cried a river of tears. This is the only place that Pegasus can drink."
One day the children were sitting by the river when they looked at their reflection
in the water and saw Pegasus! She was beautiful, wild and untamed, and for
some reason she came to them. The children kept looking at her in the water's
reflection but Pegasus flew off.
The children had to find the Pegasus. They asked everyone they met if they had
ever seen the "wind rider." An old man said, "I may have seen her once, but it
was so long ago I don't believe it happened." Someone else told the children,
"There are no such things as flying horses, you should stick with what you know
to be true, that is the only thing we can count on." The children looked for
months and months, but still no Pegasus. Right when the children were about to
give up, they wandered onto a child's playground, and there they saw a boy
playing all alone. The boy seemed to have fun making strange lines in the air and
laughing with himself. The children asked, "What are you doing?"
The boy replied, "I am guarding the kingdom from the dragon."
There was no dragon in sight.
The children just listened.
"The dragon's name is Flash and he spreads fire everywhere he goes, but I have
my golden shield and my flying horse to protect me."
"Flying horse? Pegasus?" The children questioned immediately.
"Yes, she is as white as snow, she dances with the wind, and she is my friend."
"Where did you see this horse?"
"Oh, she is by the river, close to Athena's house, do you want me to show you?"
The children said, "Yes, please! But tell us, how you can see Pegasus when so
many don't think she is real?"
The boy said, "I just believe, that's all."
The boy lead the children to the Athena's house. The children thanked the boy
and waited. And waited. And waited...
After many nights, the children had a dream. In the dream they met a beautiful
wise woman. She told them, "A well-told tale is the only comfort from the storm.
The one who rides the wind rides the storm."
When the children awoke, sitting on the night stand beside their bed was a
golden bridle. It was truly beautiful! It was not like polished gold, but more of a
golden aura that shined brighter than any sun.
The children reasoned the golden bridle was the tool they needed to capture
Pegasus. They thought the bridle they found would help to let the horse know
they were her master. And this is how they planned to capture Pegasus. They
would make certain Pegasus knew they were her master.
When the children held the bridle, they magically knew the location of the Lost
River. They traveled great distances, over large mountains. And then they waited
for Pegasus.
When Pegasus arrived, she was a sight that almost electrified the children! Her
wings were like two large silvery clouds; and she had bright beautiful blue eyes,
the color of the sea.
Pegasus watched as they tried to throw the bridle onto her. They yelled, "We are
the ones who are to be your master, you shall be our rider!"
Pegasus bolted upright and threw the children hard on the ground. At the same
time clouds opened, lightening was heard, and pouring rain followed. The children
tried again and again but they could not touch Pegasus. They tried yelling and
wrestling with the winged horse, but they only ended up on the ground. A storm
was raging now and as the water hit their faces, they remembered Athena's
words, "A well-told tale is the only comfort from the storm." They then stopped,
set the golden bridle down, and began to tell a story. It was a beautiful story; one
they had heard from the boy, about a dragon named Flash and a winged horse
that protected the boy.
"This beautiful horse rode like a champion of the clouds and picked up the boy
and the dragon named Flash arched its huge shoulders and ..."
The storm began to die down. The children went on. As the story continued,
Pegasus came closer. Even though the beautiful horse was so close they could
feel her breath on them, they continued with the story. When the story was
finished, the great Pegasus took her nose and nudged it next to one of the
children's hand. The children knew by this she wanted to hear more.
They spent that night telling her story after story, stories they had heard from
their grandparents, old legends, and even ones they created along the way.
When they were all laughing, Pegasus surprisingly grabbed the bridle in her
mouth and handed it to the children. They slipped the bridle on Pegasus and
from then on they rode together. Pegasus finally had what she always wanted,
a companion to share her stories and to help her not to be lonesome. The
children realized that they were meant to be together, not as master and servant,
but as friends on the same journey.
Legends spread of these wing riders and it is said they even killed the three-headed
beast, the Chimera. The children and Pegasus were inseparable, that is until the children thought they could live among the heavens. The children rode so high
they would have reached them, but Pegasus knew they were not supposed to fly
so high. They were to be the wind riders and to share their stories with the people
below, not in the sky. For it is said, you can travel anywhere you want, even the
sky, if you tell the stories about it. This was not enough for the children, they
made Pegasus fly to the heavens anyway, but Pegasus quit in mid-air. The
children, for the first time, hit Pegasus.
Legends say they all fell to the ground, and spent the rest of their lives looking
for Pegasus, whom they never found again. However, Pegasus soared to many
heights and people gathered far and away to listen to her stories. Even today
some say she is still flying high above us, "Taking Wing" for each and every one
of us.
Now you know the secret of Pegasus. May you always ride the winds and may
Pegasus always watch over you.
We currently don't have a horse named Pegasus at our facility, but all our horses
love children, just as children grow to love them.
We hope you will consider bringing your child to visit us, or making a contribution
as described in