Angelica worked intently on tightening the girth, tugging against the leather billet straps.  She was tacking up her favorite mount, beautiful black Zafira with the star on her forehead.  Zafira regarded the youth with ears mildly disapproving.  “That is quite tight, already,” one might translate, if one spoke the language of equus.

After adjusting the girth, Angelica focused her chocolate eyes to the stirrup.  The length would have to be shortened.  She flipped her dark, hot ponytail waves off her shoulder and out of her way.  Today, Ariana, Angelica’s six year old sister, would be riding Zafira with a

Joy, Leslie, Charlotte, Ariana, Emily

team called Muchachas.  Ariana looked very much like her older sister, only in miniature.  Her face, a bit rounder was framed with dark, thick waves of glorious hair and her eyes were a melted chocolate, shaded by curled eyelashes.  She wore a riding helmet and pink cowgirl boots.  The Muchachas were a small group of young girls who loved to get their horses groomed and then dress up themselves in matching ruffled flamenco dresses of hot pink and black polka dots for riding exhibitions.

 Angelica finished readying the pleasure gaited mare for her sister and stepped back to allow Ariana to step up the mounting block tiers.  Zafira stood quietly and accepted the 35 lbs of additional weight.  Angelica, dutifully sharing her dream horse with Ariana, untied the quick release knot with one practiced tug and turned Zafira toward the arena.  Angelica, although thin and petite at age twelve, had learned to safely keep Zafira in hand, turning her by the lead rope and keeping an elbow ready to maintain safe distance between the horse and herself.

Translating the equine communication again, it looked as if Zafira was saying “Okay, now that you’ve got me here, what’ll it be today?”

Angelica and Ariana were learning to communicate with the Paso Fino.  With English as their primary language, both girls already were accustomed to communication in Portuguese, which was the language most often spoken by their father, who was from Brazil.  The sisters were also familiar with Spanish, the language of their mother, Mayra’s, homeland, Puerto Rico.  Angelica and Ariana were both learning to communicate to Zafira and understand Zafira’s communication in return. Ariana expertly asked Zafira to flex.  Zafira obliged, turning her head and neck, which weighed more than her rider, in a stretch to the left.  She stretched exaggeratedly until she kissed Ariana’s left boot, high up in the stirrup of the saddle.  Ariana giggled and reversed her reins to cue