Saucy and Me

Hospitals are terrible places. Essential. But terrible. They are full of tight-lipped nurses and doctors scurrying quickly to and from their appointed rounds. If you’re a patient, you are grateful for these indispensable people. If you’re a visitor, you’d rather be anywhere on the planet chewing on steel wool, rather than confined in this cold stark place.

But today Darcy Overton was on the grateful side of the hospital equation. She had been out on her daily horseback ride, fell off her horse and was promptly bitten by a resident rattlesnake!

Darcy was a 15-year-old girl who was just learning that the world can be a very scary place once you venture outside of your parents’ Colorado ranch compound, even though she was an accomplished horsewoman. Having grown up on her parent’s expansive ranch, with all its horses, she could ride with the best of them. 

Her horse was a four-year-old filly named Saucy. Saucy was a beautiful black and white pinto horse that had been born, raised and trained right there on the ranch. She was very smart and she and Darcy were inseparable and the best of friends. If her parents would let her, Darcy would have slept in the barn with Saucy every night.     

Today like almost every other day, Darcy was out riding and had that nasty run-in with the rattlesnake.

Thankfully, she had her cell phone with her and she called her dad who drove frantically to where she had been thrown. Darcy knew every square inch of her parents’ ranch and she could describe exactly where she was to her dad. 

She was near the big grove of old overgrown bristlecone pine trees on the south side of the ranch, about four miles from the main house. Her dad hopped in his big Dodge Ram 1500 truck and rushed to her aid.

He was there in just a few minutes and found Darcy crying and sitting in the dirt on a rarely-used road.

“Oh my goodness, Princess, what happened?” cried her father. 

“Oh, Daddy, I was riding along and all of a sudden I heard something and then Saucy reared up and I fell off her back. I fell right onto a rattlesnake, who promptly bit me on the leg! But Saucy came to my rescue, dad, and she stomped that big ole rattlesnake right into the ground. It’s right over there, dead as a doornail!” explained Darcy tearfully.

After tying Saucy in the shade to one of the bristlecone pine trees, her dad picked her up and drove Darcy right to the hospital, which was about 20 minutes away, but her dad made the drive in about 10 minutes! On the way, he called one of the ranch hands to come and retrieve Saucy from the deserted road.

The emergency room nurse took them right in and the emergency room doctor and nurses were frantically working to quickly administer the anti-venom to her for the snake bite. 

Her leg was swollen now and had turned an ugly purple color, but the doctor said they caught it in time and Darcy would be just fine in a few weeks. She was very grateful to the doctors and nurses, but Darcy was not happy being confined to a hospital bed and this small dreary room away from all she knew and loved at the ranch.

While she was in the hospital, though, she loved telling and re-telling the story of how her heroic horse, and best friend, had come to her rescue and killed that big ole rattlesnake without being bitten herself! That horse was a true hero!

After 14 days, Darcy was well enough to be released from the hospital. She was so happy to be home! Darcy had her dad carry her right into the barn first thing and place her on the back of her beloved horse. Darcy lay forward onto the horse’s back and patted her and patted her, thanking her for saving her life. Saucy snorted and shook her head and seemed to know what Darcy was saying to her. Their bond was unbelievably strong.

And Darcy gave Saucy an apple and a carrot as a welcome home treat.

After a couple of more weeks of recovery at home, Darcy was back to normal. It was summer break from school and she was soon back to riding on Saucy every day, but she certainly stayed away from that unused road to the south of the ranch.

About two months into summer break, Darcy was riding Saucy along some outcroppings that were on the ranch property just to the north. From a distance, she could see people climbing the rocky cliffs so she started toward those rocks to see what was going on.

There seemed to be a commotion as she approached the group. One of the climbers waved at her and motioned to a young man, about her age, lying on the ground. He appeared to be injured and was holding his leg and moaning loudly with pain.

Darcy dismounted from Saucy and ran over to the group. 

“What happened?” she asked. “He fell from that cliff up there,” one of the young men said, as he pointed up to a craggy rock above. 

“We were rappelling down the side of the cliffs and his harness seemed to come loose and it broke and he fell several feet! I think he’s hurt really bad,” the young climber said. 

“Let’s get him to the hospital,” said Darcy. “I’ll mount my horse, then you guys hoist him up behind me and I’ll take him over to the hospital. I know exactly where it is. I was there myself a couple of months ago. Let’s go!”

She climbed up into her saddle and the men lifted the injured climber as gently as they could behind Darcy. The injured climber was still conscious.

“By the way, what’s his name?” asked Darcy.

“His name is Brent Larson. His identification is in his wallet in his back pocket,” said one of the climbers in the group.

The climber continued, “We left our vehicles on the other side of the cliffs. We’ll go get into them and meet you at the hospital as soon as we can.”

“Okay,” Darcy said.

“Hold on tight,” Darcy told her injured rider. “We’ll ride as fast as we can!”

The injured climber put his arms around Darcy’s waist and held on for dear life, all the while fighting to stay conscious from the pain. 

Darcy pushed Saucy as hard as she dared and the pair arrived at the hospital in about 20 minutes. They rode up to the side of the emergency room and Darcy dismounted. 

“Stay on my horse, I’ll be right back and then we’ll help you down,” she said to her disabled rider.

Darcy ran breathlessly into the hospital and informed the nurse at the receiving desk that she had an injured man on her

horse, that he probably had a broken leg and that he needed help getting down.

The nurse sprang into action. She made a phone call and soon two strapping male nurses pushing a wheelchair came into the lobby. All three rushed outside to the drowsy man still sitting on Saucy.

The two male nurses eased the injured man off the horse, put him in the wheelchair and wheeled him directly inside the emergency room lobby. Pushing him quickly, they disappeared behind the big impersonal emergency room doors.

Darcy explained to the admitting nurse that she did not personally know who the wounded man was. She explained that she was riding on her ranch about 20 minutes away and came upon the injured climber and his friends. His friends only had time to tell her that his name was Brent Larson and that the rest of his identification was in his wallet.

Just as she finished telling the nurse all she knew, Brent’s friends rushed into the emergency room.

“Oh, these are his friends,” Darcy said to the admitting nurse. “They can give you more information on Brent.”

Darcy explained to the group of friends, “Your friend was just wheeled into a room in the back. Maybe one of you can go in there and help with his admittance papers and insurance.”

“We’ll take it from here,” one of the young men offered. “And thank you so very much and your beautiful horse for coming to his rescue and bringing Brent here to the hospital! You’re the best friend any of us could have, especially Brent!”

“You’re welcome,” said Darcy as she shook all the men’s hands. “Glad we could help!” And with that, she strode out of the hospital emergency room, climbed up on Saucy and they trotted back to the ranch. Darcy had made a lot of unexpected new friends that day.

It was nearing the end of that eventful summer when Darcy and her dad got a phone call from the “Local Hero Awards” president. The president, Ms. Armbruster, informed them that Darcy and Saucy would be receiving recognition and an award for their rescue of the injured climber. The award ceremony would be held at their monthly luncheon in August.

 Darcy ran out to the barn and grabbed her beautiful horse around the neck and hugged her and spoke to the horse like she was a person.

 “Saucy, girl, we won a big award! Remember that guy we took to the hospital last month? Well, we saved his life and you’re the big hero of the day!” laughed Darcy. 

And she fed Saucy an apple and a carrot as a special treat.

 At the award luncheon in August, Ms. Armbruster stood at the podium and read out loud the details of what Darcy and Saucy had done to save the injured hiker. In very flowery words, Darcy heard Ms. Armbruster tell the crowd that Darcy Overton and her horse, Saucy, had happened upon a group of hikers and one hiker was severely injured. She took the injured hiker to the hospital on the back of her brave horse, Saucy, and that quick action saved the hiker’s life!

“Darcy, please come up to the podium,” said Ms. Armbruster. “And now in recognition for their heroism, courage and quick-thinking that day, I present to Miss Darcy Overton and her horse, Saucy, this ‘Hero’s Medal’ with the thanks and gratitude of everyone here, including the hiker, who is still recovering from his wounds,” proclaimed Ms. Armbruster. The president then pinned a medal to Darcy’s dress and handed her a large blue circle ribbon to put around Saucy’s neck.

Then the president said, “And I have a proclamation from the mayor of the city. It says that August 28^th is declared ‘Darcy Overton and Saucy the Hero Horse Day!’ Please join me in congratulating Darcy and Saucy!” The president and those in attendance all stood up and applauded loudly for Darcy, who started to tear up at all the recognition. Cheers and a few whistles emanated from the crowd.

When Darcy got home, she put the large blue ribbon around Saucy’s neck. “Good girl, Saucy, good girl!” she said out loud to Saucy the Hero Horse.

       And later that fall when the city celebrated Veteran’s Day in November, Darcy and Saucy were the Grand Marshalls of the parade. Darcy wore her medal and she put the big blue ribbon around Saucy’s neck. They were a beautiful sight as they proudly led that spectacular parade.

       That night after they got home from the parade and all its festivities, Darcy unsaddled Saucy and brushed her down and fed her an apple and a carrot.

       Darcy eventually finished high school, then college and then got her master’s degree in Animal Husbandry. She got married to the local veterinarian and purchased an expansive ranch in Colorado that was not too far from her dad’s ranch where she grew up. They had started their own family of horse lovers and riders.

       One Saturday, Darcy saddled up Saucy to take her out for a quiet ride after a long week of work. As they trotted along, Darcy noticed that Saucy started to limp slightly. Concerned, Darcy dismounted and examined Saucy’s front leg. When she lifted it, the horse seemed to pull up.

       Darcy walked Saucy back to their ranch, rather than ride her. Darcy’s husband, Brent, (yes, Darcy ended up marrying that injured hiker and later best friend, that they had saved that day!) the veterinarian, examined Saucy. He said she was starting to age and was getting a little stiff with early arthritis.

       “Oh, no,” cried Darcy. “Will she be alright?” “Yes,” said Dr. Brent. “But she shouldn’t be running and jumping like she used to. I’m sorry, Darcy, you won’t be able to ride her anymore. She just needs to rest.”

       Sad, but relieved, Darcy stabled Saucy, threw a blanket over her and fed her an apple and a carrot.

       The next day, Darcy woke up with a start. She had a dream that something had happened to Saucy. Worried, she threw on her jeans and a shirt and hurried out to the barn. Saucy was there as usual and snorted when Darcy patted her along the neck and hugged her snout.

       “Good morning, girl, how is the best horse on the planet doing today?” And suddenly Darcy had an idea. She knew how she and Saucy could continue to be productive and give back to the community.

       She rushed back to tell her husband. “I have a wonderful idea,” gushed Darcy. “Brent, honey, with your contacts, let’s get hold of the head of the local ‘Autism Speaks’ organization. “Okay,” said Brent, “but what do you have in mind?”

       “I want to start bringing Saucy to one of their monthly meetings or activities that they have with the kids. Saucy can let them pet her and feed her carrots and she could be an inspiration to those kids who may never have even seen a horse up close.”

       “Oh, honey, that is a wonderful idea, just wonderful!” exclaimed Brent. “I’ll call their office today and we can discuss the dates and the details.”

       And the dates and the details were eventually worked out. Saucy and Darcy attended autistic children’s events all around the city. Saucy was always so gentle and she became the official therapy horse and best friend to hundreds of delighted children and adults alike.

       And Darcy always gave Saucy, her lifelong best friend, an apple and a carrot after every event.