She hugged its neck, pressed her cheek against the soft mane, and patted its warm back with her tiny hands. Sometimes they played together in the hay, and it even happened that my daughter fell asleep right there in the straw, beside the horse – as if it were her best friend.

We laughed while watching them, but deep inside we sometimes worried — after all, a horse is a large animal. Yet from the very first meeting it was clear: the horse was incredibly intelligent and gentle, almost as if it understood that it had a child before it, one who needed special tenderness.