Sometimes Dreams Really Do Come True

It took Steve, with lots of help from the kids, several weeks to change the crooked, old chicken house into a nice, strong, cozy barn, so it was close to Thanksgiving by the time they could REALLY get ready for April. They had to buy horse food, and a couple of buckets, ropes, and reins and brushes, a blanket. Grace and Rosebush had a little trouble reading the big fat books that they found in the library about How To Take Care Of A Horse. Lily and Danny jumped right in and helped them. It was exciting to learn SO MUCH ! They learned how to clean the the horse's hooves, how to brush her, when she would need shots, how to check if her teeth are
healthy, and even how to braid ribbons into her tail !!! Of course Susie was all ways eager to help, too, showing the girls how to brush April's mane. Grace and Rosebush went to the farm several times to help Susie clean April's stall. "It's the worst part of having a horse," Susie said, "but it's worth it !" Rosebush agreed, "it makes me feel like a REAL cow girl!" Grace, on the other hand, thought it was pretty yucky.

Much to everyone's surprise, Mrs Gymson, it turns out, had done quite a bit of riding as a girl. She had grown up on a ranch, and, she told everyone at the cook-out they had to celebrate that the barn was ready, that she had started helping her dad with the horses when she was little more than Grace and Rosebush's age. She explained that not only did the children need to learn to ride, but April needed to learn how to carry a rider. "We can learn together!" sang a VERY happy Rosebush.

And so it was decided that the Saturday before Thanksgiving they would rent a horse trailer and bring April to her new home. It was raining, and pretty cold when the day finally came around, but nothing could dampen Rosebush and Grace's excitement. They laid a thick bed of clean straw in the stall where April would sleep, and they washed the bucket they would use for her water. They checked that her food was in the bin, and then they sat down in the barn, cuddled up in the straw, just to see if it was warm enough in there. They could hear the wind howling outside, and the rain beating on the roof, but inside they were snug and warm.

What no one expected was that April would be scared. But scared she was! She whinned and tosssed he head. She snorted, and stamped her feet. She backed up, and backed up until she was against the wall. She wouldn't even let Susie get close! Everyone was just standing around wondering what to do when Susie's father, Ed, came into the barn carrying a big rope. " I'll get her, move out of the way, folks, let me in there," and "APRIL! BACK!" "NO! " Cried Rosebush, running up and grabbing at Ed's sleeve, "leave her alone ! Leave her alone!" Then she fell down, crying. "I know how it feels to be scared," she cried. Mama ran over and picked Rosebush up, sitting down with her on a bale of hay. Rossebush cried for awhile longer while everyone else, not knowing what to do, just watched. The barn got quiet, the only sounds were Rosebush snuffling, Mama murmuring. Soon Ed noticed that April had calmed down. "Rosebush, he said, all these people in here, all these kids, the commotion, you're right, April is scared. I'm here to say that you will make a fine horse woman!" No one else knew quite what to say next so Mama said, "We'd better get up, Rosebush." Then, pointing to the bale of hay, continued, " We may be sitting on someone's dinner.!" Everyone laughed, making April snort again! Ed suggested that everyone, except Rosebush, wait on up at the house. Then, speaking quietly to April, Ed went into her stall. Without turning around to Rosebush, he said, "this horse's favorite treat is carrots. She LOOOOOOOVES carrots. They're over in that corner, in a bucket. Go ahead an get a couple, but walk real slow." Rosebush did EXACTLY as he said, and as she approached April in her stall, Ed said, again, low and quiet, "real slow, now." Rosebush stood perfectly still, the carrots in her hand. It didn't take a minute for April to know that the carrots were there. April took a step towards Rosebush. "It's ok, honey, just stay still. You ok? You scared?" Ed asked Rosebush. Rosebush shook her head, but couldn't say a word. When April took another step, and stretched her long neck toward the carrots, Ed said, "ok now, slowly come on around here and stand right by me." Rosebush did. She reached her hand out and April took the carrots! Both of them at once ! "Oh!," said Rosebush, "her nose tickeled my hand!" "Yeah," smiled Ed. As April happily munched on her carrots, Rosebush, VERY slowly, reached up an stroked April's soft, nose. "I think we're friends, now," she whispered.

Many months later, when April knew how to carry, and Grace and Rosebush AND Lily AND Danny AND a few of Grace's brothers and sisters all know how to ride, when Mrs. Gymson was no longer "Grumpy Old Mrs. Gympson," but Mary, Grandma was looking out the kitchen window. What a fne summer day it was ! The sun was turning everything golden. Mary was out, working, as usual, on her flowers. But now she was not alone! Lily was helping and talking to her a mile a minute about school . And back by the barn she could see Rosebush riding her horse. Her cow girl hat had fallwn off, and her chestnut hair was flying, free, behind her. Grrandma noticed that with this summer sun, Rosebush's hair was almost exactely the color of April! As Rosebush galloped through Mary's wild flowers, the birds were twittering in the trees, and butterflies were busy going from flower to flower. She rode past the old peach tree, where Grace was sitting on the fence eating a peach, streaching out her hand, Grace tossed her a juicy, ripe peach. Grandma was so happy that she stood by that window and laughed and laughed, But this time she didn't wake up. This time she was already awake.

After supper, when, Mommy and Daddy had already told her to get to bed, Rosebush turned to Grandma and said, "Grandma? Could we take April to run by the sea?" "Oh, my," said Grandma, I don't know where there ARE any seas around here." "Yeah," laughed Rosesbush, heading for the stairs, "that's what you said about horses, too!"