She had horses who had books of names.

She had some horses.

She had horses who whispered in the dark, who were afraid to speak.

She had horses who screamed out of fear of the silence, who

carried knives to protect themselves from ghosts.

She had horses who waited for destruction.

She had horses who waited for resurrection.

She had some horses.

She had horses who got down on their knees for any saviour.

She had horses who thought their high price had saved them.

She had horses who tried to save her, who climbed in her

bed at night and prayed as they raped her.

She had some horses.

She had some horses she loved.

She had some horses she hated.

These were the same horses.



To read her book: She Had Some Horses: Poems


To see her website: www.joyharjo.com