He had seen others of his company bound by a belief and taken off your the coral far down below. Some who ran in his company were never to be seen again accept from a distance. He could never understand them, why they didn’t just kick up their heals and jump the fence and escape. He would never be roped and corralled and trained to obey any master or put up with any of that. He especially would refuse to be ridden. He would remain free as the wind to run the hills and mountain ranges of this life as he saw fit. No one would train him in a coral or stable or put a bit in his mouth or a blanket and saddle on his back, ever.
He had seen from a distance what happens to them. They are captured and taken away in their captors company and become a servant of sorts, and put to work. Brainwashed into something unnatural, unbecoming with no more freedom to run and kick up their heals. He would say yo himself, “That will never happen to me. I am a free spirit and no one will ever rope me and put me behind a fence and train me to do anything I don’t want. I come and go as I please, and will do so until the day I die.”
That was the attitude of this wild mustang as time and again he saw others of his company taken and domesticated in training to serve their new masters. He vowed each time to never be taken and he never was.
As the years went by one particular winter was unusually harsh and food was hard to find on the open ranges. He grew thin and frail now as he too began to show his age. But he still prided himself on never having been captured. His hunger and search for food drove him this particular day closer to the ranch where he seen others he used to run with looking quite well. They looked well fed and taken care of by their masters.
The horses were being dressed up with bright colored blankets on their backs and with beautiful silver bells on their bridles and halters with feathered ornaments placed over their heads. They were being prepared for some kind of a special event like a parade. Their riders too showcased ornate vests, boots and hats as they rode. They seemed to walk with high steps in unison as though well trained by their masters for the event, turning their heads and bodies around with the slightest touch of the bridle straps by their masters.
The wild mustang now hungry and left to his strong willed choices and lifestyle slowly reflected on his rejection and unwillingness to accept discipline of such a master. His refusal to allow others to speak into his life or to accept the bit in his moth or saddle on his back now haunted him as he made his way back towards the mountain having refused to be ridden. Here he regretted deeply his own rebellious nature and headstrong attitude in refusing the discipline of another and reaped the reward for his choices.