ORDINARY EXTRAORDINARY - Story 16th

 Opale – memorial.

         A year passed and I lost my second horse. This time the loss was even more painful. She was a consolation after He had left. He passed away in an advanced age, She was in her prime time. It happened so fast that I even couldn't say goodbye.

Opale de Lambercourt. A beautiful Andalusian mare, a tough, tenacious girl. She taught me horse riding.

The Andalusian horses originally were bred for battle purposes. They didn’t only serve to carry knights' bottoms but they took an active part in the fight, standing on hind legs and fighting with the front ones like boxers. Today these skills and their jumping qualities are used in horse shows. The second, darker area, they are bred for is a corrida. These horses, facing the bull, must react in a split second to bull’s movement. The price of even a slight hesitation is heavy injuries and in extreme cases - death. The bull doesn’t distinguish between a horse and a rider. It attacks the animal's underbelly with its powerful horns. When the horse doesn’t jump away on time, it ends up with a belly ripped or bruised if lucky. The angry bull knows no mercy. The Andalusian breed is one of the less timid, flexible in movement, very wise and mentally balanced.

Already keeping a horse that was a "purebred wire" (Folblut), the choice of the second one must have been the race from the Iberian Peninsula. The next thing was the sex of the animal. The new horse was to be a companion for the blind Dapango (my first horse). My beloved old horse had always been fond of the opposite sex, while with guys he was at loggerheads. Therefore, it should be a mare, mentally stable, that would be able to look after the blind elderly gentleman. Today, I think Opale was meant for me. We were looking for a horse for some time, when the owner of the stable in which Dapango lived, found an ad in a newspaper about the Andalusian mare put up for sale (which was very rare at that time because these horses were little known in Poland). The price was amazingly low for this breed, and the horse lived close, i.e. in Warsaw.

When I saw her for the first time, quiet, with her big ears, I knew that I would not like any other. As I told later: I didn't buy that horse, the horse bought me. The test ride didn't go well for me. When I dismounted and stood next to the horse talking to the owner, I suddenly felt something nibbling at my sleeve. It was Opale. The message was: "Please, get me out of here." So it happened, the horse underwent preliminary tests and after two days (exactly on St. Valentine's Day) it was mine. As it turned out, Opale's silent request was completely justified. Despite the good conditions in which she lived, the horse looked subdued. She must have been beaten before which I also accidentally witnessed later on. Opale needed two years to release the stress of her previous life, leading me to doubt and despair, and Dapango to anxiety. The elderly gentleman received a beautiful "white stick". He accepted the new companion right away and let her rule. However, she was still too young to be a good leader and entered a phase of rebellion. It didn’t understand that her older companion from the meadow was not able to see. When she thought that something threatened him, she showed him the facial expressions that he had to move and she would deal with the coming threat (i.e. a horse walking towards them). Dapango didn't react to her signs because he couldn't see them. He was eating grass calmly. Then the dear "guardian" decided to exert force by kicking the poor blind to get his attention. As a result, Dapango began to be so afraid of her, that, going out with her into the meadow, he had a problem to nibble the grass. The protectress had to be separated from the cared one. Luckily, the second Andalusian mare came to the stable. Girls immediately started to like each other and became inseparable like lovebirds. Unfortunately, after some time, Opale's friend was moved to another stable. My horse's despair was terrible. Then I decided to try to marry her with Dapango again. This time it worked. After two years of struggle and rebellion, Opale became the balanced, calm Andalusian mare she should have been from the beginning if the human intervention in her psyche had not taken place. She took care of an older companion. Although she had her own group of friends, she always protected Dapango when he needed it, she left her friends and came to him, checking that everything was all right. Described it human way, she looked after him. Owing to having her, it was easier for me to bear my parting with Dapango when his time came.

For me as a rider, Opale was a real challenge, tough cookie. I am not saying that riding an Andalusian horse is completely different. Opale was incredibly soft in movements. I had the impression that I was sitting on a comfortable sofa. While trotting, she my kidneys were not shaking like on Dapango. But her character... When she didn't want something to do, she just didn't do that. She was tough and stubborn. Nothing could be overcome by force. And that’s fine. She forced me to ride properly because otherwise there was no ride at all. It was a complete novelty for me, after Dapango, who was reading my thoughts, regardless of whether I gave the command correctly or not. Today I come to the conclusion that this could be the reason why the previous owner wanted to sell her. For an inexperienced rider she was a demanding horse.

Opale was incredibly intelligent. Riding her was a regular work from start to finish. She required constant assigning of tasks, otherwise she got bored and wanted to return to the stable. It was hard but finally we got along so well that I didn't want to ride another horse. She became a real member of my family. She went on vacation with us, not doing "scenes" in transport and acclimatizing well in a new place. Over time she quieted down. Everyone said they envied me such a calm and well-mannered horse. Despite her character she was gentle and sensitive. It was only necessary to understand and respect her, while the previous owner tried to force and break her.

My mare felt good. She wasn't sick. Opale suffered only from melanoma (problem a lot of the white-coloured horses) but this type of cancer is much milder in horses than humans. It was  a terrible shock for me when she got an intestinal colic attack that led to a twist and necrosis of her intestines. Despite the vet’s intervention, she could not be saved. She suffered so much that it was necessary to decide to euthanise her. I was at the other end of Poland at the time. I left everything and rushed to her but I didn't make it. As I’m writing these words, tears are coming to my eyes. Just as Dapango left me because it was his time, Opale left too quickly and in agony.

My love, I hope you are running on colourful meadows together with Dapango and waiting for me. One day I will join you and for the time being I try not to suffer so much after you went away. I don't know if I ever will have a horse again, I know one thing - I will never forget you and write about you so that others would know how wonderful and close you and Dapango were to me.

 

Goodbye and see you in a better world,

Yours forever.

 

If you want to call Dapango’s story in mind:

http://jarkiewicz.eu/articles/index/index/article/ordinary-extraordinary-story-8th