Charlie Work

It was a crisp fall day when it happened. Leaves were turning various shades of yellow, red, and brown. Birds could be seen silhouetted against the burnt orange of the October sky, heading south. And Charlie, our 19 year old 1k pound horse, meandered the pasture grazing on whatever remnants of green grass he could find. My father and I watched as he lazily swatted his tail at invisible bugs. Yes, I thought to myself, it's going to be a great day to kill Charlie.

It really was a perfect day for manual labor. The cool air breathed life into every strained movement. Our shovels seemed to plunge into the ground with ease as we recklessly tossed dirt over our shoulders.

When the hole was deep enough we picked up a couple buckets filled with grain and began shaking them. Charlie was some distance away, but his head popped up and his ears perked when he heard the sound. He sauntered towards us, deducing that delicious corn was in his future. Lucky for us, but unfortunate for him, he was unable to deduce what the combination of grain near a horse sized hole meant.

Positioning Charlie was a challenge, and in this sort of work position is very important. Having a horse perpendicular to it's grave is foolish. Horses tend to fall best either to the right or left, rather than forwards or backwards. Having the horse stand parallel to it's intended target is best because it allows for added surface area on which to push the soon to be swaying half ton animal.

As Charlie stood feverishly devouring the last bits of grain my father revealed a large syringe filled with a pink liquid. He placed a reassuring hand on Charlie and knelt down to deliver the injection as I prepared to push Charlie into the hole. Soon, a tell tale drowsiness over took Charlie and we began to push.

He fell into the hole without much effort, but in a peculiar way- with his hooves facing the sky. Still twitching, but with the sunlight quickly fading, we began to throw dirt on my dying childhood friend. It's sad when I think about it, having a horse as a friend.