| To thee, my master, I offer my prayer. |
| Feed me, water and care for me,
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| and when the day’s work is done, provide me with shelter, a clean, dry bed,
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| and stall wide enough for me to lie down in comfort
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| Always be kind to me. |
| Your voice often means as much to me as the reins.
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| Pet me sometimes, that I may serve you the more gladly and learn to love you.
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| Do not jerk the reins, and do not whip me when going uphill. |
| Never strike,
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| beat, or kick me when I do not understand you. |
| Watch me, and if I fail to do
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| your bidding, see if something is not wrong with my harness or feet
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| Do not check me so that I cannot have free use of my head. |
| If you insist that I
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| wear blinders, so that I cannot see behind me as it was intended I should,
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| I pray you be careful that the blinders stand well out of my eyes.
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| Do not overload me, or hitch me where water will drip on me
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| Keep me well shod. |
| Examine my teeth when I do not eat, I may have an ulcerated
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| tooth, and that, you know, is very painful. |
| Do not tie my head in an unnatural
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| position, or take away my best defense against flies and mosquitoes by cutting
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| off my tail
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| I cannot tell you when I am thirsty, so give me clean, cool water often.
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| Save me, by all means in your power from that fatal disease — the glanders.
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| I cannot tell you in words when I am sick, so watch me, that by signs you may
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| know my condition. |
| Give me all possible shelter from the hot sun,
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| and put a blanket on me, not when I am working, but when I am standing in the
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| cold. |
| Never put a frosty bit in my mouth, first warm it by holding it a moment
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| in your hands
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| I try to carry you and your burden without a murmur, and wait patiently for you
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| long hours of the day or night. |
| Without the power to choose my shoes or path,
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| I sometimes fall on hard pavement which I have often prayed might not be of
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| wood but of such a nature as to give me safe and sure footing. |
| Remember that I
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| must be ready at any moment to lose my life in your service
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| And finally, OH MY MASTER, when my useful strength is gone, do not turn me out
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| to starve or freeze, or sell me to some cruel owner, to be slowly tortured and
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| starved to death, but do thou, My Master, take my life in the kindest way,
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| and your God will reward you here and hereafter. |
| You will not consider me
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| irreverent if I ask this in the name of Him who was born in a stable
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| AMEN |