Amazing Mr Merlot

I don't think I have said before that Merlot is so mouthy and picking so many things up that I decided last week that he might as well learn something useful to do with that talent. So I started to teach him to pick his halter and line up and hand it to me! After 2 sessions he was getting the idea.
Then, earlier this week, I had all the horses in the arena and fed them with buckets spaced around. I gathered up all the brushes, halter, haynet etc and put them in a bucket then carried on absentmindedly picking up the other buckets. Merlot was wandering around I thought picking up stray bits of feed, but suddenly I heard a 'thump'!! I turned around and saw that he had found the bucket with all the brushes, haynet etc and halter and line in it, had ferreted around, picked the halter and line up out of the bucket (leaving everything else brushes and haynets etc in the bucket somehow) and had 'thrown' it in my direction - that was the thump!! he was just standing looking expectantly. Treat??? So funny - what a clever boy - I was astounded - never thought a horse would be capable of that kind of thinking..... will be very careful what I teach him....!!