I grew up with her. Knew she liked horses. She told me about her dads special team (back when a man depended on his horses like a close friend). I even think I remember hearing she had attended Wyoming Downs. I dismissed that bit of information with a careless toss. Horse racing? Mom? No way.
Then, a year ago I happened to be with her and Keli visiting the Vancouver, WA part of our family. With all our touring and visiting that day of the 136th run of the Kentucky Derby, Richard somehow knew that we had to be back at 3:00 so she could call Aaron. Aaron, we soon were to find out, shared our mothers interest in this very exclusive and illustrious sport seeped in tradition and pomp. Keli and I shared surprised and incredulous glances as we were listening party to a one-sided conversation about the finer points of horse racing. Our soft-spoken mother, it seems, is a soft-spoken horse racing fan too.
I’ve been wanting a portrait of our mother/horse racing fan for some time now. Today I got it! Happy Mothers Day to you! It was so fun to experience Kentucky Derby 137 with you and Aaron today! “Pants on Fire” and Rosie were great picks even though “Animal Kingdom” bested them all. There’s always next year. And next year – we’ll wear our hats.
Hey my 9 brothers and sisters, you'll be getting your own prints of these (I only posted one) in your mailbox soon. Happy un-birthday. Kathi, the flowers in Mom's portrait are the ones you sent her. Beautiful!
