"Finding a great doctor and having aggressive medical treatment has allowed me to maintain on a regimen of medications that gives me a life worth living again. Where once I thought that horses and riding would all be a nice memory, I am now living close to the land and to my horses."

Together, Terri and Mimi met Wiggy.

ENM: What attracted you to Wiggy?

"Her sweet face, her wonderful sleek coat and her loving disposition. She will stand and let you love her, and brush her and talk to her all day, and then follow you when you try to leave."

ENM: How do you use Wiggy and how often do you ride her?

"We do not ride Wiggy, as she is not sound. I have been told that someone in the past had run her hard on a paved road, and she has been lame since then.

"For us she is a part of our family, and also a part of my daughter's future.

"Mimi learned to ride on Bingo when she was only three, and has her sights set on becoming a trainer, breeder and competitor. When she was little, Mimi always said she wanted to be a waitress and a cowgirl, and now she is both.

"She is gifted young rider. She has been on Wiggy's bare back and Wiggy has eagerly taken her on short rides through the

pasture, but when she shows signs of being sore, the ride ends.

"Wiggy also runs around and plays 'cow-cut the horse' with my daughter when she rides Bobbi Jo. We don't have cows, so Bingo and Wiggy have been her volunteer steer."

ENM: What did Wiggy do before she came to you?

"She belonged to Pam Smith of Great Field Farms in Brewster. MA. She brought a few wonderful foals into the world for Pam, the last one is the one in the photograph. Wiggy then allowed my daughter into the stall to lie down next to the colt. She stood over the both of them and kept watch. She is a

wonderful mom. My daughter spent many hours with mother and son."

ENM: Please tell us more about Wiggy.

"Wiggy is very kind and patient. She is last in line to get fed, but never does a thing but stand quietly and then nicker as the meal approaches. She is the first to come up to us in the pasture. She is a bit nervous in some circumstances, but in the year she has been with us has overcome many things that used to frighten her. She allows our farrier and the vet to do their jobs easily now. Sometimes we pony her out on the trail and she is so curious, looking at the world, the fields, the open spaces, as if it's the first time she has seen them. I imagine it is a bit foreign to her, as Cape Cod doesn't offer the pasture situation that she now has."

ENM: What is your riding history?

"I fell in love with horses as a toddler when I had my first pony ride. I was in ecstasy and wouldn't wash my hands for as long as I could get away with it. I wanted to go to bed smelling that wonderful horse smell, which still has a soothing effect on me. All my troubles leave me when I approach the barn, whether it is to work or to ride, it makes no difference. It is all comforting.

"I began riding on  my own when I was very small, around four or five, as a tag-along with my mother and her friend who would lease trail riding horses. I started taking lessons when I was 11, and got my first horse when I was 13. I continued to ride through college and even was able to ride when I moved to Germany for a few years to teach for the Defense Department schools.

"Early on, Mimi learned to ride on the days that I was to dizzy or unable  to get up in the saddle. I would lead Bingo up and down the hills on the trails on Cape Cod, with my young daughter way up high in the saddle, oblivious to any danger. Bingo would sometimes be my crutch, and allowed me to lean on her for balance, and sometimes pulled me up the hills. Later, as I became better, we had some mother and daughter trail rides on the Cape. When Bingo and I both have a good day, we continue trail riding. Those are the days when I know I am one of the luckiest people alive.

"Now we have a new addition to our lives, thanks to Wiggy, to look forward to.

"Having horses helps to keeps me in shape physically, keeps me mentally healthy and spiritually in tune. It certainly gives me a reason to get going every day."

And next April, Wiggy's foal arrives, continuing the mother/child bonds in this remarkable family of women and horses.