A hero emerges from a stable.
A hero that teaches us about long shots and hope;
Teaches us to believe in the impossible.
Americans love a challenge.
What better challenge than a race-
A horse race.
The field is leveled;
The stakes are high.
The tension mounts;
We can be lifted out of our doldrums.
For two minutes
We feel the rush
And witness greatness
In a horse.
We all want to go at something in a full gallop;
Defeat the odds-
Win by a nose.
Two minutes
To watch the glory;
To watch the strength of the legs,
The flexing of the haunches,
The release of the muscles,
The shimmer of sweat on a chesnut coat,
Nostrils flaring,
Neck out, stretched,
Reaching for the unseen golden finish.
That’s in all of us.
That’s a glimpse at freedom-
At being an American with a dream-
A dream of running at something
With all we got
And winning.
~Lori Vanden Berghe
