Quoting starhorse:

God gives us men and compels some of us to love them. Yet why is the man, an animal with such a big heart, so hard to understand at times? Perhaps it's because if our men were easier for us to understand, and we could trust them with our hearts, we wouldn't be able to enjoy the experience of life. Or, perhaps it's because God wants us to learn unconditional love.

To have a man in your life is a gift of sorts. A good man can teach a women courage, if she chooses to take that chance and hang on for dear life. Even the smallest of men thinks he is mightier than the tallest of women. To conquer the fear of failing, making mistakes in a relationship, having one's heart crushed, or being publicly humiliated is an admirable feat for any women. For that, we can be grateful.

Men teach us responsibility. Unlike a bicycle, or a computer,a man needs regular care and most of it requires that we need to get dirty, maybe smelly, and up off the couch. Choosing to leave your cozy chair to bring your man a beer, or wine is a responsibility. When our man drinks heartily, we know we've made him happier. If he is happy he will want to stick around for more treats and cuddling.

Learning to care for a man is both an art and a science. Some are easy keepers, requiring little more than regular turn out, a microwave dinner, a beer or wine, and some quality time under and above the sheets. Others will test you, you'll struggle to keep them from being too fat or too thin, to pick up their clothing, keep the toilet seat down, or to remember important dates. Some are so accident prone you'll swear they're intentionally finding new ways to injure themselves.

If you weren't raised with men, you can't know that they have unique personalities. You might expect this from dogs, or horses, but men? Indeed, there are clever men, grumpy men, serious men, and even men with a sense of humor. Those prone to humor will test you by finding new ways to escape from the house or chores when you least expect it.

Men can be timid or brave, lazy or athletic, obstinate or willing. You will hit it off with some men and others will elude you altogether. There are as many "types" of men as there are people, which make the whole partnership thing all the more interesting.

If you've never lived with a man, you probably assume it's a simple thing you can learn in a weekend. You can, in fact, learn the basics on a Sunday, but to truly know a man, well that takes a lifetime. Working with a living being is far more complex than turning a key in the ignition and putting the car in "drive."

In addition to listening to your psychologist, your man will have a few things to say to you as well. On a good day, he'll be happy to go along with the program and tolerate your mistakes. On a bad day, you'll swear he's trying to kill you. Perhaps he has not learned how to communicate, or perhaps he's fed up with how slowly you're learning his language. Regardless, the man will have an opinion. He may choose to challenge you (which can ultimately make you a better person) or he may carefully guide you through life's challenges...if it suits him. It all depends on the partnership, and partnership is what it's all about.

If you face your fears, swallow your pride, and are willing to work at it, you'll learn lessons in courage, commitment, and compassion in addition to basic survival skills. You'll discover just how hard you're willing to work toward a goal, how little you know, and how much you have to learn. And, while some people think the man "does all the work", you know better, and so does he. You'll be challenged physically as well as mentally.

Your man may humble you completely with his love. You may find that being around him is the closest you'll get to heaven.

You can choose to intimidate your man, but do you really want to? The results may come more quickly but will your work ever be as graceful as that gained through trust? The best partners choose to listen, as well as to tell. When it works, we experience a sweet sense of accomplishment brought about by smarts, hard work, and mutual understanding between a man and a women. These are the days when you know with absolute certainty that your man is enjoying his life with you.

If we make it to the older years with our man still in our lives, most of us will squeeze them into our oversaturated schedules; balancing our need for things around our relationships, with those of our career and households. It seems there is never enough time to play, or to be with them as much as we'd like. Hours with our man are stolen pleasures.

It is in our blood to love a man, we want to share our life with them. Our man knows our secrets. We share our tears with him as he wraps us in his arms and whispers our hopes into our ears. Our home becomes a sanctuary in an unsettled world, a sheltered place where life's true priorities are clear. It is a warm place to sleep with someone who loves us, where we know that our man really cares about us.

When you step back, it's not just about men,it's about love, life, and learning. On any given day, a man could be celebrating an achievement or recovering from an illness. That same day, there could also be loss, a broken limb, a case of the flu, or he could be having a bad day. As women, we share the life cycle of men, the hurried rush of life, love, loss, success, and death, that caring for a man brings us. When our partners pass, it is more than a moment of sorrow.

We mark our loss with words of gratitude for the ways our lives have been blessed. Our memories are of joy, awe, and wonder. Absolute union. We honor our men for their brave hearts, courage, and willingness to share their life with us.

To those outside our circle here in this land of horsepeople, it must seem strange. To see us in on this site, who would guess such poetry lives in our hearts? We celebrate our men with praise worthy of heroes. Indeed, our men have the hearts of warriors and often carry us into and out of fields of battle on their white stallions.

Listen to the stories found here, of that once in a lifetime man, of journeys made and challenges met. Of relationships found that will last the tests of time. The best of men rising to the challenges we set before them.

Those who know them understand how fully a man can hold a woman's heart. Together, we as women, share the joys and pains of finding the man who can touch us so deeply. We shoulder the burden of deciding when or whether to begin a life with a true companion. Or so we like to think...

In the end, we're not certain if God entrusts us to our man or our man to us. Does it matter? We're grateful God loaned us this man in the first place.

God gives us men and compels some of us to love them. Yet why is the man, an animal with such a big heart, so hard to understand at times? Perhaps it's because if our men were easier for us to understand, and we could trust them with our hearts, we wouldn't be able to enjoy the experience of life. Or, perhaps it's because God wants us to learn unconditional love.

To have a man in your life is a gift of sorts. A good man can teach a women courage, if she chooses to take that chance and hang on for dear life. Even the smallest of men thinks he is mightier than the tallest of women. To conquer the fear of failing, making mistakes in a relationship, having one's heart crushed, or being publicly humiliated is an admirable feat for any women. For that, we can be grateful.

Men teach us responsibility. Unlike a bicycle, or a computer,a man needs regular care and most of it requires that we need to get dirty, maybe smelly, and up off the couch. Choosing to leave your cozy chair to bring your man a beer, or wine is a responsibility. When our man drinks heartily, we know we've made him happier. If he is happy he will want to stick around for more treats and cuddling.

Learning to care for a man is both an art and a science. Some are easy keepers, requiring little more than regular turn out, a microwave dinner, a beer or wine, and some quality time under and above the sheets. Others will test you, you'll struggle to keep them from being too fat or too thin, to pick up their clothing, keep the toilet seat down, or to remember important dates. Some are so accident prone you'll swear they're intentionally finding new ways to injure themselves.

If you weren't raised with men, you can't know that they have unique personalities. You might expect this from dogs, or horses, but men? Indeed, there are clever men, grumpy men, serious men, and even men with a sense of humor. Those prone to humor will test you by finding new ways to escape from the house or chores when you least expect it.

Men can be timid or brave, lazy or athletic, obstinate or willing. You will hit it off with some men and others will elude you altogether. There are as many "types" of men as there are people, which make the whole partnership thing all the more interesting.

If you've never lived with a man, you probably assume it's a simple thing you can learn in a weekend. You can, in fact, learn the basics on a Sunday, but to truly know a man, well that takes a lifetime. Working with a living being is far more complex than turning a key in the ignition and putting the car in "drive."

In addition to listening to your psychologist, your man will have a few things to say to you as well. On a good day, he'll be happy to go along with the program and tolerate your mistakes. On a bad day, you'll swear he's trying to kill you. Perhaps he has not learned how to communicate, or perhaps he's fed up with how slowly you're learning his language. Regardless, the man will have an opinion. He may choose to challenge you (which can ultimately make you a better person) or he may carefully guide you through life's challenges...if it suits him. It all depends on the partnership, and partnership is what it's all about.

If you face your fears, swallow your pride, and are willing to work at it, you'll learn lessons in courage, commitment, and compassion in addition to basic survival skills. You'll discover just how hard you're willing to work toward a goal, how little you know, and how much you have to learn. And, while some people think the man "does all the work", you know better, and so does he. You'll be challenged physically as well as mentally.

Your man may humble you completely with his love. You may find that being around him is the closest you'll get to heaven.

You can choose to intimidate your man, but do you really want to? The results may come more quickly but will your work ever be as graceful as that gained through trust? The best partners choose to listen, as well as to tell. When it works, we experience a sweet sense of accomplishment brought about by smarts, hard work, and mutual understanding between a man and a women. These are the days when you know with absolute certainty that your man is enjoying his life with you.

If we make it to the older years with our man still in our lives, most of us will squeeze them into our oversaturated schedules; balancing our need for things around our relationships, with those of our career and households. It seems there is never enough time to play, or to be with them as much as we'd like. Hours with our man are stolen pleasures.

It is in our blood to love a man, we want to share our life with them. Our man knows our secrets. We share our tears with him as he wraps us in his arms and whispers our hopes into our ears. Our home becomes a sanctuary in an unsettled world, a sheltered place where life's true priorities are clear. It is a warm place to sleep with someone who loves us, where we know that our man really cares about us.

When you step back, it's not just about men,it's about love, life, and learning. On any given day, a man could be celebrating an achievement or recovering from an illness. That same day, there could also be loss, a broken limb, a case of the flu, or he could be having a bad day. As women, we share the life cycle of men, the hurried rush of life, love, loss, success, and death, that caring for a man brings us. When our partners pass, it is more than a moment of sorrow.

We mark our loss with words of gratitude for the ways our lives have been blessed. Our memories are of joy, awe, and wonder. Absolute union. We honor our men for their brave hearts, courage, and willingness to share their life with us.

To those outside our circle here in this land of horsepeople, it must seem strange. To see us in on this site, who would guess such poetry lives in our hearts? We celebrate our men with praise worthy of heroes. Indeed, our men have the hearts of warriors and often carry us into and out of fields of battle on their white stallions.

Listen to the stories found here, of that once in a lifetime man, of journeys made and challenges met. Of relationships found that will last the tests of time. The best of men rising to the challenges we set before them.

Those who know them understand how fully a man can hold a woman's heart. Together, we as women, share the joys and pains of finding the man who can touch us so deeply. We shoulder the burden of deciding when or whether to begin a life with a true companion. Or so we like to think...

In the end, we're not certain if God entrusts us to our man or our man to us. Does it matter? We're grateful God loaned us this man in the first place.