I Do Believe I'll Have Another!

"He’s an amazing horse. I’m sorry but he’s just, he’s just an amazing ... I keep telling everybody since the first time I met him, I knew he was the one, I knew he was good.  Evr. . . all the criticisms they nev . . . they didn’t believe he could, he couldn't made it this far.  I, I always, I say it in an interview: even if they got me to pick from the whole race in the field, I would have stayed with him 100% no doubt about it."
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Mario Gutierrez

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I don't know if it's possible to read those words, or watch this race, without having an emotion that reaches your heart and your gut with an equally powerful grip.  Who doesn't understand what it's like to feel that you're the only one who "just knows" something with every goose pimple on your person?
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As with wine & lipstick, my Derby picks are based entirely on the charm of a contender's name.  "I'll Have Another" was an obvious choice.  Between bruising the mint and devising an au naturale simple syrup,  I made my selection and announced my intentions on Facebook and Twitter.  
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But long after the shaved ice and bourbon were exhausted, the sentiments of Mario Gutierrez were still . . . are still . . . tugging on my heartstrings.  Perhaps I needed a reminder that it's alright to be the only one who "just knows."  I think that most of us could use a little more of that.  And I wonder how often we fail to communicate the "I believe in you(s)" - how quickly we often join the crowd and dismiss our "little" voice(s)?
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To those who believe . . .

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"Despite everything, I believe that people are really good at heart."

Anne Frank

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"Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right."  

Henry Ford

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"I believe that love is the greatest thing in the world"

John D. Rockefeller

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I do believe I'll Have Another.  A round of Black Eyed Susans and a Toast to Mario Gutierrez!