" Billy And The Dream Horse"
Billy woke up from his Saturday nap with a big smile
on his freckled face. His short sleeved checkered shirt and blue-jeans were just
like Cowboy Candy's on the TV. He went into the kitchen for a drink. "Hi,
mom. May I have a glass of milk?" He asked. "You certainly may. Why
are you so happy?" asked his mother. " I saw my dream horse during my nap
and he told me he's gonna take me for a ride when I go to sleep tonight." Billy
couldn't stop smiling about his new friend. "Your dream horse?"When did you
first see this? Besides, I thought you felt too big for naps." Mrs. Brown was
surprised by the sudden change.
"My new friend at school, Jose, told me all about
naps. He's living here with his family for a year. They are from Spain. In his
country everybody takes naps in the afternoon. I think they call it a siesta."
Billy was so proud that he could speak in a new language.
Try as he might, Billy couldn't wait for night.
He kept asking what time it was.
"If I put on my sunglasses will it be time to go
to sleep?" he asked. "No." laughed his mother. "The
night won't come any faster. Tell me more about your dream horse. What color is
he?"
"He's a palmo-mino!" answered Billy proudly.
"You mean a pal-o-mino, don't you?" she
corrected him lovingly. "Yes." He's a palomino. Thats his name!
I'll call him Pal!"
Billy played outside with his sister Sue, but he kept
one eye on the sun. when his father came home billy was glad to see him. Dad's
arrival also meant tht it wouldn't be long before supper, and then time for bed. "Hi,
Dad!" he shouted. It will be time for bed soon."
Billy's Dad hoisted his son into the air for a hug.
"Why so eager to go to bed,Billy?"his Dad asked, puzzled. "You
didn't get into trouble did you?"
Mr. Brown was a tall man who wore a business suit to
work every day. He put Billy down and picked up Sue. "Hello, Suzy sugar, how
are you?"
"I'm okay, Daddy, but Billy wants to meet his
dream horse in his sleep." She brushed her blonde curls out of her face as she
talked. "Can't I have a dream horse too?" "You sure can, honey."
He said.
As they walked hand in hand to the house they were met
by Mrs. Brown at the door. He greeted her with a kiss. "Hi, dear. It
sounds like you've had quite a day."
As the children ran into the kitchen he
asked,"What's this about a dream horse for Billy? Sue says she wants one too."
Mrs. Brown laughed. "Billy took a nap and
he dreamed about a horse, a gold and white horse," she said. "He says it will
take him for a ride when he goes to sleep tonight."
Mr. Brown just shook his head and smiled.
"Kids . What an imagination"
Supper came and went . Stories were read and
finally it was time for bed. As Billy's mother tucked him in, he looked up and
said,"Mommy, what do you want me to bring you from my ride with Pal tonight?"
Mrs. Brown thought for a moment before speaking. "I'd like a
feather." OK! Pal and I will bring you a feather, and one for Sue and Daddy
too." He kissed his mom goodnight and pulled the covers up under his chin.
Billy thought he would toss and turn for hours but within minutes after his light
was turned off he was sound asleep.
Suddenly there was a gentle nudging at his left elbow.
Billy rolled over onto his side. The insistent nudging continued until finally he
opened one eye, then another. A big brown eye was looking back at him. "Pal
!" shouted Billy, excitely, suddenly wide awake. "You did come. I was
afraid you wouldn't make it." He quickly sat up and kicked the covers off.
"Hop on Billy, " said Pal, "We're going
for a ride. We have a lot to see and do tonight!" Billy gave a quick
bounce on the mattress and flung himself onto Pal's back. Threading his fingers
through Pal's shimmering white mane, he held on as tight as he could. Pal wheeled
and then gracefully leaped through Billy's open window. Off the two of them flew,
into the night.
Billy watched the scenery change from the lush green
mountains of his home state, to become flat farm country. below, the checkerboard
fields, now rich with crops, quickly gave way to rocky mountains and a drier climate.
"Where are we?" Billy asked. "we are
about to visit a time when the land was as free as the people who lived here."
replied Pal. "Some of my friends will join us for our journey." Just
as Pal finished speaking a band of Indians rode towards them.
"Hello Pal, my good friend" said the leader of these
horsemen. "And who is this?", he asked Pal. "This is Billy,"
replied Pal. "He is a friend who wants to go with us on our ride."
"Then he is welcome," came the Indian's reply.
No one found it strange that
the palomino horse spoke, because in dreams everything is possible. "Who is
this?" Billy whispered to the golden palomino horse. Pal pawed at the ground as
he made the introduction. " This is "Thunder-Who-Walks, said Pal. "He
is the Spirit Chief of all the Indian nations. Each one of the braves who ride with him
represents a tribe which roamed this land for many years before the coming of the white
man. Many of those tribes are no more Billy. The chief has agreed to let you
ride with them tonight so thta they can show you their land and tell you of their people.
With that they rode through
the valleys, splashed across streams and silently filed past long, empty villages carved
into the side of the red mountains. They traveled on and on, past cold campfires and
barren canyons, past prairies where the bleached bones of the buffalo glowed softly in the moonlight. finally they came to a small
rise. There, the Chief raised his hand, signalling the band to pause. He gestured
towards the wide expanse of land which stretched for miles before them.
"This land is great
like the people who once passed it, Billy. A sea of buffalo once roamed those vast prairies now they are gone forever and so are
many of my people."
"Gone forever?"
asked Billy, casting a worried glance at Pal. Pal nodded. "The Indians
were driven from their land Billy, some even driven from this life."
The Chief looked so sad as
Pal said this, that a tear began to trinkle down Billy's own cheek. A brave from the back
of the group came riding forward. He leaned over and laid a comforting hand on
Billy's shoulder. "Don't cry little one, change is part of all our being.
My people lived here for many moons, even before Chief Thunder-Who-Walks people
came. Change happens to all the tribes of the earth. It happened to our tribes and
it shall happen to yours. we agreed to let you ride with us tonight so we could
share with you this special knowledge.
Look at this land young
Billy, and think of what has happened to our people..teach the people of your time to
first respect one another and then to respect the land. Billy nodded his
understanding.
With one last look at the
wide prairies below them, they turned and began their journey back. they cantered
through the valleys and into the deep,green forests. they forded shallow streams and
swam deep rivers. At last, on the dusty plains they came upon a set of railroad
tracks. There they stopped. None of Billy's companions would cross the tracks.
Chief Thunder-Who-Walks slipped down from the back of his sturdy
Paint and walked over to where Billy sat astride the golden Palomino. Pointing at the
railroad track the Chief said,
"This is the path of
the iron horse, Billy. It brought much change to our land and to our people.
We will not cross the path, so here is where we will part ways. Remember the lessons
you have learned with us tonight, use the knowledge wisely."
Impulsively, Billy slid down
off Pal and stood next to the Chief. He raised his arms. The surprised Chief
knelt down on one knee so that Billy could give him a hug. "Goodbye, young Billy,
" he said. Then reaching up into his feathered headdress Chief Thunder-who-Walks removed 3 feathers and handed them to Billy. "How did you know I wanted to bring back the feathers?"
asked Billy in surprise. The chief smiled and shook his head. "Never forget,
Billy," He said softly. "Never forget."
The morning sun began to
filter softly through Billy's open window. He reached up and rubbed his eyes.
for a moment he wasn't sure where he was. Then all of a sudden he sat up. He
was home again!
"Mom,Dad,Sue!...I'm
home!" he shouted. Within minutes everyone was in his room asking if he had
seen his dream horse. "where did you go and what did you do?" asked Sue.
Billy told them everything
that had happened. He told them about the ride across the country and about Pal, the
beautiful Palomino horse and about the Indian tribes wh were no more and about the wise
Chief Thunder -Who-Walks.
And the Chief gave me three
feathersso I would never forget. That's a feather for each of you.
"but where did I put them?" Billy had been rooting through the bed covers
but couldn't find the feathers.
"There where were three
of them, one for each of you." he said, beginning to worry that he had lost them on
the journey home. "It was a dream, son," said Billy's Dad.
"That's right sweetheart," said Billy's mom. "It was a dream,
honey"
"What's this?"
inquired Sue curiously grabbing hold of a shimmering strand of course white hair
that was sticking out beneath Billy's pillow. She gave it a quick tug but something
seemed to be attached to something. She tugged again and something else came into
view. "There's a feather under your pillow Billy!" she shouted.
Billy pulled out the first feather, then the second and a third all tangled together in a
few long ,white strands of hair. "That's from Pal's mane!" said Billy excitely
"These are the feathers the Chief gave me."
Mr. and Mrs. Brown looked
into each others eyes and then back at the feathers and the strand of horse hair clutched
tightly in Billy's hand. Billy's Dad scratched his head and his mom raised her eyebrows in
surprise.
Billy's face was beaming
with joy. He glanced down at his treasures. "Thanks Pal" he whispered to
his dream horse.
As his parents and sister
were still pondering over the feathers and strands of Pal's mane, Billy glanced towards
the open window. In the distance he could see a lone eagle as it soared gracefully through the bright blue morning sky. "And
thank you Chief Thunder-who-Walks ." he said softly. "I'll never forget, I
promise.
Author unknown
This story is for my grandson:
Kalani Pacanto & his
sister's-Natasha and Alexis Lopez
December 12, 2002
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