Hindel Kidz 12: Pretend You Don't See Her
Hindel Kidz 12
Pretend You Don’t See Her
The triplets were as ornery as ever. Grace would sit on the ground and they would come over and fight for who got her attention. Whenever one or two of the triplets came over, the others weren’t far behind. They would take off running full speed and they usually would slow down before they got to someone. Not this time. One of the girls came barreling toward Grace, jumped up on her, nearly knocking her over. One of the girls tried to jump up on Grace’s back just like they did to Porsche. When Grace tried to shake her off, she ended up sliding toward Grace’s head. If she laid on her stomach all three of them would climb all over her back giving her one heck of a back rub. Grace got on all fours and tried to play head butt with Bud and the little girl jumped up on her back again.
“What am I? A jungle gym?”
They just clobbered Grace that day.
Kristin had been showing cattle at the county fair every year and had been quite successful. Two years ago, she won first place in her class and first place over all. Last year, she won third place. You have to give her credit; she does work with her animals daily. She’s only ten, but she goes out there and harnesses her calf up all by herself.
“I think I might want to show a goat this year,“ she said.
“Maybe you can show Joy,” Jack suggested.
“I don’t like that,” Joy thought. “If I am going to be shown then Sven or Grace should show me. I am their goat.”
Sven said since Jack bought all the feed, he could have a say in her.
The fair was at the end of August and Joy was going to be two years old on August 15th. She would be too old and she didn’t plan to have a baby. Kristin would just have to show one of Porsche’s triplets. It should have been that way from the start.
One day, Grace and Sven were out talking to Jack’s neighbor and they heard one of the goats crying. At first they thought it was Nibby. She was over in the smaller pen with Elmer and didn’t like being all by her lonesome. When they saw it wasn’t her, Grace thought it was one of the triplets. But the only time they cried was when they didn’t know where Porsche was. Finally when they went into the building, they saw a smaller goat in the corner pen. Grace had to take a double look. This was not one of the triplets. This one was new.
Her name was Ruby. She was registered and also came from Rolling Hills, the same place as Elmer. Elmer’s great-grandfather and Ruby’s great-great-grandfather were both of the same bloodline. So that would make Ruby something like Elmer’s fourth or fifth cousin and the triplets sixth or seventh.
Jack had bought Ruby for Kristin to show at the fair. Over the years, Bree had not placed with any of Porsche’s little ones. He thought Ruby looked better and wasn’t as tall. She was stockier and a little wider in the middle and the behind.
She was the same age as the triplets, but considerably smaller. She was also really quiet and sweet. She didn’t try and chew on your clothes, unlike the triplets. They would chew on anything and everything under the sun. Grace sat down in a chair holding Ruby and she practically feel asleep in her arms.
Now Ruby is not quite as sweet. She has started to chew and bite more. The triplets have been teaching her some bad habits. Jack calls her his Little Angel since she still isn’t as ornery as they are. She will stay in the building while the other three run over to the neighbor’s yard or to a tree they aren’t supposed to eat. Jack also calls Ruby his baby.
“You had better be careful or Nibby will get jealous,” Grace said. Nibby had always been his favorite.
Ruby will walk right over to Jack and want him to pick her up. She’s basically a lap goat. She will lie on his lap and sleep for hours. She also loved to be combed.
They didn’t say anything about Ruby to Charlotte and to this day, Charlotte still doesn’t know she is out there. When she finally did find out, Jack tried to make her think Ruby was Butterscotch‘s baby.
One day at feeding time, Grace heard Ruby crying.
“What’s the matter, Ruby?” she asked when she walked in the pen.
Then Grace saw Ruby was caught in the side of the hayrack. She went around behind her and saw Ruby had one leg on the wooden crate and one leg in the water bucket.
“Oh, you poor thing.”
Grace got her legs under her and lifted Ruby up and out of the hayrack.
Jack put up a piece of plywood over the crack so she wouldn’t get stuck again.
Twilight settled over the building and Ruby lay down. She was tired after a long day. Swallows passed on silent wings. From across the road a bird sang. Ruby listened to the sound of the tree toads and the slamming of the screen door. All these sounds made her feel safe, comfortable and happy. She loved life and loved to be part of the world on this summer evening.
“Ah, this is the life,” she thought as she drifted off to sleep.
Ruby won first place in her class at the fair. Kristin also won third place with her calf.
