Scrambling out of bed I race down the hallway, bare feet slapping on the boards. In the family room, a tinsel-laden tree, tilting, and parcels piled up haphazardly. Kneeling, I tear at the paper as fast as my nine-year-old fingers will go. I line my presents up: an orange T-shirt emblazoned with a horse head; the book Show Jumping Secret by Josephine Pullein-Thompson; chocolates; soaps in the shape of horses, pink, lemon and lilac; socks; a horse charm. Is there more? Anticipation whirling in my stomach, I leap up and scan our suburban yard. My shoulders slump. No pony. Again.
Wendy Taylor lives in rural New Zealand with her family and a variety of animals. And yes, that includes a horse.