Falling in Love With Taz

/ Jessie Miller, Epic Outreach

Growing up with a grandma who loved horses sparked a longing for my own relationship with a horse at an early age. But life would take me on a journey and down some challenging roads to addiction and body-image struggles. Going off course in life side-tracked my ambitions, dreams, and desires (gahhhhh!). Fast forward oodles of years of working to raise my conscious awareness and “clean my side of the street,” and that longing for a horse was re-ignited ... and it persisted.

I began embracing every opportunity I could to be around, learn about, and help horses whenever I could. The more my life evolved, the deeper that desire for a horse called. Then, in 2017, I encountered a horse named TAZ through a Facebook post asking for help in rescuing this pitiful horse abandoned in a field. He was alone and unwanted; under-nourished and unloved. Luckily for TAZ, many people rallied around him, including Empowerment Ranch, a non-profit agency { 501(c)(3) } located in Callahan, Fla., dedicated to bringing animals, nature, and people of all ages and backgrounds together. Their vision is to EMPOWER all beings to become even better than they are today. Empowerment Ranch took TAZ in, and did what they do with so many other animals— including other horses, goats, a duck, a lamb, and even some dogs—they gave him a second chance through rescue and rehabilitation. TAZ quickly blossomed in his new environment and began touching the lives of kids and adults that entered the ranch for therapeutic riding.

When I actually met TAZ in person for the first time, I knew he could be a horse I would fall in love with, but I knew that Empowerment Ranch wanted to use him in their program to help kids with therapy riding. My first ride with TAZ on a trail took my breath away. I never once felt afraid, even when we cantered (eek, ya’ll it was like being in a movie. I lost all sense of awareness—it was just me and TAZ out there—hair and mane blowing in the wind).

I knew I’d met my horse, yet I kept my distance because I knew how awesome he was shaping up for the programs with kids at Empowerment Ranch. I didn’t want to fall in love with a horse I could never have.

One year after helping to rescue TAZ, Empowerment Ranch offered to let me adopt my knight in shining horse fur! And, after careful consideration, we made it official! He is a long- time dream come true. TAZ is a gentle spirit who has captured the hearts of so many on and off the ranch. His adoption is a full circle transformation of a life once forgotten, to a life cherished and adored that mirrors my personal journey of spiritual self-transformation.

Most people associate a transformational change with outer appearance, and it is probably the most dramatic to see. Taz not only had a transformational shift in appearance, but also in his spirit, and he brought me and many he enountered ... along for the ride. I am so looking forward to the new adventures TAZ and I will create and all that is to come—the best is yet to be for TAZ and I! •

Consider signing up for Empowerment Ranch’s annual Ride-A-Thon on February 23, 2019, where you can help fundraise for the care of the animals being given the opportunity of transformation! Join them for a trail ride in the Bayard Conservation Area!

/ empowermentranch.com