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What kind of horse are you? Today is the Kentucky Derby This started me to thinking about the
different type of people that are in the world and how they can compare to
different type of horses. Where do you
fit in?
THOROUGHBRED
We all like to think of ourselves as thoroughbreds, proud,
high spirited, hard-working, brilliant, admired, and inspirational in short at
the top of the heap, a real winner.
Shockingly, most of us cannot legitimately claim this title and that is
okay. We have to be what we are and
nothing else. The human thoroughbred
will do his or her own thing when he wants to. He will be
strong-willed, intelligent, vocal about his needs and he will not accept
anything less than what he perceives as the best. Thoroughbred humans can exist at both ends of
the socioeconomic scale, from the super rich to the street person. It is not a matter of money but attitude. On the plus side, the Thoroughbred will get
what he needs, on the negative side he will be hard to be friends with and
since he trusts no one’s opinion but his own he will make mistakes. He may be lonely as people will find him and
his needs hard to understand. On the
positive side he will have what he needs to make him happy, on the negative
side, he may not recognize this and find his life empty because of things he
cannot reach. He will always be a
finisher but he does not like to look at the tails of the other horses in the
race and a thoroughbred human in second place will be angry but will usually
only blame himself for not running harder.
This desire to be first will fuel his ambition. To be a thoroughbred human means you never
reach your goal, you have to keep moving, the carrot on the string is always
just out of your reach and you figure that if you run harder you will
eventually, get to eat it. The life of a
thoroughbred is not all oats and honey.
TROTTER
Perhaps you are a trotter. There is something majestic in a trotting
race; all of the horses running in apparent harmony while at the same time each
of them are trying to gain an advantage and win the race. A human trotter will be disciplined to the
extreme, taking one step at a time and keeping focused on keeping in step. The
trotter human will have some trouble with other people, especially
thoroughbreds because they will want to take a disciplined approach to problem-solving where others will want to plunge ahead and get the job done. The
trotter will weigh the consequences of each action and take his time in
deciding. The trotter does not make too
many mistakes, will not take too many risks, and while he will maintain a
spotless record, there is a danger of the trotter slipping into
mediocrity.
THE MUSTANG
The wild mustang is an American Icon, an animal
running proud, free and wild, answerable to no one. This is another horse we would like to see
ourselves as. Again, there are fewer
mustang humans than we would think. The
true mustang accepts no boundaries, no bridle nor bit and when cornered is hard
and dangerous to break. While we might
think of ourselves as mustangs, the wildness required to be one for most of us
has thankfully been bred out our kind long ago and is but a dim memory. The human mustang has a disregard for the
niceties of ordinary life, you accept him for what he is or you can go your
way. It is hard to get to know the
Mustang, he has no fear except being saddled and domesticated. He is hard to reason with unless he agrees
with your position. The Mustang tends to
be anti-social, will take any advantage that he can to best you and will be
ruthless if necessary to gain his desires which are seen as the ultimate good. The Mustang follows his law. In our jails, prisons, executive suites of
banks, brokerage houses, and in many of our state and national legislative
bodies you will find many fine examples of human mustangs, mores the pity.
Jumpers and
Steeplechasers
There is nothing more beautiful than a horse trained
to jump over obstacles in the steeplechase.
The human jumper plans and practices and pays attention to form and
style. He moves ever forward, keeping
the future in sight and preparing for the next obstacle. It is hard to surprise
a jumper, but they limit their vision to what they can see. They can see a three rail fence directly
ahead and make all preparations to jump it with style and grace, but might not
see the water hazard right behind the fence.
Out of all the horse types, the jumper will listen to your ideas and take
them into account as he plans the future.
While he fiendishly keeps his eye on the goal, he misses seeing the
beauty around him. The jumper is mild-mannered and the easiest to talk to.
The Junk
Wagon Horse
The final type of horse does not seem to be one we
would want to imitate but I think that many of us most resemble this kind of
horse. The junk wagon horse accepts what
is, moves slowly but surely down roads he has trod before. He does not notice the burden of the wagon as
he has carried it for many years and it feels a part of him now. He works day in and day out embracing the day
to day chores of everyday life and feels simple pride when the job is done. At home, he gratefully eats his oats and
afterward falls into a sleep where he dreams of being a thoroughbred, trotter,
or Mustang. He awakes in the morning,
forgets his dreams and slips on the bridle and bit and goes back to work not
noticing the burden of the wagon because he has carried it for many years.
Okay, here is the point of this article. There are many different types of people in the world. We all have a vision of who we are and how we fit into the scheme of things. Our vision is colored by our training at home and at the various schools we attended, our experience out in the world from the youngest first impressions of the world to mature judgments made after years of hard work, calloused hands, and remembered experiences. The exotic horse types are rare and special. But that does not mean that the workhorse, people like me and perhaps you, are not special. God has put you here on the earth to complete a mission that only you can complete. Neither how others see you nor how you see yourself can be allowed to interfere with the mission. Listen and watch for God working in your life. The thoroughbred, the trotter, the show jumper, the Mustang, and the Old Workhorse all will be given the strength that they need to carry out what needs to be done. Labor in love and do what God wants you to do.
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