On each early morning trip to the river near Deckers, I drive around a bend and there he is.
Tall, dark, and handsome, he pays little attention to the strange machines zooming by.
Mel is always alone, never hurried, and content as an infant with a bottle as he munches
on the plentiful grass at his feet.
A few weeks ago, I began acknowledging this beautiful fella with a friendly salute
as the morning sun ascended above the mountains to the east.
Last Tuesday, I saw Mel’s master working on a gate at the entrance to their ranch.
On a whim, I pulled over and the kindly man surely anticipated another request for directions.
I, instead, just offered a compliment on his splendid stallion.
“Why, thank you, sir…Melvin has been with us these past four years and he’s special.
We sent him to a nearby equine training center to calm him down and he’s been a dream ever since.
Jenny was his savant like trainer and said he prefers the name Mel.
She composed a song that she’d sing to him before light’s out every night.
When I said she was a savant, I meant it.
She made a recording of ‘My Boy Mel’ and we play it every evening for the big fella.
Before it concludes, he utters a pronounced sigh and is fast asleep.
Heck, it’s like Jenny is a daily part of our family.
We shook hands as the trout beckoned and these moments with Cam will surely linger as this
aging cowboy enters dreamland tonight.
What You’re Saying