Reba
First connection with Reba
As I tied the hawk feather into her mane, tears filled my eyes. This was a special feather that a Red Tailed Hawk had given me ten years ago, and it was very clear that this feather was meant to commemorate this special event. This was the day that I officially adopted Reba.
The tears were tears of joy; and in that joy there was sorrow for the passing of my two mares, Julietta and Inanna last winter, and in that joy there was happiness for the blessing of bringing another mare into my life. The tears also commemorated a shift of being in the downward side of a cycle of endings since January, and realizing that I was now moving into an upward cycle of new beginnings.
Reba is a thirteen year old mustang mare. Her life’s history epitomizes the journey of many wild horses. Born into the Sand Wash Basin Wild Horse Herd that is located north of Maybell, Colorado in 2007, she was one of many wild horses that were gathered in 2008 by the Bureau of Land Management. She was then transported to Canon City, Colorado, where all Colorado wild horses are taken to be vetted, gelded, and put up for adoption. For the next four years, she lived there in the holding facilities, as she was not adopted.
Due to her commitment to advocate for our wild horses, Michelle Sander, Founder of the Great Escape Mustang Sanctuary (GEMS): https://greatescapesanctuary.org and the Sand Wash Advocate Team (SWAT): https://sandwashadvocateteam.org chose to adopt all of the Sand Wash Wild Horses that still remained in Canon City in 2012. Reba was one of the 9 horses that Michelle adopted and relocated at GEMS. These horses were given the title of “Ambassadors,” for their honorable representation of the Sand Wash Basin Wild Horses. She then named them all after famous country western singers in honor of her father, (Name?)
Michelle’s father loved country western music and had the intention of creating a mustang sanctuary. However, he passed before he could realize this dream. In honor of her father, Michelle created GEMS with the intention of making her father’s dream live on, and to create the legacy of an exceptional, experiential, effective mustang sanctuary.
I, too, have a deep passion for our wild horses, and have admired Michelle’s work for many years. We have become friends, and her son, Carson Sander Ferracane, who is an exceptional wild horse trainer, worked with my two mustang colts, Hidalgo and Inanna to gentle them and prepare them to be under saddle. A few months after Inanna died, I reached out to Michelle and Carson, sharing that someday I would love to have another mare. Michelle responded right away, saying that she felt Reba would be a great horse for me! I was incredulous when I heard this, and asked if I could meet her.
Michelle transported Reba from GEMS to her ranch nearby, and I met her for the first time on June 5, 2021. It was love at first sight! My heart opened so wide, and I could feel how soft, wise, and kind Reba was. I told Michelle and Carson that I would love to adopt Reba, and three weeks later, we brought her to Gates of Inanna Ranch! My geldings Captain and Hidalgo, and our miniature donkey, Shrek, are literally wild about her! We are slowly but surely integrating her into our herd, and she is establishing her place in the pecking order with razor sharp clarity! This girl can take care of herself!
The cycles of life, the ups and downs, continue. There will be more loss, heartbreak and sorrow, and there will also be more blessings, surprises and joy. I find that the work we have as humans, is to embrace it all whole heartedly; to allow all of the happenings, emotions, and heartbreak to cycle through us, so that we can continue to be an open channel for whatever life presents.