Real Love

I can't recall a time when I wasn't enthralled by horses, but I do remember the first time I watched National Velvet and fell in love with the Pie. I imagined myself as Velvet Brown. I rode each stride and wept when he fell sick. I was in love, not a fleeting crush, but a real love.

The horse that played the Pie was a descendent of Man O'War and by all accounts knew it. He was stunning, a bright chestnut with white stockings. He was a difficult horse, but he was good for Elizabeth Taylor and after the movie was finished the studio gifted him to her.

My heart still beats faster when I think of him, even though I know he was gone before I ever knew of him.