Faith
Chapter One
Honestly, I have never once in my life put too much stock into faith. Especially after being made fun of in the fifth grade because I put what little faith I had even then in the wrong places. Or so I was told in the fifth grade just before some chubby sixth grade girl punched me in the face for not celebrating Hanukkah. I got over that quick though; however my Mother did not and called up the principal to complain in hopes that he would suspend her.
He didn’t.
So she ended up transferring my younger siblings and I to a private school just down the road that had a reputation for being a nice Catholic school.
After that fiasco, I think I stopped putting my faith into God’s hands because I remember thinking what merciful God would allow a little ten year old girl to be punched because of him. I mean I never told anyone except for my older sister Scar mostly because I knew that she was into some pretty rough stuff and couldn’t judge me.
But that was almost seven years ago now.
It’s early Sunday morning in April, already I’m dressed and ready to get to my car to head on down to the barn where I lease my horse, Richie, before I have to head to work for ten. Early morning sunlight streams into the kitchen as I bang around the kitchen looking for the damn coffee beans when my two dogs Dolly and Lloyd come bounding into the kitchen with my Dad.
“Morning,” he grunts sitting down at the table in his pajamas as he picks up the paper and starts to read. “Can you make me a cup as well?”
I nod not even wanting to talk because I’m so completely tired. Measuring everything and after waiting a few minutes, the coffee is ready and I pour myself a cup before getting one for my Dad and heading out the door with the dogs following me.
Putting the dogs on the runner, I head to the truck that was my sixteenth birthday present from my parents. I had desperately needed a vehicle for all the equipment that came along with my horse as well as IEA, so the truck seemed like the perfect car for me.
Turning the car on, I could hear Lloyd barking and checked the window to see what was going on. His ma, Dolly, was completely ignoring him, still tired from the birth of this puppy and his seven other siblings only two and a half months ago, and my cat Mia was terrorizing the poor thing.
Sighing, I checked my watch to see if I had time; it was only six, so if I hurried I could grab their leashes, a toy or two, and some food and bring them to the barn where Liv would happily watch the two of them for me until I got to the barn at six that night.
Finally at six fifteen I was ready to head out with the dogs in the passenger seat howling as the music played. Thank goodness that the barn was only a mile and a half away though because if I had had to listen to those goofy dogs ‘sing’ much longer I might have gone insane.
Pulling in the driveway, I saw that my trainer Deb was already there along with my friends Grace and Lynn as well as Liv and her mother, Trisha.
“C’mon you two,” I grabbed their things and got out of the car with them following me. To be honest the two of them didn’t need leashes, they were at the barn often enough but I still brought them just in case.
“Lucy, Lucy!” I rolled my eyes but turned around smiling to find Liv running towards me with her dog, Piper, at her heels. Piper happened to be one of the seven other puppies that Dolly had given birth to and Liv had fallen in love with her so we gave the kid the puppy, much to Trisha’s dismay.“Lucy, guess what.”
I looked down at the small ten year old and couldn’t help laughing. Liv was short for Olivia, and it certainly fit her. She had rusty copper hair that was short and curly; she had bright blue eyes, and had an infectious laugh that could make anyone laugh with her.
She pouted at that for a moment or two before shrugging, “Mom just got four more horses. Well actually three horses and a mini. C’mon Lucy, let’s go see ‘em.” She tugged on my hand to have me go with her but I stayed there like a rock.
“You know I’d love to Liv, but I have to go and see your Mom.”
She frowned at that obviously upset.
“Can you watch Dolly and Lloyd for me until I get back from work today?” She nodded slightly happier with the prospect of playing with two puppies. “And after I get back we can go see these horses, how’s that sound?”
She nodded, “Mom’s in the office with Deb, Grace, and Lynn.”
“’Kay, thanks Liv.” I smiled at her before heading to the office to see what was going on.
The morning air was chilly and it clung to my skin like a blanket so I hustled into the barn where the air was still with the occasional whinny from a horse or the shuffling of hooves. The sunlight that escaped into the barn hung on the wall like a masterpiece. Still it was cold in the barn as well, so I didn’t take as much pleasure as I should have in the sight and hurried to the office where it would be toasty like an oven.
Knocking gently on the door, there is a muffled “Come in,” from what sounds to be Deb.
“Hey everyone,” I said entering the room and shutting the door behind me. I had been right, the room was toasty and it felt good. It was like the cold that had clung to me melted right off. The interior of the room is rustic; the walls are wood with a horseshoe over the door for good luck, there are pictures of horses who were once a part of the farm but are no longer, a desk in the corner of the room right underneath the windows which face the middle ring, and there is metal artwork in the shape of horses.
“Morning Lucy,” Trisha looks at me softly smiling but the worry is written all over her face. The more animals she takes in the more she saves to be sure, but the less money she has to use for her already full farm. Occasionally there is a sale and room is given back, but it is filled within two to three days again if not that same day.
Leaning against the door, I look around the room before Deb fills me in.
“Trisha took some horses in along with a mini,” I nodded. Liv had already told me that much. “There’s just one problem, one of them has pneumonia and is skinny as Hell. The other two are in decent condition, we can easily sell those two for five hundred to a grand a piece, but the mini won’t be separated from the sick mare and we can’t afford to keep her on. The man is giving us ‘till Wednesday to sell her or she goes to auction.”
I sucked my breath back in. To go to auction basically meant to go to the slaughterhouse. I knew Trish would run herself ragged to find the mare and mini a ma or pa that would love the both of them, but if the condition of the mare was as bad as Deb said the likelihood of them both not going to auction was very unlikely.
Damn, it’d be a Hell of a time to have some faith for that poor mare but I couldn’t muster any up.
Not yet anyway.
He didn’t.
So she ended up transferring my younger siblings and I to a private school just down the road that had a reputation for being a nice Catholic school.
After that fiasco, I think I stopped putting my faith into God’s hands because I remember thinking what merciful God would allow a little ten year old girl to be punched because of him. I mean I never told anyone except for my older sister Scar mostly because I knew that she was into some pretty rough stuff and couldn’t judge me.
But that was almost seven years ago now.
It’s early Sunday morning in April, already I’m dressed and ready to get to my car to head on down to the barn where I lease my horse, Richie, before I have to head to work for ten. Early morning sunlight streams into the kitchen as I bang around the kitchen looking for the damn coffee beans when my two dogs Dolly and Lloyd come bounding into the kitchen with my Dad.
“Morning,” he grunts sitting down at the table in his pajamas as he picks up the paper and starts to read. “Can you make me a cup as well?”
I nod not even wanting to talk because I’m so completely tired. Measuring everything and after waiting a few minutes, the coffee is ready and I pour myself a cup before getting one for my Dad and heading out the door with the dogs following me.
Putting the dogs on the runner, I head to the truck that was my sixteenth birthday present from my parents. I had desperately needed a vehicle for all the equipment that came along with my horse as well as IEA, so the truck seemed like the perfect car for me.
Turning the car on, I could hear Lloyd barking and checked the window to see what was going on. His ma, Dolly, was completely ignoring him, still tired from the birth of this puppy and his seven other siblings only two and a half months ago, and my cat Mia was terrorizing the poor thing.
Sighing, I checked my watch to see if I had time; it was only six, so if I hurried I could grab their leashes, a toy or two, and some food and bring them to the barn where Liv would happily watch the two of them for me until I got to the barn at six that night.
Finally at six fifteen I was ready to head out with the dogs in the passenger seat howling as the music played. Thank goodness that the barn was only a mile and a half away though because if I had had to listen to those goofy dogs ‘sing’ much longer I might have gone insane.
Pulling in the driveway, I saw that my trainer Deb was already there along with my friends Grace and Lynn as well as Liv and her mother, Trisha.
“C’mon you two,” I grabbed their things and got out of the car with them following me. To be honest the two of them didn’t need leashes, they were at the barn often enough but I still brought them just in case.
“Lucy, Lucy!” I rolled my eyes but turned around smiling to find Liv running towards me with her dog, Piper, at her heels. Piper happened to be one of the seven other puppies that Dolly had given birth to and Liv had fallen in love with her so we gave the kid the puppy, much to Trisha’s dismay.“Lucy, guess what.”
I looked down at the small ten year old and couldn’t help laughing. Liv was short for Olivia, and it certainly fit her. She had rusty copper hair that was short and curly; she had bright blue eyes, and had an infectious laugh that could make anyone laugh with her.
She pouted at that for a moment or two before shrugging, “Mom just got four more horses. Well actually three horses and a mini. C’mon Lucy, let’s go see ‘em.” She tugged on my hand to have me go with her but I stayed there like a rock.
“You know I’d love to Liv, but I have to go and see your Mom.”
She frowned at that obviously upset.
“Can you watch Dolly and Lloyd for me until I get back from work today?” She nodded slightly happier with the prospect of playing with two puppies. “And after I get back we can go see these horses, how’s that sound?”
She nodded, “Mom’s in the office with Deb, Grace, and Lynn.”
“’Kay, thanks Liv.” I smiled at her before heading to the office to see what was going on.
The morning air was chilly and it clung to my skin like a blanket so I hustled into the barn where the air was still with the occasional whinny from a horse or the shuffling of hooves. The sunlight that escaped into the barn hung on the wall like a masterpiece. Still it was cold in the barn as well, so I didn’t take as much pleasure as I should have in the sight and hurried to the office where it would be toasty like an oven.
Knocking gently on the door, there is a muffled “Come in,” from what sounds to be Deb.
“Hey everyone,” I said entering the room and shutting the door behind me. I had been right, the room was toasty and it felt good. It was like the cold that had clung to me melted right off. The interior of the room is rustic; the walls are wood with a horseshoe over the door for good luck, there are pictures of horses who were once a part of the farm but are no longer, a desk in the corner of the room right underneath the windows which face the middle ring, and there is metal artwork in the shape of horses.
“Morning Lucy,” Trisha looks at me softly smiling but the worry is written all over her face. The more animals she takes in the more she saves to be sure, but the less money she has to use for her already full farm. Occasionally there is a sale and room is given back, but it is filled within two to three days again if not that same day.
Leaning against the door, I look around the room before Deb fills me in.
“Trisha took some horses in along with a mini,” I nodded. Liv had already told me that much. “There’s just one problem, one of them has pneumonia and is skinny as Hell. The other two are in decent condition, we can easily sell those two for five hundred to a grand a piece, but the mini won’t be separated from the sick mare and we can’t afford to keep her on. The man is giving us ‘till Wednesday to sell her or she goes to auction.”
I sucked my breath back in. To go to auction basically meant to go to the slaughterhouse. I knew Trish would run herself ragged to find the mare and mini a ma or pa that would love the both of them, but if the condition of the mare was as bad as Deb said the likelihood of them both not going to auction was very unlikely.
Damn, it’d be a Hell of a time to have some faith for that poor mare but I couldn’t muster any up.
Not yet anyway.
