Goodbye, Barbaro

Barbaro, my Kentucky Derby hero, crossed the Rainbow Bridge today. It was for the best; he fought long enough and his poor body could no longer keep up with that big heart. I think half the world is in mourning; the UPENN message board was full of messages of love to him and his "family," and I've seen the news of his passing on the front page of every major news outlet's website. I know that most of you don't understand the deep level of mourning for a horse I never even met, but consider this. That horse gave me a gift, probably a gift that is felt very deeply within the horse racing industry. As someone who wants to work within a racing industry that has become unsettlingly more and more about computerized breeding records and speed figures and multi-million dollar corporations running horses they have never even SEEN, Barbaro's entire story proves that not everyone is that way. There ARE owners who love their horses so much that they will go the extra mile, and spend that extra dollar to save the life of an animal that more than likely would have never gone on to collect a $100,000 stud fee, but would have been a yard pet, living a life of leisure on precarious hind legs. There ARE trainers that treat their horses gently, never over-racing them or doping them up, who go on to win all the glory. And there ARE jockeys that will jump off a horse going 35mph and hold him up until help arrives, and then weep on national television over the plight of their mount. And there are veterinarians and veterinary teams that are just as passionate about saving the life of an animal they've never met as they would be for their own animal. And thousands of regular people will care so much about a racing hero that they send carrots and well-wishes months after the accident, never forgetting their equine hero in an ICU stall far, far away. And in the end, all of these people come together and grant the ultimate gift of a peaceful passing from suffering to eternity.
So, in my mind, Barbaro got to heaven today and was thrilled to find himself on four sturdy legs. And after a few kicks and twists, he challenged Seattle Slew to a match race "We'll see who's the better undefeated Derby winner! You may have the Triple Crown down there on Earth, but let's run another one in heaven!" And Go for Wand and Ruffian and even little Pine Island came up, commending him on his courage and telling him that they were so proud so see how he handled his injuries, injuries they didn't survive. Then, with a wink, Ruffian turns tail and flies across the lush grass, asking him how he'll feel when he's beaten by a girl! And when all the horses (from old pony to champion racehorses) have run to their heart's content, they find a patch a lush grass to graze upon, and sloppy mud to roll in, then fall into a peaceful sleep, knowing they are still loved on Earth, and that their memories are worth more than their weight in gold.