Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Gone Fishing (02/01/07)
-
TITLE: The Day Gone Went Fishing | Previous Challenge Entry
By Elizabeth Burton
02/08/07 -
LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE
SEND A PRIVATE COMMENT
ADD TO MY FAVORITES
Gone wasn’t the kinda horse you locked up. Now that he wasn’t. Fact is, that’s how he got his name in the first place, by bein’ gone every time you tried. He was so smart he could open any gate or door you put in front of him. Why, many’s the time I came into the kitchen just to find him standing half in, half out the door. Reminding me of his breakfast, I reckon, like he thought I’d forget!
But that morning wasn’t one of those times. I got up and looked out the window to find him all sprawled flat out in the yard, taking a snooze in the sun. He looked right peaceful thataway, so much so you could almost forget what an imp he was. Almost, but not quite. Anything you wanted to keep him out of you had to put away somewhere out of his sight, cause if he saw it, he wanted to know what it was.
That morning, Earl had left his fishing pole out on the back porch. I wasn’t too worried, seein’ as Gone was off in dreamland, but I shoulda known better than to think he wouldn’t notice something new like that. While I got busy fixin’ breakfast, Gone must’ve finished his nap and gotten bored; like any kid, he doesn’t cotten to being bored and looks to amuse hisself.
Well, like I said, Earl’s pole was on the porch. I never liked that fish smell, so I never let him keep them things in the house. Makes what happened my fault, least in part, I suppose, but Earl never laid a word of blame on me, bless his heart. 50 years of marriage and hardly a cross word, I tell you. But Earl had always been a tad forgetful, especially about puttin’ things away.
Now all that’s well and good if you don’t have any kids of the two or four-legged variety to get into things, but we do. The two-legged ones have done left and had kids of their own, but we’ve still got Gone. And he can get into enough for five two-leggeds. We quarrel about him some, but truth is, he’s company for us. After all these years, you run out of things to say unless you’ve got something to make news.
With that pole on the porch and Gone out in the yard, it was just a matter a’ time before the two found each other. While Earl was eating his pancakes, I looked out and there went Gone, pole in his mouth, trotting down the field with Earl’s prize toy.
Earl and me both ran off after him, trying to get there before he tore the whole thing plum up. But when we found him, we didn’t take it away. We didn’t even let him know we were watching. Because Lord knows that horse was a better person than both of us that day.
You see, there’s a family right down the road that don’t have nothin’ really. A widower man, too young to take care of all those boys by hisself; doesn’t know how to be a mother to them. Earl and me, we’d fretted ourselves about them, but didn’t know anything to do. But Gone did. He went right over to their trailer house, in their yard, and trotted up to the oldest boy (he’s 10, maybe) and dropped that pole smack dab at his feet.
And you shoulda seen the look on that boy’s face, like Christmas and a bunch of birthdays came all at once. With a “Dad, Dad, look what I found!” off he went, so’s you’d think it was an everyday thing for a horse to trot up with a fishing pole! And you could hear all the other boys oohing and aahing over it, too, and asking their dad if he’d teach ‘em to fish. I ask you, would you’ve been able to break those boys’ hearts?
Gone came home mighty pleased with hisself. Earl and me came home mighty humbled. All our frettin, and Gone just went out and did what he saw needed doing. He just went fishin’ for the Lord.
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
If you died today, are you absolutely certain that you would go to heaven? You can be right now. CLICK HERE
JOIN US at FaithWriters for Free. Grow as a Writer and Spread the Gospel.
This is just precious, witty and full of great imagery. And Gone is an unforgettable character in his own right.