How Diazo Changed My Life

I didn’t tell many people what was going on at home because I was ashamed of it. On the weekends I would try to go spend the night with one of my grandmothers to get away from my alcoholic father. I rarely invited friends over because I did not know if he was going to get drunk that night or not. Avoiding this potential embarrassment makes me feel like I missed out on having a normal childhood.

My story isn't quite special really, although I have lived under some unique circumstances. My mother was a single parent raising my little sister and I until she married my Stepdad in 2007. I was five at the time and had no father figure until then. From that time on he became my dad. Our new family moved twice before living in a small city where we stayed for 6 years. This is where I made close friends, achieved academic excellence, went to church regularly, life was great or so I thought. What seemed to be our perfect life was turned upside down as hard times fell upon us. I was now the oldest of five younger siblings, my mom wasn't healthy, and my dad had to struggle to keep things going.

My horse died on the 15th of November, 2013, my sophomore year. He was my first horse. I had been searching for a year and a half, and after so much deception, I had finally found him.

The psychological effects of one’s childhood experiences can have a huge toll on the person we blossom into in life and that was the divorce of my two parents at the age of six. Growing up with an alcoholic father has had an outstanding impact on my self-worth. I could never see myself opening up to others; I could never be my true self in front of anyone except for a few people that have supported me through it all. I’ve always wondered over the period of my life that there was a reason for my father’s actions and why my father wasn’t there through the most important events throughout my sister and I’s lives.

Some people think of them as animals. Some people think of them as objects. Some people think of them as friends. Then there are the few who think of them as family. Horses have always been like family to humans, except sometimes closer. There are many benefits to owning or being around horses. They come in many different colors. There is a multitude of breeds, also. Additionally, they have a long history with humans. Horses have unique behaviors. Showing horses has been the past-time or even career of many people. Furthermore, caring for horses can be a handful, but is definitely rewarding. Finally, riding horses is not just a hobby or a sport, but an action of your heart. Horses are wondrous creatures that have lived with man or

Six years ago, a summer afternoon, my dad hugged me and I said “I will be gone for three days, I have a job in Austin, but I promise that I will be back before your birthday. I promise.” Days, weeks, months almost two years passed by and I did not receive any phone call or text message from him. Throughout that time my dad was gone, my mom told me that she was getting the papers ready to divorce my dad. I was noticing that the last three-four years that I was living with both of my parents, their relationship was getting worse. It was not a healthy situation for anyone in the house. What I mean about not being healthy is that my mother and father were damaging one another, emotionally and verbally, which my brothers and I would watch everything. Every day was the same routine, we forgot how it was to have a peaceful home. Around that moment, I honestly never thought divorce was going to be their solution.

I am the daughter of a livestock dealer. My father was an amazing wrangler and rancher. Throughout my life, we have bought and sold many horses--too many to count, and I have also sent my own fair share to the slaughter plants. As a young teen I had a horse we called Whino, he was a great horse for me when I was learning to ride and wanting to follow Dad around. There comes a time in a horse’s life when they are not capable of doing what they once were or that they become sore or crippled to lead a life with meaning or comfort. I was raised to understand life and death and that one will follow the other. I knew when we had

Just a few years ago, my mother and I found out that my dad was an alcoholic. We were devastated. That continued after 2 rehabs, and my mom kicking him out of the house to protect me. Sadly, I have been mentally abused for 14 years without knowing it until about 9 months ago. I was 10 years old when I made the prediction of my parents divorcing after a huge disagreement they had. Four years later, I found out that I was right. My parents were getting a divorce.

My favorite memory with my horse Shadow is when we qualified for state. It was really exciting to go down to the state fair and ride in the coliseum. The first year we went down to the state fair it wasn't the best year since it was our first time. This year we did much better and even got a ribbon. It's fun to do 4-H with my horse because I can ride them and compete. Last year my mom got a new horse named Tanner. Tanner was mom's shooting horse and mom said I couldn't ride him. When I started riding Tanner I wanted him to become my game horse like Shadow. When my mom had her accident at Two Harbours she couldn't ride anymore. Since then, Tanner has become my horse and I am working on training him to become become a game horse. I don't know what I would do without my horses. My mom said that when I got home from China and we got to the house, my mom went out to see one of her horses. I was little when we were there and I reached out and touched the horse. Since then I have had a connection with the

My career in barrel racing began when Katie, a lifelong role model, brought me to one of her races. Immediately after seeing her run, I knew my calling in life, I was to become a barrel racer. Arriving home, I immediately attempted the pattern on Patches. As we worked to perfect the pattern, I came to the conclusion she wasn’t fast enough for what I seeked to accomplish. Agreeing with me, my mom started looking for a new barrel horse. Around six years old, my new horse, Tip, came home. When he arrived, we quickly learned he was “too much horse” for me; he was nothing short of a bucking bronco horse at a rodeo. For further training, my cousin took him to college with her. He returned back home as an utterly

There was always a problem in my mind that my parents never came to support me. I always begged them to come see me, until one day my mom said to me “ you're pathetic and making a fool out of yourself”. Over those words i became very distant from everyone and changed me forever like don miguel described “ you were put in a spell over the word”. I became very shy and antisocial. I let any opinion get to me.

After a few weeks I returned to horseback riding; after a year I returned to redeem myself at the same show. As fate would have it, I drew the same horse from the previous year. Flashbacks of the accident raced through my mind as my coach broke the bad news. I immediately ran to Claire, tears welling up in my eyes.

Horses have injured me, made me cry, made me swear, pissed me off until my breaking point, made me do stupid things, made me hate other people, made my heart break, put my heart back together, helped me when I was alone, been there when I did not need them, pushed me, made me work harder, faster and better than anyone else. They made me jealous, made me self-centered, made me happy, abused me, used me, tore me apart, healed me, helped me, loved me, protected me, made me laugh, helped me, put me down, made me a better person, made me want to help others. In every aspect of who I am, horses are there. They have made me the person I am today. If you like me, thank them, if you hate me well to

I chose to sell her because she could make a little kid just like she made me happy. It was the hardest thing but knowing that her being happy was the best thing I could do and not just keep her just so I can look at her every morning and being selfish. After I sold her I stopped riding horses because I didn't think I could go without her or ride any other horse. When I turned about 12 I started to ride again. Then I started to rodeo again. That's when I started to goat tie and I used my brothers horse Toad because I didn't have a horse that wouldn't stop when I went to get off. When finals came for AFR toad got sick and one night he got bad and we took him to a vet and he died of a heart attack before they could even do anything to help him. In the winter my aunt Stacy gave me a Colt named Buddy, he was broke, all I had to do was train him. So I work and work on him training him. When AFR started back up not only did he get better but so did I and I learned a lot of stuff from him and he learned a lot from me. After a year I finally had my own horse. He might not be like my old horse Maddy but that's

Not many people remember one of the greatest racing horses of all time, But I think you should. Barbaro was a great racing horse. Barbaro won six races in a row. Just like his trainer Micheal Matz said,” He was a one in a million horse.” Sadly all good things come to an end. Barbaro died with a broken leg. His trainer Michael Matz said,” after emerging from the starting gate, Barbaro stumbled and broke his right hind leg.” For those who knew Barbaro beautiful memories are still in their hearts and could never be forgotten. Barbaro was a fantastic horse, One day he would be winning the Kentucky derby in front of thgousands of people the next day he would be rolling around in the grass playing with himself. What a wonderful horse Barbaro was