Dream Pony Frenzy

by Katrina Kahler

  I was sure though that it was the constant picture in my mind of Bella galloping through our paddocks after making a full recovery that had created the result we were seeing; as well of course, as my constant devoted love and attention, not to mention that of her faithful friend Bailey who was always at her side.

  It was so beautiful to watch the two of them together. Whenever I gave her some grazing time in the paddock, he would instantly be next to her, hanging his head over the fence in an attempt to get close. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought they were in love. If not in love, then definitely best friends. The two of them are inseparable now and Bailey frets when I need to return Bella to her stall. He just stands at his gate for the remainder of the day, waiting to go back to the barn so he can be with her.

  It’s the most beautiful thing. I just love watching them!!

  As I sat in the barn with Cassie and our two darling ponies, the minutes turned into hours and the whole time we didn’t stop talking

  Mom had even given up on us coming inside and brought some food out to the barn. “I think you two girls should move in here!” she had laughed when she saw us still engrossed in conversation several hours later. “You know, there are two very comfortable beds inside, when you’re ready to leave those horses and get some sleep!”

  I smiled gratefully at my mom, thinking how lucky I was that she was so supportive. The vet bills were mounting but my parents had not complained at all. I think they’ve grown as attached to Bella as I have and I felt blessed to be a part of my wonderful family. Even my brother, Matt had become far less annoying and had actually been offering to help tend to Bailey, while I looked after Bella.

  With a contented sigh, I rolled over in bed later that night and stared out the window at the glowing moon. Then I closed my eyes and dreamt of being at pony club with Bella, Cassie and Bailey clearing jumps once more.

  Little did I know however, that there were other surprises in store for me. Ones, I would never have even dreamed of.

  Riding Bailey…

  The following morning dawned bright with the promise of beautiful sunshine and Cassie and I raced out to the barn at first light, armed with treats for our babies. After feeding them their morning biscuit of hay, we led them out to their paddocks to graze. Ears pricked forward, Bailey followed eagerly behind Bella, as always, keen to stay close to her. But as soon as he was let loose in his paddock he took off in a canter, pig rooting with excitement and joy.

  Bailey was a horse that stored a lot of excess energy which is why Cassie always had to lunge him before hopping on for a ride. However, Bella was only interested in the sweet juicy grass that grew in her paddock and completely ignored Bailey’s demands for attention. She was content to simply graze the day away and for this I was grateful. I’d been concerned that Bailey’s excitement would excite her as well and I really needed to avoid that at all costs. She still needed to rest her injuries and the vet recommended that she have gentle exercise only, until she had healed properly.

  We sat in the shade of our favorite tree and watched them both then finally hunger pains took over and we headed inside for breakfast. Cassie had planned to do some riding that morning as it had been over a week since Bailey had been ridden. So, while munching on our bowls of cereal, we decided that I would be her assistant and help with raising or lowering jumps and timing her in bounce pony, barrels and bending. She was eager to improve Bailey’s speed in those events and I was happy to help in any way I could.

  I was so glad that even though Bella was out of action, I’d still be able to have fun with Cassie and she also offered to share Bailey with me so that I could have a ride.

  As soon as we had cleared away the breakfast dishes, we ran outside and pulled on our riding boots. Then, carrots in hand, we raced into the paddock to catch her big boy. As usual, he couldn’t resist his favorite treat and within minutes, we were leading him back to the barn to tack him up.

  A short time later, just as Cassie was hopping up into her saddle, I happened to look down our driveway, where to my huge surprise, riding right past our gate were a couple of girls on horseback.

  Bailey must also have realized that they were there, because his ears suddenly pricked forward with curiosity and he let out a loud whinny.

  “I didn’t know there were any other girls around here with horses!” I exclaimed to Cassie with surprise and raised my arm in a friendly wave.

  They had spotted us as well and waved back at us as they continued on their way past our gate. “I wonder where they’re headed,” Cassie said curiously. “Maybe they’re going down to the State Forest for a trail ride.”

  “Yes,” I agreed. “But where could they have come from? The whole time we’ve lived here, I’ve never seen horses on any of the neighboring properties. Perhaps they’ve recently moved into the area.”

  “Wouldn’t it be fun to have other girls to ride with?” Cassie said excitedly. “We could have our own little pony club right here!”

  “Yes, it would be awesome!” I replied. “I’ll have to try and find out more about them. Then maybe we can invite them over! But I just need Bella to get better first!”

  Feeling frustrated, I added, “I can’t believe that it’s still another three or four weeks before she can be ridden again though. I was hoping it would be sooner than that!”

  “Well, in the meantime, you’re welcome to ride Bailey any time you want,” Cassie reassured me, smiling widely. “He certainly needs the exercise. Look how fat he’s getting! I think I might have to cut down his feed. There’s so much grass here, that they really don’t need to be hand fed at all at the moment.”

  “Yes, you’re absolutely right,” I decided. “Bella definitely doesn’t need all the hay she’s getting, that’s for sure, especially with her lack of exercise!”

  We chatted further as we led Bailey into the arena and agreed that we’d probably cut out the biscuits of hay and just feed them half their usual quantity of feed each night. We thought that this would be best for them during the summer months when there was plenty of grass in the paddocks.

  I stood by the arena railing and watched as Cassie sailed over the jumping course that we had set up, easily clearing every single one. Bailey was such a good jumper and I longed to be able to do the same on Bella.

  “It will happen,” I thought wistfully. “Once Bella’s healed and I’m riding her again, I’m going to practice every day.” And I pictured myself on Bella as she cleared all the jumps with the same ease that Bailey did.

  I declined Cassie’s offer to attempt the jumping course myself on Bailey, not feeling confident on a horse as forward moving as he. But I had a lot of fun riding him around the barrels and the bending poles. He is so fast and I realized that I’ll have a lot of work to do on Bella if she is ever going to be as quick, especially after not riding her for so long.

  I was really looking forward to the gymkhanas that were scheduled for the year, the first one being our own pony club gymkhana and I was determined to do well on her. That was my plan anyway! And as I helped Cassie to untack Bailey and hose him down before letting him loose in his paddock, I thought ahead with excited anticipation, impatient to be riding Bella again as soon as possible.

  Feeling unsure…

  The following week sped by, with Cassie coming over after school to ride Bailey when she could. I continued on with my usual chores and my part-time job at the stock feed store in town. Along with caring for Bella and gradually increasing her level of exercise, I was kept pretty busy.

  The vet was very happy with Bella’s progress and said that if she continued to improve at this speedy rate, then I would be riding her again in no time.

  I certainly hoped that was the case, because I missed riding her so much and it was becoming harder and harder to watch Cassie on Bailey and not be able to join her.

  There had been no further sign of the two girls on horseback who we had seen walk past my gate on the weekend and my parents had no idea who the
y were or where they had come from. So, it was a mystery to all of us.

  The weekend quickly approached and before I knew it, it was Sunday morning and Cassie had arrived with her parents to take Bailey to pony club. I desperately wanted to go with them but we had relatives coming to visit and Mom insisted that I stay at home.

  Miserably, I waved goodbye as the trailer disappeared down our drive. Although at first I thought they wouldn’t be going because of Bailey’s reluctance to walk on the trailer without Bella. I hadn’t seen him be a problem before but then he always had Bella by his side. With a bit of coaxing though, Cassie was able to get him loaded and off they went.

  With a sigh, I headed back into the house to help my mom prepare lunch for our guests, all the while imagining the fun that Cassie would be having without me.

  It felt so long since I had been to pony club and I couldn’t wait to get back there again. But as there was nothing I could do about it, I decided to put those thoughts out of my mind and focus on helping Mom in the kitchen.

  The day passed fairly quickly and I was able to entertain my young cousins after lunch by giving them brushes to groom Bella with. They were horse crazy and fell in love with her straight away. They stood by my side and helped me to brush her already gleaming coat. Enjoying their enthusiasm, I promised to give them a ride the next time they visited, when she would be properly healed.

  Later in the afternoon, I stood in the drive with my family, waving goodbye to my cousins and just as we were about to go back into the house, Cassie’s four wheel drive appeared.

  Eager to hear about her day, I helped her to unload Bailey and she shared with me everything I had missed.

  “Julia, you’ll never guess what!” she exclaimed excitedly.

  “What?” I replied. “What happened, Cassie? Tell me!” I was desperate to hear her news and stood there impatiently as she shook her head in amazement.

  “The strangest thing happened today!” she explained. “I was in the arena just about to go to my first class and these two girls turned up. I had never seen them before. At least, I thought I had never seen them before and then I recognized the 13 hand palomino that one of them was riding.”

  “Really” I asked. “So who were they? Come on Cassie, just tell me!” I said, laughing.

  “You know those two girls on horseback who waved to us from the road last weekend. We saw them pass your gate and couldn’t work out where they had come from. Well, they were at pony club today!”

  “You’re kidding!” I exclaimed. “That’s crazy!! What a coincidence!”

  “I know,” Cassie replied, her voice as excited as mine.

  “So tell me about them! Who are they and where have they come from?” My curiosity was getting the better of me and I couldn’t believe that Cassie had actually met up with the two mystery girls today at pony club. Our pony club!

  “Well,” Cassie continued, obviously enjoying the suspense she was keeping me in. “They are sisters. The older one is called Charlie, short for Charlene and she’s twelve, the same as us. And her sister’s name is Kristy but she’s only nine. Charlie rides the big bay and he’s gorgeous!! Do you know that she jumps over three feet on him. She is such a great rider, Julia!”

  “Wow!” I said, completely engrossed in all the details she was telling me. “And where do they live?”

  “That is the other amazing part!” she replied. “They actually live in your street, just down the road from here!”

  “But where?” I asked, confused. “I’ve never seen horses on any of the other properties in this street.”

  “Well, it’s really tucked away; you can’t even see it from the road. I didn’t know there was a house down there. But apparently, they have a few hectares of land and you have to drive down a really long driveway to get to their house and the horse paddocks. That’s what Charlie explained to me today, anyway.”

  “Wow!” I repeated once more. “And we didn’t even know they were there!”

  “Apparently they’ve only just recently moved in,” said Cassie, “but they ride horses, Julia and they live in your street! How cool is that!”

  “That is so cool!” I said, “I can’t wait to meet them.”

  “I knew you’d be keen,” Cassie continued. “So I invited them to go riding with us.”

  Noticing my surprised look, she hesitated before saying, “Oh, Julia. I hope you don’t mind. I know you can’t ride Bella yet, but you can have a turn on Bailey. They were so keen to come that I told them I was sure it would be fine. And they’re coming here on Tuesday after school.”

  “Oh, that’s okay, Cassie,” I said to her, “I’m looking forward to meeting them.”

  “Oh and guess what!” Cassie could barely contain her excitement. “Before moving here, they were home schooled. But now their parents are thinking of sending them to one of the local schools and Charlie is going to try to convince her Mom to let her go to my school!”

  Cassie was so caught up in her excitement at meeting the mystery girls, that she barely noticed my surprised expression. Prattling on and on about how nice Charlie was, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy.

  As much as I tried to convince myself that I was being silly, I just couldn’t help it and when Cassie headed back to her car where her parents were waiting to take her home, I felt that her quick hug wasn’t the usual genuine one that we always exchanged.

  Then I decided that perhaps it was just my imagination but as I turned to go back into the house, I couldn’t stop the uneasy feeling that was starting to form in the pit of my stomach.

  Meeting the new girls…

  Before I knew it, Tuesday afternoon had arrived and as I sat on the bus on the way home, I thought about the two girls, Charlene and her sister, Kristy. I really was looking forward to meeting them and from the excited way Cassie had described Charlie, I knew that she must be really nice. I just wished that Bella was better so that I could go riding with them. But I had decided to push all negative thoughts out of my mind and focus on having a fun afternoon. After all, it was a dream come true to have other horsey girls living nearby. As Cassie had said, it was going to be a lot of fun!

  After racing into the kitchen for a quick snack, I sped upstairs and put on my joddies and favorite horsey T-shirt, grateful that I’d still be able to have a ride on Bailey. Then grabbing a carrot on my way, along with a banana for Bella, I hurried out the back door and into my riding boots.

  With Bailey’s lead rope in hand, I headed into the paddock to say hello to my baby and catch Bailey so I could lead him back to the barn, ready to be tacked up when Cassie arrived.

  Just as Bailey and I reached the barn door, I looked down our driveway, thinking that Cassie would have to be arriving any minute and was surprised to see her walking along the drive beside the two girls. They were on their horses; Cassie must have been dropped off at the gate or something, so that she could walk down the driveway with them.

  I waved eagerly in their direction and was pleased to see Cassie’s smiling face beaming towards me.

  “Julia!” she exclaimed as she approached the barn, “This is Charlie and Kristy, your new neighbors!”

  “Hi!” I said, quite shyly. It wasn’t like me to be so shy, but Cassie’s outgoing and familiar tone made me feel less sure of myself for some reason.

  “Hello!” said the girls, in unison as they dismounted and stood by their horses.

  “Thanks so much for letting us come and have a ride,” said Charlie in a friendly manner. “It’s so cool to have other horsey girls living in our street. We had no idea you were here until we passed by your gate on Sunday.”

  “Yes, I know,” I replied, “We had no idea that you’d moved into the area. And it’s such a coincidence that you’ve joined up at our pony club!”

  “Yes, it’s awesome!” chimed Cassie. “It’s all too good to be true!”

  We chatted some more as I helped Cassie to tack up Bailey and then we all headed into the arena.

&n
bsp; “You’re so lucky,” said Charlie’s sister, Kristy in a shy voice. “This is such a nice property and I love your arena!”

  It seemed that Kristy wasn’t as outgoing as her older sister, who hadn’t stopped talking since she arrived. Cassie and Charlie had already entered the arena and were following each other in a steady trot.

  “Thank you!” I replied to Kristy. “And your pony is gorgeous! What’s his name?” I asked as I stroked his long golden mane. She was riding a 13 hand palomino that was so adorably cute.

  “His name is Jontie,” she replied with a smile.

  “Hello, Jontie!” I said as I patted him some more.

  Already I had taken a liking to Kristy and also her pony. He really was adorable and she seemed like a lovely girl.

  “Well, you should go and join them,” I suggested to her and nodded in the direction of Cassie and Charlie who were riding side by side and laughing about something that had obviously amused them. It was clear that they had already hit it off and were getting along really well. I leaned on the arena railing and watched them ride by, admiring Charlie’s beautiful bay as she rode past.

  He was a striking horse and I could already see that she was a very good rider. This was later confirmed as I watched them all attempt the jumping course. Charlie’s horse, Milo was a willing jumper and cleared all the jumps easily. Even Jontie, the little palomino had no trouble whatsoever. I was amazed at how well Kristy could jump on him as she seemed so young. She was obviously a very good rider as well!

  They were all having great fun and I stood quietly by, watching and desperately wishing that I could join them on Bella. Then Cassie must have noticed my expression, because she came trotting over.

  “Julia, do you want to have a ride on Bailey now?” She was suddenly being extra nice, probably realizing that she’d actually forgotten I was standing there.