Andi and Taffy

 by Ellia Ulrich (ages 6-9)

Andi Carter and Taffy, her horse, were riding through the fields.  Then Andi had an idea.  They went into the woods.  It was dark and spooky, and the trees branches shook in the wind.  They were afraid of the spooky sounds.

Whoo, woosh! went the trees, as they blew in the wind.

Taffy and Andi were really scared by now.  Suddenly, they heard low, long howl.  Taffy ran back home, with Andi hanging on tight.

That night when Taffy was in the pen, she heard the low howl again.  This time, it was lower.  Taffy was afraid, but instead of running away; she jumped over the pen and scared the wolves away.  She galloped towards the wolves and stomped.  But the wolves scratched her, and then ran away.

The next morning, the rooster crowed, waking up Andi.  She went outside and Andi looked in the pen, but Taffy was gone!  She told her family, and they all started looking.

Andi looked north by the woods.  Her brother looked west, while her mother looked south.  Her other brother looked east.

While she was looking, Andi saw Taffy—but she was hurt!  Andi saw that wolves had scratched her more; so she ran to Taffy and knelt on the ground and petted her mane, while she whispered, “It’s alright, girl.” 

Then Andi went to tell her family.  They all ran to help.  Her brothers helped Taffy up, then Andi led her to the barn to rest.

Taffy got better and better, as the days passed.  Andi checked on Taffy every day, and every day she whispered to Taffy, “It’s alright, girl, it’s alright.  You’ll feel better.”

Andi went in the house, and the next morning, Taffy took her steps to healing.  When Andi went in the barn, she gasped.

“You’re all better!” she cried joyfully.

Andi ran to the house with excitement.  She told her brothers, sister, and Mother, “She’s all better, she’s all better!

Then she ran back to the barn, to ride Taffy.  She was a little wobbly at first, but Taffy got better and better each day.  On the day when she was finally all better, Andi cheered with excitement, telling her family, “She can walk and run now!”

During that night, Taffy left the pen.  There were wolves, but not just any wolves…the wolves that she had been hurt by.  There was also a stallion, and he was surrounded by the wolves.  His name was Sebastian.  When Taffy scared away the wolves, the two horses fell in love. 

The next morning, Andi went to look for Taffy.  When she saw them in the meadow, she gasped and ran to the house to tell her family.

“Taffy has a stallion with her, Taffy has a stallion with her!” she happily shouted.

A few months later, when Andi looked outside; her brothers were helping Taffy birth her two new foals.  That day Andi saw Taffy’s newborn foals and the family helped named them Sunny and Shasta.  And she knew that Taffy and Sebastian would been would be good parents.