At Last

Good morning, FFFFs,

The sun is shining this morning! The birds are singing and flowers are blooming. Spring is here. Yes, we're still getting nights of frosts, and we could even get snow, but it's certainly NOT winter.

This week has gone by SO quickly! I'm sure we must have missed a few days of it. I've spent a lot of time working on the Lessons for my self-publishing course. It's rather fun creating this course and figuring out what to put in each lesson. I hope it is helpful to others.

Writing has happened a little bit. I didn't write on Wednesday since I had to go early to church to practice music and then work in the nursery, but last night I was able to work on two stories that had been stuck. Not sure if I've gotten one completely unstuck, but at least it's progress. I still want to publish a few short stories, but I've been so focused on creating the mini course, that I haven't gotten them ready. I haven't even finished getting blog posts for Read Another Page finished for March! Oh, well.

This week's story is for Bekki sicne she requested a horse story. I realized I hadn't posted it since 2012. That was a long time ago, so I hope any new readers enjoy this short story.

At Last

    Alicia Alexander climbed up on the lower rung of the white board fence and rested her arms on the top rail. In the field several horses were grazing. The air was full of spring; the trees had on their light green dresses, dandelions dotted the grass everywhere with their golden heads, birds sang and the early morning sun was warm. It was a splendid day at Xander Horse Farm in Kentucky.
    As the ten-year-old stood perched on the fence watching the horses, her long, light brown hair blowing in the breeze, a sturdy step sounded behind her and a deep voice asked, “What are you doing up and out of the house so early, Girlie?”
    “I wanted to see if any of the horses had foaled, Daddy.” Alicia sighed, “But none of them have.”
    Mr. Alexander chuckled, crossing his arms on the fence beside his daughter. “Be patient, Honey. Amethyst, Sarsaparilla and Duchess aren’t due for another week probably.”
    “But, Daddy,” and Alicia leaned her head against his shoulder, “Ebony Dance and What-ever are due any day, Tyler said so.”
    “That’s so, but right now let’s go in and see if Mom has breakfast ready.”
    Hand in hand, with Alicia skipping to keep up with her father’s long strides, they headed down the road to the white farm house nestled under some tall shade trees where Mrs. Alexander and six-year-old Amber were waiting with breakfast on the patio.

    After breakfast the girls helped their mom with the dishes and then headed outside. They both loved horses and Alicia could ride nearly every horse on the farm. The hired hand, Tyler, a boy saving money for veterinary collage, was working near the barn when the girls came out. Tyler was more like an older brother than a hired hand, and the girls loved him.
    “Tyler!” Alicia called as she and Amber ran over to him. “When will there be a foal?”
    Tyler looked up with a grin. “I can’t say for sure, but Ebony’s been acting rather like it could be soon.”
    “Oh,” Alicia breathed, her eyes wide with excitement, “Do you think it will be today?”
    “Most times horses foal during the night,” he told her.

    Alicia helped out with the horses and did some weeding for her mom during the day, but all her spare time was spent on the fence of the pasture where the five horses were waiting to foal. Often one would amble over to the girl and Alicia would quickly pull up some green grass from her side of the fence to feed it, talking gently all the while.
    “Oh, Ebony Dance, when are you going to have your baby? Do you want a boy or a girl? . . . Sarsaparilla, you’re looking fat. Don’t you think it’s time you had your baby? . . . If you have a filly, Duchess, I want to name her Lady-in-waiting. Don’t you think that would be a good name?”
    The horses, all seemingly wanting to please this little friend, would bob their heads as though in agreement and Alicia would stroke them. Eventually all the horses moved to the other side of the pasture to stand in the sun and Alicia was left day dreaming.
    “Alicia.”
    The sound of her name brought her back to earth with a start to find her father standing beside her. “What?”
    Mr. Alexander grinned. He knew his daughter’s habit of daydreaming. “Didn’t you hear the dinner bell?”
    Alicia shook her head.
    “Well, it’s supper time. We’ll visit the horses again before bed.”
    “Daddy,” Alicia began as she and her father walked hand in hand down the road, “I wish one of the horses would foal.”
    “They will,” was the confident reply.
    “But I want to see it.”
    To this no reply was given.

    How long Alicia had been sleeping that night she didn’t know but it couldn’t have been very long when she was awakened by her father.
    “Come on, Honey, wake up if you want to see a brand new foal.”
    Still sleepy, Alicia sat up and rubbed her eyes. “Is it morning?” she asked.
    “No, so be quiet,” was the whispered reply. “We don’t want to wake Amber or Mom.”
    Suddenly Alicia was wide awake. Quickly she pulled on her denim skirt over her nightgown and slipped her arms into her jacket, for it was chilly. Her boots were downstairs.
    Tiptoeing down the stairs to the kitchen, father and daughter paused as Alicia slid her feet into her boots. Trembling with excitement, Alicia clung to her daddy’s hand as they made their way out into the chilly night air across the dark, silent yard to the stables.
    Tyler, standing in the aisle near Ebony Dance’s stall, turned when the soft sound of approaching footsteps was heard. Without a word he beckoned to them. There was a rustling in the stall as they drew nearer.

    It was nearly dawn before Alicia finally fell asleep again. She had been so awed over the birth of the first spring foal, and so excited to have been up in the night to witness it, that for over an hour after she had been sent back to bed she lay wide awake reliving the birth and the little brown thing standing on long wobbly legs looking rather out of place beside her black mother.
    “I wonder what we should name her?” she thought drowsily just before she fell asleep.

    When she awakened next the sun was high in the sky and in astonishment that she had been allowed to sleep so late, she dressed in a hurry and dashed down the stairs.
    “Good morning, Alicia,” her mother greeted her with a kiss.
    “Morning, Mom! Did you see the filly? I watched it being born! Can’t I go see Ebony Dance and the baby right now, Mom? Please!”
    “Without breakfast?”
    “I’m not hungry.”
    Her mother nodded and Alicia raced away.
    To her surprise Alicia could see Ebony in the pasture and Amber and their dad watching. Climbing up on the fence on the other side of Amber, she rested her arms on the top rail. At last there was a baby on Xaner’s Horse Farm.
    “Let’s name the baby, At Last,” Alicia suggested and Amber quickly agreed. Then in silence they watched the horses.

Does it feel like your week is missing a few days?

Did you enjoy this short story?

What would you name a horse if you had a chance?