The story of Bizarro. Never lose your Sense of wonder.

As the first hints of autumn arrived in the air here and august was drawing to a close, my beautiful equine companion of nearly a quarter of a century, my Bizarro decided it was time to leave this life.

in these first few days without him the whole fabric of my day has lost its anchoring thread as each morning when I stepped outside he called a greeting as I went to see him and at the end of each day, the dog and I strolled around the field with him and as darkness fell I could hear him up the garden and through the orchard munching hay or stepping into his barn for a snooze.

He has been my willing co-worker and professor to so many people over the years, who came to experience the magic of riding and spending time with ‘the horse of kings’ the Purebred Spanish horse.

He was born on the 23rd May 1997 on the magical island of Mallorca in the Mediterranean, a place I know so well and where I first encountered the wonderful entity that is the Spanish horse.

He ran wild in the mountains with a group of colts and then was lightly backed before arriving on a lorry to my home in Kent where I was due to train him for a bit then sell him for his breeder. He obviously has other ideas! as when he set foot on the old meadow grass at Wittersham with us he decided he had found his forever home.

I worked with him and trained my students with him too. Several people came to try him to buy but it was as if he knew and he either refused to acknowledge them, making himself as unappealing as possible or often refusing to move when they rode him ( I was always secretly relieved when prospective buyers said he wasn’t for them) after a couple of years during which our bond grew stronger and stronger and his fantastic character and personality shone out, his breeder said ‘ Julia he is yours!’ From that point on he was always in the field nearest to our log cabin watching over all the other fields and the horses that came and went.

in 2007 when we had to relocate he came with us and started a new chapter on the flat Fens of East Anglia. It was a shock for all of us and not an easy move. I had been living with a heart condition for ten years and the next couple of years were very difficult. I had a couple of heart surgeries but teaching people with him and my other horse Yamao  kept me going.

In 2010 I did a training in Equine Guided learning and equine therapy. This gave a formal title and official training to what Bizarro had always really offered. Spending time with him and having a riding lesson on him helped people, released their emotions, soothed stresses and brought joy ( sometimes even tears of joy when they sat on his back)

2011 was an ‘Annus horribilis’ for us both as we each suffered life threatening health issues. Bizarro spent ten days in intensive care at the vets in Newmarket and I spent several days in hospital in Papworth. But we both recovered and with the help of a government scheme, using my two horses, I created and set up Horse Human Harmony, which won us a very special award for ‘ overcoming challenges’ I received our award at a ceremony in Westminster.

In 2015 I sadly had to face the reality of selling my equestrian property which ultimately led me to consider relocating to Brittany in northern France. My father had recently moved there and my little sister on a visit to him had seen a property and said ‘ Julia I’ve found the perfect place for you and Bizarro!’ I went, had a look and made the momentous decision to step into the unknown and buy it.

As ever Bizarro led the way and while the house was being rewired, fencing the field became the next priority and Bizarro set off for his new life in France two weeks before I did. As usual he showed me how it should be done and arrived after his long journey unflustered and almost immediately started eating grass on his new hill… he was home again.

Over these last nearly nine years he has been the horse on the hill, enjoying life grazing freely, welcoming visitors, making new friends and being my daily source of joy from sunrise to sunset. Spending time in the fields with him, listening to the birds, observing the wildlife and nature all around us helped me to create my new adventure with Bird in France Art. He has inspired my nature art and always made me see the sense of wonder that the natural world gives us freely every day from the tiniest insect to the biggest tree, if we only take time to stop for a moment and look.

At the moment my heart is full of sadness and my fields seem so empty without his big shining presence…..but as I walked with the dog in his field this morning we spotted a fairy ring of mushrooms and a little robin accompanied us singing all the way with a little wren hopping about in the apple tree. His spirit is here watching over us and reminding me however dark the world sometimes seems to never lose my sense of wonder.

Gracies Bizarro for so generously sharing your big heart and life with me for all these years, I was blessed to have you with me.