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The mission became official the day I turned 40 years young. I had fallen in love with Fresians! I hadn't planned it, but it happened none the less. Until that day, all I knew was that I wanted something tall, smooth to ride, gentle, willing to learn, and unique. "You don't ask for much, do you!" one Fresian breeder quipped to me.
Immediately, I set upon a very aggressive quest to learn as much as I could about them from anyone willing to spare me the time. I traveled by e-mail, voice mail, and good old fashioned air mail. I must say the response was thrilling. I received numerous letters, videos, and more invitations to visit "Fresian Farms" than I can count! I was actually able to venture to a few that were within reach of my home in Washington, Oregon and even across the border to Hank and Henrietta's place in Canada. Everyone I talked to had lots to say!
My original plan was to wait for two years, but as I met more and more of these horses in person, I soon came to realize that I didn't want to put it off that long! My father-in-law saw how obsessed I had become, so he sent me a late birthday card with a crisp $10.00 bill in it. He wrote, "It isn't much, but you can put it down on your Fresian when you find it." He knows me well, and knew I would do just that. As it turned out, I found Maaike in my own back yard, not 10 miles from where I live.
I had heard by word of mouth that a dairy farmer in Burlington had several Fresians, and that he was entertaining the notion of selling one or two. I met Pete by literally knocking on a door and introducing myself saying that I was looking for Fresians. It turned out that I had knocked on the wrong door! Fortunately it was the home of one of his sons, and he pointed me in the right direction. I was too nervous to knock on anymore strange doors without first being properly announced, so I made a telephone call and set up an appointment. He introduced all of his mares and fillies to me one at a time (poor guy, all girls and only one boy), and suddenly there was Maaike, a two year old filly. I was instantly struck by her.
Tall and sleek, with a beautiful head and lovely, inquisitive eyes. She didn't just walk out of her stall. She carried her head high, and moved in a curious yet cautious, graceful manner that reminded me of watching a deer approach a stream for a drink of water. Everything about her said "Here I am!" In my quest I had envisioned a smart athletic mount that would be a joy to own and a sheer pleasure to ride. Here she was, picture perfect. She seemed too wonderful to be true, and I was almost afraid to think of the possibility that I could own a horse like her.
At the time I told myself "You can't buy her. This is an important investment, and you promised yourself two years in order to prepare yourself for this decision." Determined to stay as committed to my original plans as possible, I visited yet another Fresian farm in Oregon. I had the wonderful opportunity to meet Judi and her two trainers, Lea and Clay. I was totally saturated with all kinds of answers to questions I hadn't even thought of asking, and was incredibly grateful for the time they shared with me. Upon leaving her farm, I realized that my visit had confirmed to me that Maaike was indeed the horse that I was looking for, and could barely wait to get back home and establish my interest in her. From then on, Pete's wife Bonnie must have mustered up at least a little patience to extend on my behalf, because there were more than just a few phone calls and farm visits involved with this particular transaction!
The decision to buy Maaike would affect my entire family, and would require a few preparations. Even so, the support was there, and I never had any doubt that buying this horse was the right thing to do. In order to gain some time to get things in order at home, I bartered a little bit with Pete. I'll never forget the way he lifted his eyebrow and looked at me a little sideways out of the corner of his eye during our initial negotiations, but he did agree to hold Maaike for me for six weeks. In exchange, I would spend time schooling one of his other mares, Lutska, a wonderful three year old. I spent every free moment I had working with Lutska, while I waited for the day to come that I would take Maaike home. I do work a daytime job, am a wife and a mother of two very busy teenagers, so these six weeks were a challenge. I chuckled more than once to myself at how this scenario reminded me of the story of Jacob laboring under Laban's direction for the hand of Rachel in marriage. I was glad it was only going to be 6 weeks and not seven years!
Meanwhile, back at my house, Pete soon became known as "The Farmer" or even more entertainingly, "The Dutchman." I do assure you that they were meant only in affectionate ways! And maybe by his perspective he is running a dairy farm, but to my family, "Mom" (that's me) was spending a lot of time at "The Fresian Farm." It was all really great, and made the anticipation of bringing Maaike home even more enjoyable.
Finally May 1 arrived. The day to make it all come true. A very thorough vet check was arranged and performed, and yet another appointment was made for the next day to close the deal. My daughter accompanied me, and we arrived at the appointed time. Pete, Bonnie and their daughter Joanna were just finishing up breakfast and morning devotions. We visited for almost two hours, and our conversations explored how many people we knew in common within our two families and even a bit of common history within the Christian Reformed Church. It was nice to see that Maaike was coming from such fine stock!
And oh yea, we drew up the Bill of Sale. It seemed strange that the details of the monetary part of the transaction seemed to be but a sideline matter compared to the points of interests we were covering over our coffee cups. At last I gave Pete the $10.00 bill I had received from my father-in-law for my birthday, and a check for the balance of the purchase price. At first Pete and Bonnie thought I was joking, and they were quite entertained when they realized I was serious. Never had ten dollars meant so much! Finally, The Dutchman said, "OK, it is time to load her up and send her on her way." With that, he put on a clean hat for the occasion, and out to the barn we went. I was exuberant.
Maaike was brought out of her stall on the Dutchman's farm for the last time, and Pete fitted her with a beautiful brand new blue halter and white lead rope. She looked smashing! Pete lead her out into the sunlight, and we all congregated a while, admiring and petting her. It seemed to be a great moment for everyone involved. It is not really possible to describe all of the emotions present at the time, so it was fortunate that my daughter had thought to bring along the camera. Several pictures were taken of Maaike, the Dutchman with Maaike, and of the Dutchman transferring Maaike to me as her new owner. All of these fun photos were of Maaike going to her new home on what was, coincidentally, her 2nd birthday!
Everything had joyously fallen into place. From the very start, the adventure of finding and buying Maaike has created some really great memories and the opportunity to make several new friends. I met a lot of people along the way, and I sincerely appreciate all of the consideration that was given to me. The best part of this story is that I know the end of it is really the beginning of what is yet to come, and I am looking forward to all of it.
Friesians are incredibly intelligent, and make exquisite dressage mounts. Their gentle, willing manner make them a pleasure to own and an enjoyable horse to handle in most any given situation. If you have any questions about Fresians, or would like to meet some, please feel free to e-mail Marilyn at pineda@s.... She would be very happy to introduce you to some of Maaike's friends!)
by Marilyn
MY FIRST FRESIAN!
And Allah took a handful of southerly wind, blew His breath over it, and created the horse.... Thou shall fly without wings, and conquer without any sword. Oh, horse. ~Bedouin Legend
In the state of Queensland, Australia, it is still constitutional law that all pubs (hotel/bar) must have a railing outside for patrons to tie up their horse.
