A heartfelt loss

The old man was devastated, his horse was lost in the storm. One minute he had been close by his side and the next minute he was out of sight. Old Roy was all he had left now. Jim had gotten Roy when he was just a mere baby, and he had to be bottle fed because his mother had died giving birth. They roamed the back roads of Emanuel County through thick underbrush and tall pine trees, admiring the sights and sounds of mother nature. Jim had formed an unbreakable bond with the horse because he seemed to understand him when his high school peers did not. Jim’s family had fallen on hard times and has lost the home place. One by one, his family members had died, and he was left homeless. All he had left in this world was a changing of clothes, a pair of well-worn brogan shoes and a near-sighted horse that stood by his side faithfully, rain or shine. The pair went from town to town, often going to bed without a morsel of anything to eat that night. But in some towns, children wanted a ride on Old Roy and paid a quarter for a chance to ride on his back. At the end of each day, Old Roy bedded down close to Him with his huge head on his shoulder while keeping close watch over his master throughout the long, dark nights. But the storm had taken away the only thing Jim loved, and now he lay on a bed of straw, dreaming about his pal who was missing for a week now.

Jim’s dreams were bittersweet. They were once again in an old apple orchard and Jim was giving Old Roy a huge, red apple from the tree’s top branch and Jim could almost feel Old Roy’s warm breath engulfing his entire body. He awoke suddenly to feel a wet, slobbering tongue on his face. It was not a dream, Old Roy was back! And now Jim could go on living with his soul mate.

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