by Lynn Cox
Our beloved Sonlight crossed over the rainbow bridge to greener pastures on June 6th. After undergoing surgery for colic at Alamo Pintado Clinic, Sonlight was unable to recover and he went peacefully into God's arms. I remember J-R commenting many times how Sonlight was a horse that knew how to take care of himself. And he also took care of J-R. Once, when J-R was riding Sonlight, J-R lost his balance and was starting to fall. Amazingly, Sonlight adjusted his position under J-R and helped him regain his balance. With "Calm" as his essential quality of Peace, Sonlight has always been a model for me of how to take care of myself and connect to my calm within. (Written by Toni Green, from Sonlight) My Dear Friends, This is Sonlight. I hope you are well. I am truly Blessed and great. It's funny, I've been writing you all for a long time now and no one has ever asked how I do it. I don't have thumbs so writing isn't really possible. And I don't speak human, well, at least not out loud. I thought it was time I let you know as this is a very special letter indeed. I speak through my Spirit into that of one of my dear human friends, and that friend is kind enough to convey me to you. I am not physically at Windermere Ranch any more. A few days ago, the Lord saw fit to bring me home. But since we connect through the Spirit, I was given this opportunity to send you one last letter. So here goes. They say "greener pastures", and they speak the truth. I am with many dear friends right now. We race through open fields of Light, loving, and playing to our hearts' content. I am enjoying a level of peace and beauty that cannot be duplicated in the world. But you know, Windermere and all my loved ones there do come about as close as you can get. To my Beloved J-R, my Master, my Friend, my Traveler, I Thank You to the depth of my Spirit. You chose me to be your horse. You gave me the best home on earth, a herd to lead, humans to love and assist, and all the lessons I needed to learn, to grow and to uplift. And I have done that. I love you with every ounce of my being, J-R. We have had some great times, you and I. And I know there are more to come. To those of you who have loved me, and taken such good care of me throughout my life, I am so grateful. May the good you do come back to you in ways only God can imagine. And to the rest of you, those of you who supported me in being a Windermere horse, those of you who helped give me such a great life, my love is always with you. And I have one last gift to give. My essential quality is "calm", as you know. It doesn't just go away or to some other horse because I am gone. It goes to you, to each and every one of you. When life is a little bit difficult and you don't know what to do, think about the Light of the Son, and my calm will fill you. God Bless You All, My Loving is eternally yours, Sonlight MELANIE HALELUK: For me, witnessing how Sonlight faced his mortality was an extension of the essence of how he lived his life... with awareness and acceptance of his circumstances, trust and faith rather than fear, and he was a great teacher through it all, simply by being who he was: a brave and competent leader and Wayshower. It was an honor to get to be a part of his life for a little while. DAVID RODGERS: Sonlight There are so many stories I could tell about Sonlight. I think I really got my first insight into his uniqueness as a horse one day when J-R was talking with him. A lot of people considered Sonlight J- R's horse; and he certainly was. For some reason that day, J-R related both sides of their conversation as they were having it. He let me hear what he was saying to Sonlight and then would repeat what he heard Sonlight saying back to him. I was like two brothers talking; lots of respect and no baloney from either side. It was also like J-R was showing me that I could have a conversational relationship with the horses if I wanted to do it. Sonlight loved to work and he was completely straightforward; a no-nonsense type of being. The cowboys I knew would refer to that type of horse as an “honest” horse. It was certainly a term of respect and honor. I remember when Teresa and Sonlight, Pashka (one of the other Windermere horses) and I, were in a three-day riding clinic. It was late in the clinic and it was becoming a stretch for Teresa’s body to do the maneuvers because of some injuries she had from a week or so before. I got off Pashka and went and stood next to Sonlight’s head to have a little chat with him while Teresa was still on his back. I asked Sonlight if he would take care of Teresa out there. What I got back was a very clear message. He said, “Just tell her to give 100% of what she has, even if that was only 40%, and I will fill in the rest.” What could I say to that? Obviously I had the role of the messenger, so I passed the message on to Teresa. Teresa and Sonlight were then called out with two other expert riders to do a series of maneuvers. These maneuvers were called out by the instructor as they rode so there was no pre-planning. What resulted was nothing short of amazing. I watched Sonlight and Teresa ride together just like they were dancing through the exercise. Even the instructor said Teresa had the best “seat” on her horse of anyone for the day. When they were done she came back with a huge smile and said all she did is what Sonlight had asked, and he did the rest. That was the kind of horse Sonlight was, one that watched and cared for all around him without taking over for them; something that is a model for me even to this day. It was an honor to know him and be able to spend time with him. David TERESA RODGERS: It was such an honor to know Sonlight, he was such an amazing powerful no-nonsense type of horse who loved to go riding. Riding him was like riding a tank, very solid and powerful. He always took great care of his rider. I would love to watch him and J-R. They shared such a love for each other. The story David shared about Sonlight was one of the most powerful experiences I had with him. To this day I remember his words —for me to give 100% of whatever I had, if it was 40% give 100% of that and he/ spirit will do the rest. To this day I often find myself using those words to encourage myself to give 100% of whatever is present for me to give. This was such an amazing gift for Sonlight to give me. Another very funny story I remember is one day I was riding Sonlight in the lunging corral and David was riding Uri. Sonlight and I were just about to break into a canter so David could move Uri into one. Well ... the next thing I know both Sonlight and I are heading towards the ground. Somehow he tripped and we started to fall. We both fell to the right in the sand. After we both got up and moved around for a moment to make sure we were fine, we looked at each other with this knowing ... okay that was weird, we're not going to talk about this, it was embarrassing, enough said, let's finish our ride! There was something in his look that said it all. Sonlight is one of those magnificent beings who graced us with his loving and presence. My love to you, Teresa TONI GREEN I am profoundly sad for Sonlight's passing. He has a very special place in my heart always. He was my first true friend at Windermere. Sonlight and I connected from the moment we met, when I was still a New Yorker. We had a bond that defied this level. I loved him deeply. My what an ache I feel in my heart. God Bless You Sonlight LINDA BOSTON Dear J-R, I’m writing to thank you for the gift and privilege I’ve had to ride Sonlight and to know him and love him, and now to grieve for him in his passing. In these last years, I’ve been riding him regularly and a deep bond developed between us. And after all he was the perfect horse— willing and trustworthy, spirited and enthusiastic yet calm and gentle. It always amazed me when I would show up at Horse Flats and he would walk right up to the saddling spot and just stand there, or come up to me and reach toward his halter. I know he loved to go out. The last time I rode him was the Friday before his episode that occurred on Sunday. I’m so grateful that I went out that day – it was a foggy day, the kind of day that makes it easier to curl up inside and blow off riding. But we had the best time. He had his usual enthusiasm for running up the hill from the Oasis, although I did notice he huffed and puffed a little more than usual. We took an extra few minutes rest before we headed up the west side. Back at Horse Flats after unsaddling him I was suddenly struck with an overwhelming wave of gratitude for him and how he gives so much, and for just the being that he is. There was no one around so I just let go and let the tears flow while I hugged him and loved him. I must have known on some level that this was our last ride together. It seemed to me that Sonlight always responded to the word, “J-R” -- with a flash in his eyes, or just a bristling in his energy. Sometimes, if the day were particularly spectacular, I’d say, “Let’s dedicate this ride to J-R,” and I would sense he was with me on that in whatever way that works for a horse. While I was visiting him at Alamo Pintado clinic the other day, I said, “J-R’s here” while I pictured you coming up to Windermere and visiting him. I guess there’s no way for me to know if he “got it.” But one thing I do know in my heart is that my presence there with him was meaningful. We really loved each other. And he was a wonderful teacher to me, right through these last few days of his time here. Alamo Pintado clinic is a beautiful place and full of life. While we were out on the lawn with Sonlight saying our last goodbyes to him, they were collecting a stallion just on the other side of the fence – new life on its way. In the ceiling of the stall where Sonlight stayed was a bird’s nest for the babies of the most beautiful golden-chested birds. The birds had used a bit of Sonlight’s mane to line the wall of their nest. And out the back window, a mare watched her new foal as he danced and played in the light of life. For me Sonlight is a shining example of all the many ways that the Traveler’s loving manifests here on the physical. I am so grateful to you, J-R, and I cherish all the good times we’ve had on the ranch. Thank you for Windermere. And thank you for Sonlight. He will always be a bright light in my heart, and I am looking to the new ones that come to take his place. My loving to you always, Linda Boston Franke |
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