The Phantom Lesson

Phantom, who wouldn't stand still for a photo

We met a horse today named Phantom.

We visited a horse farm, all together as a family (and no one died or got kicked by a horse.  Success!).  While we were there, we were able to wander around and meet the horses.  Phantom was locked in one of the stalls, a smallish space, perhaps 10 feet wide by 20 feet deep.  Phantom is a miniature horse.  A solid dark brown, his head only reached my chest.

The thing about Phantom, though, is that he wasn't particularly friendly.  In fact, he didn't much notice when any of the children walked by.  He spent most of his time running in a tight circle, over and over again.  The dirt ground of his stall had a deep groove in it where his path ran.  I watched him for bit, struck by his behavior.  The other horses were happy enough to get a pat on the head or poke their noses out in curiosity as we walked by.  Not Phantom though.

A young woman that works with the horse saw me staring at Phantom and came over to talk.  "He's my favorite," she said with a small smile.

"Does he do this all the time? Running in circles," I asked.

She nodded.  "He does.  And he's not very good at all with the other horse."

"Really?"

"Uh huh.  He likes to fight and he's a mess when he eats too.  Just goes a little crazy and gets himself in trouble," she explained.

I gave her a look.  She said Phantom was her favorite and she hadn't named one redeeming quality yet.  Maybe she had a soft spot for bad boys? Or bad horses?

She leaned a little closer and put her hand over the rail.  Phantom stopped and edged over to her hesitantly and then allowed a pat on the head before resuming his circles.

"It seems like he may have a little autism in him," I commented because . . .  well, the repetitive circles, the not-playing-well-with-others, the seeming disinterest in people.  If Phantom were a person, he'd be diagnosed on the spectrum in a hot minute.

The woman nodded and shrugged.  "I think so.  I don't know if animals can really have autism though."  She held a carrot out to Phantom.  The other horses took careful bites while the carrot was held in front of them.  But not Phantom. Phantom bit the carrot in the middle and ripped it out of her hand.  He threw it to the ground and began devouring it like it was the last one on earth.  Bits of carrots flew everywhere.  She grinned.  "See, he's crazy."

"Why's he your favorite?" I finally asked, thoroughly confused.

"Even though he seems a little strange, he's actually the most gentle horse we have.  When you put him in front of a child in a wheelchair, he's like a different horse.  He loves working with kids with special needs."  She smiled.  "He's pretty special himself.  I don't know how he knows, but he knows exactly what to do."

Phantom finished his carrot, got a scratch on his ear from the woman, and went right back to making his circles.  I wandered away but ended up back at his stall, mesmerized by his circles and, well, him.

There's a lesson in this horse, the crazy one who stays locked in his stall and only comes out to play with the children that need the most gentle of care. Amazingly, he found a place where they didn't pass him by because he's a little strange.  His caregivers worked with him to find his strengths and  talents. They could have written him off as a lost cause, sent to wherever horses that don't play nice go.  But instead, they  accepted his quirks and are blessed by his gentleness.

Are we so quick to judge someone by what we first see?  Do we take the time to find the redeeming qualities in them?  Do we look for how they were created in God's image?  As a mom to two special needs kids, I worry that my children will always been seen as a label.  Oh, they have autism, we know what that means.  Do you?  Yes, they have autism but they are special because we are all special.  We are all created in God's image to worship Him.  We are redeemed because He loves us, all of us.  I pray that people can look beyond the quirky behavior in my children to see them, to find what's really special about them.

Find the good qualities in people.  Look past the quirks and oddities, the ugly and the broken, the sad and the scarred.  You never, ever know what's hiding beneath the surface.  As Audrey Hepburn once said, "People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone." 

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone.
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audreyhepb388908.html

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone.
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audreyhepb388908.html

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone.
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audreyhepb388908.html