Late One Afternoon ... |
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... when the sun was low in the sky I went down to the paddock to visit the three ponies. The boss mare gave me the witch's warning with a twist of her head and ears flat as I entered the herd circle - but I raised my arm to her and she lowered her head and backed off. She used all her senses to enquire if I was carrying food - no, I wasn't - and turned away taking her daughter with her, with a twist of her neck. This is a command a daughter can't disobey. But the gelding stayed with me edging closer for my protection. The mares give him a hard time because he's useless. They stand at the water trough for twenty minutes lipping up the water and staring back at him with their sideways eyes. My husband calls them bitches but I say it's only because he's got no balls. He'd be first at the water trough if he had balls. My son says they'd both be in foal if he had balls. The gelding is like a baby, like my baby, and he likes to stand close to me because I'm not afraid. I suppose you could say I've got balls. We stood together for a long time, breathing in the air and looking at the sun lowering itself. Just standing there. Not saying anything. Then there was a TWANG at the wire fence, and we cocked our ears at it. And through the fence with a BANG came a wild rabbit running as fast as a wild rabbit can, running at full stretch, running for his life - and close behind a fox running at full stretch, running for his meal. They ran within a few feet of us. The fox had his mouth open - we could see his teeth and gums, we could almost smell the hot blood, taste the sweet hot juicy flesh. Horses abhor the smell of blood and the taste of flesh. The gelding snorted with disgust and wheeled and plunged away. The fox glanced up - just a horse - and was about to snap his jaws shut. But with a heart jolting double take he saw ME! Tricked him. Masked my human smell with horse smell, my human presence with horse presence. He stopped. He nearly went for me - it passed through his mind, I saw it in his eyes, nearly went for my throat with fright and rage. I stepped forward, grinned, looked bigger. He thought again. And again. He sat down on his tail and licked his paw. He said - well done. for a twolegs. got me. this time. have the rabbit. i've gone off rabbit. And he calmly stood up, turned his back on me and trotted back down his
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All work within this periodical is copyrighted by the authors and Big Pond Rumour, January 2008. No part is to be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the authors and Big Pond Rumour Press. |