Horse's point of view

Hi. I'm Chocolate - Elaine & John's hors. nOtt sooo eszeyy Tu typ wiff hooooovezz. Soo I tehll Elinae waht too tpe.

I am very smart and I have figured out how to open pull out the chain, throw the lock and push open the gate on my pasture. Elaine caught me just about ready to make a break a few days ago. They say I'm a "character" - not sure exactly what that means, but I think it's because I love attention and I'm very relaxed and lie down to sleep like a dog when I get my naps (that's me above laying in front of Ola Lola's). My favorite snacks are granola bars, guineos (bananas), mangos (YUM!), and my grain. Which, by the way, I only get 1.5 cups twice a day (please feel free to lobby for me to get more...I'm a hungry guy!).

But, I do sometimes get a great treat - I get to meet people, especially young people, who love me and get to sit on me and I treat them to a moment on a beautiful (and very humble) horse. I've done it with my friend Paige who visited Ola Lola's with her parents, Anna Paula, who came by with her dad, Agustin (another friend), with Kennedy Anne, Elaine & John's granddaughter, and most recently with a beautiful girl, Isabella, who just turned 5 years old on Nov. 29th. Elaine leads me with Anna Paula on top
I met her when Elaine was riding by the Eclipse restaurant on the beach and she and her brother were there having lunch with their parents and fed me some fried plaintain chips. They were yummy, but hard for me to get 'cuz they kept falling off their hands and I can't see at the end of my nose and while trying to eat one, I accidentally bit Isabella's finger. Boy, was I sorry. She cried but was very brave and cooled her sore digit in her dad's ice water before deciding she wanted to come sit on top of me.

I was soooo happy that I could show her that I liked her and didn't want to hurt her (I just wasn't sure if the finger was a carrot or not until I tasted it...it wasn't, so I spit it right out and let go with my teeth).

So, all was well that ends well I hope. Isabella sat on me and smiled and had her picture taken by her beautiful mom while her dad and little brother watched me (I hope they send me a photo). Then they all stopped by while I was getting washed off with the hose after my ride (something I really like) and Elaine gave Isabella a little kite for a birthday present (plus balloons which sometimes scare me 'cuz they go POP!!!).

I hope that Isabella and her family and all the wonderful kids I have met have a wonderful Christmas and I hope I get an extra ration of grain and some mangos in my stocking, too.

Love,
Chocolate (world's most awesome rescued horse)

p.s. John rode me today for more than 2 hours and he did great. We love each other a lot and I hope I can spend more time with him, too.