Well here we are, unbelivably in 2010! Where have the last ten years gone? I can remember only too well watching the millenium celebrations and wondering like so many others, if our computers would work the next day!

Little did I know or even imagine that 10 years on I would be sitting at my computer in Brittany in France and watching my herd of Horses grazing on the Land owned by the Chasse (french Hunters) Not just any old horses either, Spanish Mustangs!
Spanish Mustangs are believed to be the true blood descendants of America's southwestern colonial horses.
Their equine forefathers were introduced to the New World by Spanish explorers and conquistadors beginning in 1493, when they became the first to return to the region since horses mysteriously became extinct in the Western Hemisphere about 10,000 years ago.

As the early Spanish horses spread across North, South and Central America with their masters, some escaped in the vast, unfenced terrains.
Over time, they multiplied into millions throughout our great American West.

A feral Spanish-blooded horse on the open plains was called a mesteño, a word that became the root of our term mustang. These Spanish horses eventually were acquired by Native Americans, who rapidly were transformed by their powerful new modes of transportation and developed the horse cultures that became symbolic of a remarkable era in American history.
Spanish Mustangs also were used by early explorers to map the West and were the type of horse that helped develop the American cattle industry and the inimitable cowboy lifestyle.

Spanish horses reigned over the entire Southwest and the Rocky Mountains before breeds that had been transported from other European countries to the East Coast were utilized in the westward movement of the growing American population.

What I have learned from this amazing breed is that they aren't just any ordinary horse; they are, instead, physically and spiritually different. These equines are the descendants of the horses of the conquistadors as well as the ponies of the Plains Indians, the mounts of the mountain men explorers and the cow ponies of the early American cowboys and we have 3!

As I sit in my warm lounge, log fire burning, dogs sleeping on the sofas and our cat purring on the mat I struggle to see how I ever lived in a busy town, bustling with people, cars, fumes and 21st century clutter. Being at one (well nearly) with nature, learning herd dynamics, spending time, listening to the silence and noise of creatures of the countryside I am truly grateful for the path we took.
That said I dont deny that I crave the company of my daughter and new grandson, nor will I say that times here can and are difficult but as Winter changes (soon I hope) to Spring and the little hoofbeats of our pending foals are herd I hope that our luck improves and this time next year my blog for January will be just as heartfelt and harmonious.

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