Two of Diamonds
By Margaret Rose O’Malley
Just down the street from downtown Columbia, the Stephens College Equestrian Center sits on a small hill surrounded by its quaint pastures. Most days, I walk down the avenue of stalls until I find myself in front of a name card that reads, “Two of Diamonds,” with the name Junior printed in smaller letters below. The 12x12 space hosts him while he lazily smacks on his hay. He appears mellow from a distance. He has established his reputation as the grumpy, old man of our barn.
Junior arrived at the Equestrian Center as a 12-year-old. Since then, he has served as a teacher in the classroom, a teammate at horse shows and a friend in every moment to many girls. Before his lax life at Stephens College, Junior was a hunter derby horse. He competed in Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Alabama and further. His show name, “Two of Diamonds,” is represented well by the patch of white fur between his eyes and a second one between his nostrils.
Every single Stephens horse was donated to the college. Junior was donated by a generous Alumni, Sally Randall, over 14 years ago. He was young, talented, and able to play many roles, making him a perfect fit as an educator in an equine studies program. Although he tended to be a bit spicier in his youth, college life has mellowed Junior. He spends more time these days frolicking in the pasture with his companion, Vista and is a patient model for equine behavior and anatomy classes.
Growing up riding horses, I always found myself drawn to thoroughbreds. Hot-blooded horses that are bred for the racetrack. Despite their reputation for being spicy, I have always seen a willingness to please at the core of it all. Stephens College is home to saddlebreds, quarter horses, warmbloods, and more. Yet we have just one thoroughbred: Junior.
Upon our meeting, Junior was indifferent to me. This would be an accurate way to describe his feelings toward me the entirety of our first year as acquaintances. Perhaps this indifference was learned in his many years since leaving his athletic career in the past to teach beginner and intermediate riders. However, he more than tolerated me and was given countless starlight mints as a sign of my gratitude. In the passing years, Junior’s tolerance grew into a returned affection. I had already christened him as my favorite horse ever.
Shortly after I enrolled at Stephens, my brother was involved in a traumatic car accident. After coming back to school, I was struggling to manage my anxiety disorder. I was in a vulnerable state, often isolating. I reluctantly stayed enrolled in classes as a part-time student. This is when I took a student work opportunity with our horses. For the next year, I took shifts cleaning stalls, preparing grain, and turning horses out to pasture. Each time perfectly calculated so that Junior would be in my rotation. Spending more time with the horses gave me a safe space to go every day.
As my bond with Junior strengthened, my confidence grew. He was able to hold me accountable through our riding classes. Junior asks me to be with him in the present. This is the gift we as humans receive when we work with horses. We very rarely have the chance to make mistakes so easily forgiven. He can give me the grace I never gave to myself. It was an outlet physically and emotionally. It gave me a chance to find passion for my studies again.
At Stephens, these horses are our teachers in the classroom, but they teach us compassion, self-forgiveness, and humility every day. It isn’t uncommon for a Stephens horse to be retired into the hands of a student who has once worked with them. Through the equine studies program, lifelong partnerships are established.