By Victoria Cummings

“Hello, Money Pit!” my mother-in-law said as she petted one of our horses on the nose and admired the picture postcard scene of two happy horses, grazing in a white fenced pasture nestled in a forest of trees.

We were not offended because, of course, she is absolutely right. All horse owners know that their beloved animals dig a huge hole in their bank account. But her comment did make me consider why we spend our hard-earned dollars on two Quarter Horses when we obviously could come up with more sensible ways to use our money.

People generally own horses so they can enjoy riding them. What many non-equestrians don’t realize is that these beautiful creatures also provide us with other equally important lessons about life. Besides healthy exercise and the pleasure of athletic competition, I’ve come up with ten good reasons to own a horse –

1. My horses keep me honest about my emotions. Recently, I was stuck on Route 6 on a Saturday afternoon for over an hour. Running my errands in crowded stores and sitting in a traffic-jam that resembled a parking lot had me snarling. I finally got home and ran to the barn to turn the horses out in the pasture. I was grouchy, and they were anxious to eat some of that sweet green grass. I growled and was annoyed with them as I led them out. When I unclipped their lead lines and set them free, they went crazy. Both horses began racing around bucking and rearing and charging the fence. My cell phone rang. It was an old friend calling and I complained about the traffic and how my horses were acting so wild I was afraid they’d hurt themselves. She answered, “Sounds like they’re just doing what you wished you could do while you were stuck in that traffic.” Once again, I was reminded that the lead line is a direct conduit between my emotions and my horse.

2. Owning horses encourages patience. I bought my mare, Silk, when she was ten years old. I wanted her to trust me and respect me and be my best friend right away. It took three long painful years to get there. Now, after we’ve been together eight years, I am so glad I had the tenacity to build a solid relationship. I learned that when you are training a horse, setting deadlines is usually frustrating. Sometimes, they understand and do what you want right away. Just as often, you have to be patient and let them come to it when they are ready. I take a “Zen and Carrots” approach. I will be a partner with my horse for many years. If we don’t get to do what I want today, there’s always tomorrow.

3. My horses keep me out of therapy. They console me when I’m sad. They are so intuitive that they instinctively know when I’m having a bad day. In the quiet sanctity of my barn, I can tell them what’s bothering me and get it all off my chest. Silk will nuzzle me and rest her head on my shoulder. And she’ll never tell a soul what I said.

4. I am ridiculously responsible now that I have my horses. They count on me to be consistent with their feeding schedule. Rain or snow, I step out my back door at exactly 6:30 am. I see their heads sticking out the top half of the Dutch doors in the barn and hear them greet me. “Nnnmmmh! Nnnnmmmh!” they call enthusiastically. They live to eat, and their trust in me grows as they realize they can count on me. I will be there right on-the-button with the feed buckets even though my husband thinks I’m crazy.

5. I appreciate nature more since I have my horses. Seeing the sunrise, and the geese flying overhead in a V, I realize how blessed we are to live in such a serene, safe place. When I ride in the woods, and we stop to watch a doe and a fawn, my horse and I can sense that we are connected to our fellow creatures on this earth.

6. Taking care of my horses keeps my upper arms looking like a 20-year-old’s. Shoveling and hauling 80 pounds of horse manure a day is a good workout. Building corrals and compost bins keeps my husband trim and fit. Our daughter helps carry twenty gallons of water a day since there’s no faucet in the barn. Even my 91-year-old mother, who lives with us, gets her exercise walking back and forth when she helps feed the horses. I spend about two hours a day on horse keeping chores, and my “mucking diet” is working. I can fit in skirts that I haven’t worn in years.

7. My garden looks fabulous! When we first moved here, I ordered a dumpster for our manure. In August, I realized that the highlight of my week was when the trash man came and emptied the poop bin and the air was clear again. It was stinky and expensive, and we were throwing away nuggets that mushroom growers claim are the world’s finest fertilizer. We got rid of the dumpster and built compost bins. Now, my garden thrives, and I get an extra benefit from the mountains of hay and grain the horses wolf down.

8. Our horses force me to live in the moment. They don’t care if there’s a big project at work that keeps my mind buzzing long after I leave the office. If I am distracted and let Silk grab a leaf from that tree branch or jump across the ditch instead of walking through it, she thinks she’s in charge. In our little herd, I am the leader, and I can’t let my focus stray.

9. Horses build my child’s confidence like nothing else does. Since she could walk, my daughter has been riding bareback on these big, gentle animals. Her best teachers have been Jinny Jigs, the Mother Teresa of all horses, and Dusty, the 28-year-old stallion who looked like a teddy bear. She asks them to pick up their feet, and they do. She steers them and stops them, and they obey her. Recently, I watched her lope around the arena on a horse named Hoot without holding onto the reins. Her smile when they stopped was priceless. I could see Hoot’s halo shining.

10. Watching my young horse, Siete, gives me joy. She is the daughter of my four-legged sister, Silk, and is sweet, smart and trusting. Her mother was abused before I bought her, and I vow that no one will ever hurt her baby. When she was three months old, Siete decided that my daughter was her best friend. Every time she saw her, the little red filly would start leaping and dancing along the fence inviting my girl to come play with her. Seeing them together makes my heart glow.

So, even though we can’t afford to have horses, we always find a way. They traveled all the way across the country with us when we moved to the East Coast from California. They are part of our tribe. Other people may think I’m crazy to get up in the dark and stumble out to the barn to feed Silk and Siete.

What they don’t understand is that it makes my day.

Virginia Cummings, who moved to Newtown one year ago, has developed a web site and an e-book for first-time horse owners and beginning riders. Visit www.teachingsofthehorse.com.