Triple Crown Gets Justified!
Updated: Aug 14, 2020
He did it! The Kentucky bred chestnut beauty named Justify won the Belmont Stake race this past Saturday. I am thrilled Justify and Mike Smith brought home the coveted Triple Crown of American racing. They were indeed a worthy well matched pair hurdling obstacles. The three year old racing novice has proven his skills superior to most and that he is blessed to the nth degree. Six races...six wins, perfect score. Justify defied the so called curse at the Kentucky Derby. Then he slid into the winners spot at the Preakness in a race fraught with soggy ground and thick fog. Now he's quelled the nay-sayers who thought the horse was too tired from the tight racing schedule as most horses would be. To add to the unlikeliness of this pair of victorious misfits, you have a fifty two year old jockey. That's right, Mike Smith is fifty two, well past the conventional age to retire from jockeying. Yet, he is still riding in races...and winning!. Kudos to Mike who has put down the age related taboos of horse racing, we hope, once and for all. He rode that animal like the expert he is and that, my friends, is called experience and know how. Experience is something that comes with aging as much as gray hair and achy joints. Mike Smith appears to be in tip top physical condition and a godly man, immediately thanking his Creator God for his good fortune. It warmed my heart to see his zealously displayed gratitude. He was not ashamed for all the world see and hear him praise and thank his Savior, Jesus Christ. That makes him a real winner in my book.
I do not bet on horses but each spring I love watching these three premiere US races; Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. I pant and cheer for the horse that drops in my spirit. Like with most things I do, I watch horse racing with spiritual eyes and ears. Often I get meaningful inspiration from the spirit distinctly to my soul. This was one of those times. Justify's race meant more to me than merely winning money as it is for most people. At the risk of sounding weird, there was a serious spiritual message for me which I got loud and clear.
After several years of disappointments, the last being with my beloved California Chrome, my hope for picking winners is restored. In case you're wondering, I wasn't all that enthused when American Pharaoh won the Triple Crown. He wasn't my horse of choice. Don't get me wrong, American Pharaoh was an excellent race horse. I just wasn't feeling him. I think I was still licking my wounds from California Chrome. By the way, months later, Chrome won the Dubai World Cup so I feel his skill was resurrected and at last properly showcased at an even higher stakes race. I knew, despite his not being a Triple Crown wearing king, that California Chrome was a winner. He had the special something and proved it in Dubai. Justify has that same certain something as well. Something about his demeanor let me know he was a spectacular winner. There is a spirit in those particular kind of animals that shines for all the world to see...if you can see it.
