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The Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve is an event for the stars – both equine and human. Making it to the race is a dream of horse owners from all walks of life. This year, Kentucky Derby contender Dornoch is owned in part by former Major League Baseball World Series champion Jayson Werth.

On May 4, the most popular horse race in North America celebrates a special anniversary. The Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve will be run for the 150th time at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., with more than 120,000 fans in attendance under the track’s iconic Twin Spires and tens of millions more watching around the world.

Few horses touched the heart like the Black Gold did. Thanks to Marguerite Henry’s 1957 book, this black colt with the little white star was a childhood favorite of generations of racing fans, his triumphant, yet tragic life a poignant reminder of why we love this sport and its equine athletes.

Attending the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve this year for the milestone 150th edition of the race? Congratulations! You’re one of the lucky few (thousands), but for those of us not attending this year’s running at Churchill Downs — this writer included — there is still plenty at stake and many avenues to pursue.

To be human is to know both love and loss. Experiencing the highs and lows of life is both a universal and individual pursuit, inhabiting common ground between strangers and also being a singular journey that each of us must discover our own way through. Finding our way through loss, when we may feel least like ourselves, requires us to seek and hold on to the things that lighten a heavy heart.

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