President John Addams owns two horses; Cleopatra and Caesar. These two horses are very close friends, and yet…there’s something wrong between them right now. It’s been like this since they got back from their last task granted to them by The Room and the other Presidential Pets.
Caesar spends all of his time grazing at the far end of the pasture, his head down and his tail swishing sadly behind him. His ears flick back, and he doesn’t ever want to talk, or run, or play like they used too. There have been no games of halter tag for many days now.
Even when they go into the stables for the night, Caesar doesn’t want to talk about anything. He eats his dinner of mash and grains, then eats his alfalfa and munches on his straw. When food is done with, and water drank, Caesar goes back to the far corner of the stable and puts his head in a corner. He doesn’t talk.
After a solid week of this, Cleopatra can’t take it anymore. She picks a sunny day and goes to the corner of the meadow where Caesar has sequestered himself. Then she asks him, “this has gone on long enough, don’t you think?
It’s been a full week since you last wanted to do anything, Caesar. There’s something wrong and I know it. Won’t you talk to me about it?”
Caesar flicks his ears at the other horse. He blows out hard through his nostrils. “I don’t feel like talking.”
“Why not?”
“Because I just don’t!”
“That’s not an answer and you know it,”says Cleopatra, snorting right back at him. “There’s no sense in standing around and moping. At least tell me what’s wrong. If I know what the problem is, I might be able to help fix it!”
At first, she doesn’t think that Caesar is going to tell her. But then finally, he flicks his tail and he admits, “it’s the last few jobs we’ve done for The Room.”
Cleopatra asks, “didn’t they go well? We solved the problems.”
“No,” says Caesar. “You solved them. I just walked around after you. I’m not certain that I’m smart enough for this job of mine. I haven’t been useful on anything we’ve done lately.”
“That’s not true,” says Cleopatra.
“It is true,” says Caesar. “And I can tell that, even if you can’t.”
And then he went back to grazing and sulking, refusing to say anything else no matter how much Cleopatra pressed for an answer.
Eventually, Cleopatra went back to the other side of the field, where she could munch on her own sweet grass…and as she ate, she started to plan.
The next time she and Caesar went out, she would make certain to show the gelding how much he mattered!
Katelynn E Koontz – Author
