Important sections of
Worth a Queen's Ransom:
"Hannah was the oldest of the three students riding that afternoon. An exceptionally bright ten-year-old challenged by cerebral palsy, she delighted in Andrea's weekly assignment of creating adventures for the group.
The other two riders in today's class were girls a few years younger than Hannah. Diagnosed with
autism spectrum disorders, neither Carney nor Dawn
communicated verbally, although Carney was prone to mouth words without making a sound. As a result, and because she was the natural leader of the group, Hannah always led the trio on the trails and was the rider who gave the "walk on" command that our therapeutic riding horses were trained to move forward on. Today, things would be different. [1]
At the sound of Hannah's voice, Carney looked up and smiled. She and Hannah shared a special bond and it was obvious Carney wanted to please her.
'"I'll help you, Carney. Say 'walk on' with me,"' Hannah continued to encourage. Carney's mouth moved, forming the words, and this time instead of silence came a whispered '"
waaak on."'
Stronger and more clearly this time, Carney said "walk on," and just like magic, Fred (her horse) moved forward down the trail. [2]
Students like Hannah, who have little or no strength or movement in their legs, rely on the horse's handler to control the pace and side walkers to keep them balanced in the saddle. While the program's goal is for students to achieve as much independence in riding as they are safely capable of doing, Hannah had never trotted before.
TK's (her horse) handler gave the command and he easily moved into a slow trot. Her other side walker and I supported Hannah, keeping her in the center of the horse's broad back as we jogged on each side of him... Before we knew it, we were at the bend and
TK's handler slowed him with a '"whoa."'
TK came to a smooth halt with Hannah in balance and sitting tall. [3]
Thoughtfully, Carney took the first bill and placed it in Andrea's open hand. Clearly, as if it happened all the time, six-year-old Carney said '"Five."' Everyone remained quiet, not willing to break the spell, as Fred turned his head to look at his tiny rider.
Deliberately, Carney placed the second bill carefully in Andrea's hand, and said '"Ten."' Then the next, '"Fifteen."' And, as she laid the last piece of paper in Andrea's palm, Carney smiled and said, '"Twenty."'
It was over 90 degrees in the shade of
those trees, but every person had goose bumps as well as tears in their eyes. Fred broke the spell with another whinny, waiting.
'"Walk on!"' Carney commanded unprompted.
'"Walk on!"' Hannah shouted.
The group moved forward. Quiet and thoughtful during the short walk back to the barn, all of us knew we had just shared an important day in the lives of two little girls. One who trotted her horse for the first time, not once, but twice, and the other who broke through a veil of silence to verbally communicate with confidence and assurance. There was no doubt that I had just witnessed magic. I couldn't wait for next week's adventure." [4]
[1] Passage from "The Ultimate Horse Lover" Page: 29. Marty and Mikkel Becker, Audrey Pavia and Gina
Spadafori. 2008
[2] Passage from "The Ultimate Horse Lover" Page: 30. Marty and Mikkel Becker, Audrey Pavia and Gina
Spadafori. 2008
[3] Passage from "The Ultimate Horse Lover" Page: 31. Marty and Mikkel Becker, Audrey Pavia and Gina
Spadafori. 2008
[4] Passage from "The Ultimate Horse Lover" Page: 34. Marty and Mikkel Becker, Audrey Pavia and Gina
Spadafori. 2008
