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The Horse That Wouldn't Be Quiet

by Tonja Taylor
6/02/2020 / Humor

A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. --Proverbs 17:22, KJV

About 20 years ago, when I was a single divorced mom and my daughter was four or five, I bought her a white toy horse that had flexible legs and would, when its legs were pulled into a galloping stance, neigh upon demand.

Like me when I was young, she enjoyed horses very much. She liked this particular horse so much that one day she wanted to take it into the bathroom.

I walked in just in time to see her make it dive under the bubbles in the bathwater.

Knowing there were moving parts--not to mention the audio chip connected to the galloping legs--that could quickly rust if they got wet, I moved quickly, lightning-like (in my mind, anyway), and retrieved the beloved horse.

While my daughter protested, I explained the benefits of removing her--the horse, not the daughter--from the tub. I carefully dried it with a towel, then set it on the cabinet so she could see and talk to it, while it stayed dry.

As I moved it, even though I had not bothered to extend its legs into the proper galloping stance, which would have caused it (as we knew from previous experience) to fall over, the horse neighed.

She--not the horse--giggled.

I thought that was a bit curious--not the giggle, but the neigh.

Hmmm, I thought, obviously it neighs in other stances as well. And thank goodness, the water hasn't hurt it. God is good!

The horse neighed again.

Although I had plenty to do, I decided to stick around, to prevent the possibility that my daring darling daughter might just decide to override my wisdom and take the horse swimming again anyway.

As if she agreed, White Horse snorted.

"Mama, why is White Horse doing that?" said my baby, sounding, if a preschooler can, slightly irritated.

"Good question, Precious," I said, grabbing the horse. "God kept the water from hurting her voice, that's for sure.....Why don't we let White Horse rest, OK?"

I laid the horse carefully on its side.

At that, the horse neighed again, and then it snorted. Then it neighed and snorted again, and again.....and again.

It was funny, really funny--for the first many minutes, anyway.

"Let's get your bath done, and we'll let White Horse go to sleep," I said, a little louder than needed.

"Miss Rubber Ducky wants you to play with her," I said to my daughter, and handed her the toy. She squeezed the duck and made it squeak and swim.

While soaping my baby's back, Ms. White Horse (ALL my baby's toys were girls; no boy toys for at least a decade after that!) neighed again. And then it snorted. Then it neighed and snorted again.

We laughed and giggled, and Miss Ducky squeaked back.

Then she (the horse) snorted, with a sharp neigh following.

"White Horse, stop!" said my baby, covered with bubbles, in Ducky's voice. Then, it seemed, the horse started neighing even more often, and snorting.

We were both (my daughter and myself) bothered and amazed.

This is weird, I thought, Maybe I should write and tell the company to add "Do not add water" to the label of such toys!

Even after my daughter finished her bath, White Horse continued emitting sound. My baby carried the horse, still neighing, to her room.

I saw her hold White Horse's head to her mouth. "Be quiet, and I mean it!" she commanded in a kind of whisper-shout.

I laughed inside, but for some reason, I was reminded of myself.

White Horse answered with another neigh.

My darling daughter sighed, if a preschooler can, and put the horse on the couch. She looked at it, wagged her finger in its face, then walked to her room.

As she did, White Horse snorted.

I started for the kitchen, then heard my daughter return to pick up the horse and talk to it, perhaps having decided that, if commanding the thing didn't work, then polite counsel that "less is more" would.

But alas, the horse kept neighing, and now--almost unbelievably so--more often, it seemed.

Who knew that a few drops of water would spazz out a horse-shaped toy?

I seemed to recall then that somewhere in the Word, it mentions that "knowledge increases sorrow."

Perhaps it was just my perception that the neighs were also louder, and the snorts more emphatic.

As most children do, eventually even my daughter became bored with the overachieving horse, and decided to watch her favorite cartoon movie.

We left the horse in her bedroom, but we could still hear it over the movie.

"Mama, would you shut the door?" she asked.

"Good thinking," I said.

Even with the door shut, I could still hear what no longer amused me.

Apparently, so could my baby. "Mama! I can't hear Veggie Tales because White Horse is too loud!"

"So what shall we do?" I asked her, to see how she would handle this challenge. After all, life was all about conquering problems, wasn't it? And I was raising a champion, for sure.

My little one got up, went to her room, grabbed the horse, and put it under her covers. The horse neighed in protest. At that, my little wise one also put her pillow over it.

We could still hear the horse, but we were making progress.

I know the Bible tells us to have "ears to hear," but I don't think this is what God meant.

My baby, out of ideas at the moment, looked at me in confusion. Some verse about "noisome pestilence" rose up inside me....Psalm 91, I think. Never mind that phrase from the KJV version probably meant "plague" or something. It still fit.

"Hey!" I said, feeling very Super-Mommy all of a sudden. "I will put White Horse outside! Then she can talk with the animals--and we will have peace and quiet. Soon, she will go to sleep, and rest. Then we will know to never let her have a bath again!"

My daughter looked at me with admiring eyes and said, "Yay, Mommy!" She hugged my knees warmly in appreciation. "Would you do that while I watch my movie?"

Yes, I was definitely raising a champion--who already knew how to delegate.

So, I put the horse on the back porch. Even inside with the television on, I could hear it. So I took a thick towel and wrapped her up (the horse, not the daughter), and White Horse neighed again. And again. And snorted, although the noise was much muffled now.

I was starting to feel some relief.

I bet people in third world countries don't have these problems, I thought. Good for them!

Then I repented. I apologize, LORD, for You made this horse good, and for some reason, it has been corrupted! I promise to not send it overseas!

As I heard White Horse neigh and snort again, I wondered what others would think. I could just imagine a scenario, where the neighbor is peeping out the window towards our place: "Honey, do you hear a horse? I swear I do! Sounds like it's right next door. But I can't see a horse anywhere!"

That's because I've hidden her, and if she keeps this up, I may bury her, I thought, enjoying myself for a moment. How can I arrange a funeral that will not upset my baby?

I think I heard White Horse snort, more loudly this time, even under the cloth.

"Horse, stop it. Do I need to take you apart?" I threatened quietly.

As I started to shut the door, I felt a tap on my leg. "Mama, will you turn up the movie?" my daughter asked. "Sure," I said, picking her up, thankful she'd forgotten about the horse for moment--and that she did not yet know how to work the remote. I rushed to the set but moved too quickly. I hit the wrong button and accidentally turned off the TV.

As if on cue, we heard a sound, faint but familiar.

"Is that White Horse?"

"Well..." I said, put her down, and quickly turned on the TV. "No worries, Baby, Watch your movie. White Horse is spending the night outside with the other animals." I turned up the sound. "Want some popcorn?"

"Sure!" she said.

I made popcorn, turned on the A/C fan, and we watched the loud movie.

At bedtime, I put her to bed with a story, then we said our prayers. Just before we started, we heard a sound like a snort.

"Is that--"

"Shhh. Bedtime. Say it with me, 'Our Father, Who art in Heaven--'"

We said prayers and then she ended with, "And watch over White Horse. And make her be quiet! Please, God!"

"Amen!" I said. "We wouldn't want her scaring the other animals!" Or the neighbors! Right!

I turned on her fan to block the noise. "Sweet dreams!" I told her.

"You too, Mommy."

Yes, I thought. And not about horses! I put in my wax earplugs and went to sleep, sans anything equine.

The next morning, we rushed out to check on White Horse.

My baby, a very tender-hearted young lady, wanted to bring her in. Perhaps White Horse had reconsidered her attitude during her dark night of the soul?

We could only hope.

When we opened the back door, we didn't hear the expected neigh. However, there were many leaves and sticks on top of the towel. I don't think they were blown there by the wind. Maybe even the birds or squirrels had tired of hearing the unnatural noise, and they had bartered with White Horse to shush so they could sleep. Perhaps these were either offerings or an attempt to cover up the sound?

We shall never know, I think.

We stood there for a few seconds, and heard not a peep from the horse.

"Is she dead?" my daughter asked.

"Uh, perhaps her noise-box is," I said. "We can hope."

"Huh?"

"Never mind, Precious. Help me pick her up."

I shut the door behind us and said, "Hey, let's carry her to your room, okay?"

"No, Mommy, let's put her somewhere else."

I could not ignore the deep resolve in my daughter's voice.

I stopped, feeling sudden unexplained pity for the horse. "Why? Don't you like her any more?"

“Neigh!” said White Horse.

“Mommy!” said my daughter. “She’s alive!”

“Yay…….I think,” I said, starting to walk past the utility room.

My baby, my darling, my wise little champion, grabbed the bundle and ran to the dryer. She opened the door and threw in the towel. “In here goes the horse, of course!” she said. And there was a note of triumph in her voice.

The moral of this story is: You can put a horse in water, but you can't keep her quiet!

Through books, courses, presentations, service, prayer, worship, and more, Tonja and her husband live to exalt God. Her series for girls, P.O.W.E.R. GIRL ADVENTURES, is now out (books I-V), along with LEGACY; YOUR HOLY HEALTH: VISIONS OF THE KING, and more. See the "River Rain Creative" YT channel.

Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS

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