Sometimes as the founder of Stolen Horse International
(NetPosse.com) I get so bogged down in the day to day business of running the
company that I forget that there are people who come to meet us through social
mediums and our website for the first time every day. These people do not know
what we are about, nor do they know our history.
I need to constantly educate our followers, fans and friends
which would not be hard if that was all I had to do. Anyone want to be in
charge of education? What a good idea! If you want to be a volunteer in charge
of NetPosse education, email me from the website.
Yes, I did get sidetracked but this is how my brain works.
It multitask all day, every minute. Now, I will get back to this blog entry.
Today on one of our social mediums, Facebook to be exact, I
was responding to one of the comments under one of stolen horse alerts. A lady
asked us something that she could have easily ask the owner of the horse by
clicking on the link provided with the alert and then clicking on the email.
So why didn’t she do that?
I found myself explaining to the woman and the others on the
page how they can contact the owner with questions and why they should.
“You can go to the page link above and email the owner. If
she hasn’t thought of that you may remind her to check. I know she’d love to
hear from you.”
As soon as I wrote that line it took my thoughts back to
1997 after our horse Idaho was stolen from our family. It took me awhile to
discover the internet but once I did the machine became my new best friend, my
besty and my BFF as it seems now. (I promise you I didn’t see that one coming!)
There is a reason we have the victim’s email and phone
number on our reports (it is not just for when you find the horse) and we ask
you to contact the victim and let them know you are there to help. All victims
appreciate being contacted with ideas and offers of help. It makes them feel
like they are not all alone. Believe me. I have been in their shoes and I know
what that feels like.
Let me explain further.
When your horse is stolen or missing people are shocked and
stunned at first. Many may rush to your side to help in one way or another. Or,
they may not. As the days wear on and the horse is not recovered everyone goes
on with their lives and the victim is left with their obsession to find their
horse.
And that is what it is for most of us victims, an obsession.
If we are not obsessed about finding our horse who will be? I know for a fact
that when a horse is ripped out of your life and it is not your choice that as
a victim you eat, sleep and breathe ways to bring your horse home.
You wonder what is happening to the horse. Is it okay? Is
someone hurting the horse? What must the horse be thinking? Is the horse alive?
Even worse, is the horse…you…know…where? It doesn’t matter if you are pro or
con slaughter; we all know that horses taken
from owners do not belong there! And it is here usually that the pain is too much
to bare and the tears fall and your heart gets crushed once again.
A victim repeats this scenario or one similar over and over
and over all day and all night ever day a horse is missing. It is not always
apparent on the outside. A victim learns to carry on daily activities and
duties with the terrible anguish rumbling inside. This inner chaos for me and
my husband never stopped for 51 weeks when Idaho was gone no matter what the
happy pictures taken during that year showed on the outside.
It is a terrible feeling. It was the daily email from total
strangers around the world that kept me going when Idaho was gone for 51 weeks.
I have heard from victims who have had horses missing for 20
years or more and even though they learned to deal with the loss in their own
ways, they never quit wondering and the sadness they felt when they thought of
the horse never goes away. They are robbed of all of the happy memories because
the happy ones are always shadowed by the loss they feel for the horse.
When we send out a NetPosse Alert we are greatly appreciative
of you sharing the alerts with your friends and having your friends sharing it
with their friends. But please take the time to look at the info inside the
alerts and send a note to the owners.
You may even take some time to look up some of our older
unsolved cases and send those owners a note. Won’t they be surprised! And I bet
you may even bring a tear to someone’s eye. I know my eyes teared up now
thinking about forgotten victims getting notes. But then I am a victim and I
know what it would mean to them. When you’ve been there, done that, you never
forget.
The email notes do not have to be anything long or
heartfelt. Just let them know that you are there and you care. I already know
that you care because you are sending the alerts to your friends.
“Hi! I ran across your listing on NetPosse.com today and saw that you
have not recovered your horse. I am posting your alert on my facebook page for
you. I hope this helps. Good luck with your search and I hope your horse is
home soon!
Now find a listing on NetPosse.com, new or old and brighten
someone’s day. You never know how just a few words can matter to someone who
needs them so much.
Never underestimate the power of one. Today, that “one” is
you.
1 comment:
Debi, thank you for this reminder. I have gotten out of the habit of writing a quick note to those who are at a loss. Tears come to my eyes just thinking about how I would feel if my beloved mare was stolen. It takes my breath away.
I hope everyone reading your blog will take a moment out of their busy day to drop someone a note. I always got a quick thank you back when I contacted them, too.
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