Little Endings

There are big endings, and little ones. The big ones are obvious; the day you take your child to kindergarten and realize you will no longer be the biggest influence in their lives. The day you watch your sixteen year old son drive out of the driveway. The day your youngest leaves for college and the clock is suddenly the loudest sound in the house.
Then, there are little endings. Like yesterday when I watched our horse trailer pull out of the driveway behind someone else's truck. Funny how some inanimate things have a personality, and a power to stand for a time in your life!
About fifteen years ago, when two of our three kids were still at home, we bought a miniature donkey to keep our Norwegian Fjord horse company. Funny little fat donkey, Nandor was sold to us because she could not get pregnant. But funny little fat Nandor gave birth in our pasture about a month later to an even funnier fluffy baby donkey that we named Noel since she was a surprise gift. Noel was part lap dog and part imp.
And suddenly, we need transportation for two donkeys and a horse. So we bought a used two horse trailer. It was green and gray, and it always this air of fun about it the way it tilted up when hitched to the truck. That trailer was not only donkey and horse transport! It was also retro fitted to carry Bob's Indian Chief motorcycle (one time, all the way to Sturgis) with a special box welded onto the front to extend it just a bit. Chiefs are much longer than horses and donkeys.
When we built our cabin in New Mexico, it was time for the horse and donkeys to find a new home. And they did. The donkeys are still making mischief at a beautiful bed and breakfast in Bastrop, the Nine E Ranch. But now the trailer had a new use. It was a furniture mover! It made so many trips back and forth from Northern New Mexico to Central Texas, it could almost make the trip without the truck. Then, the day came when there was no more work for the trailer to do. It sat out under a big pine tree in back of the cabin for a few years. It even tilted up when unhitched...looking hopeful that more work would come its way soon.
Then, yesterday, more work did come its way. Some young fellows who cut down some giant trees that were too close to the cabin took it in partial payment for their labors. And I knew it was a good thing. Trailers are meant to be out there on the road. Maybe horses would ride in it again, facing forward and a tiny bit up.
Funny how watching that trailer pull out seemed like one of those little endings. The end of a time in our lives when we were moving stuff. No more horses and donkeys now. No more motorcycles, even. No more furniture to haul to the cabin. Just lots of good memories. And a little ending.