An Old Cowhand: summer 1958

Every summer a man leading a pony would come to our neighborhood to give pony rides and snap photographs for a modest fee. Such joy!

Here you see effort number two for me, summer 1958, age nine. Two summers before, the pony was black and white, I was seven, and sporting a pixie haircut (my usual style for summertime), and admittedly a little on the snaggle-toothed side.

I remember that somehow, the pony of 1956 seemed perkier--or was it me? (Must have been me--just found the photo from 1956 and am adding it to this article--Nov 26.)

As you see, this pony looks quite dispirited and it makes me very sad to see him now. In fact, when I saw this photograph upon its delivery about a month after it was taken, my excitement was deflated by the poor pony's droopiness.

Then I remembered how slowly he walked around a circle, led by the pony entrepreneur, with cowgirl me grown out of my Annie Oakley outfit, but still loving every minute of being in the saddle. I recall how his coarse mane felt in my fingers as I petted his neck. Looks like he'd had a "haircut" too--a disappointment, for the 1956 pony had a beautiful black mane!

My guess is that pony rides'n'pics occurred in many areas of the U.S. although I've seldom heard anyone admit to it through the years, and perhaps they were a summer treat elsewhere as well.

So give a Cowgirl and Boy shout-out (happy pony or sad) especially if you have a photo to share--I'd love to see you back in the saddle again, pardners!

Now where's my lasso? Must be filed away with my yo yo and my hoola hoop!