The Story of Stranded

By Ellison Rose

Ready or not, here I come!” Should I go left, or right? I ask myself. Without hesitation, I turn right and run across the rocks into the creek.
            “Got You!” I hear nine-year-old Sadie scream, as I fall to the ground. A sharp rock jabs into my right knee, and Sadie falls on top of me. Pain crawls to my stomach, and water splashes on both Sadie and I.
            “You should have ran the other way, Andi.” Sadie tells me. Yeah, I should have. I look around and hear a rustling noise. I can also see a few vines moving.
            “Did you hear that, Sadie?” I hear the noise again.
            “Yeah, I heard it, Andi.”
            What do you think it is?” I ask Sadie. Sadie shrugs her answer.
            “Let’s take a peek, Sadie.” We advance to the pile of vines. We carefully pull the vines back only to reveal something fuzzy and black. We pull the vines back even farther, and I realize it is a calf. I guess it to be only a week or less in age. Sadie goes and walks around, while I pet the calf.
            “Hey Andi,” Sadie yells, “I think someone shot the mother!” I turn toward where Sadie is standing.
            “Is she dead?” I ask Sadie as I run over to where Sadie is standing.
            “Looks like it to me.” I extend my arm our and gently pet the cow. She’s dead, all right, and she doesn’t have any brands.
            “I want to take the calf home.” I tell Sadie. Sadie shrugs.
            “I don’t see why you can’t.” she tells me, “There ain’t any brands on the mother.”
            “I’m going to get Taffy. You stay here.” Sadie nods. I run over to where Taffy is grazing, and I scramble up. The only problem is I slide right off the other side. After another try, I successfully mount Taffy, and ride to where Sadie is. I ask Sadie to lift the calf up. I wish Chad or Mitch was here. They could lift the calf up easily, unlike Sadie and I. Sadie and I struggle to lift him up. After a bit of hard work, we have him on my saddle. Sadie and I say our goodbyes and part. Should I name this calf? I ask myself. What should I name him? Stubborn? Jalapeño? Starved? I laugh at myself when I say starved. That’s how I am feeling right now. I end up naming him Stranded. I think that name fits him perfectly.
*****
            “Chad! Mitch!” I yell, “Look what I found!” Chad and Mitch stride out of the barn.
            “Hey Andi!” Mitch calls cheerfully. He looks down at my saddle. “Where’d he come from?” Mitch nods at the calf on my saddle.
            “Sadie and I found him at my special spot.”
            Chad lifts the calf off my saddle and places him in a stall. “He’ll need a lot of attention, Andi. I nod. “Did you see the mother?”
            “Yes, I reply.”
            “Any brands?” Chad asks me.
        “No.” I reply again.
            “He’s yours fair and square, Andi.” I smile, and climb off of Taffy.
            “His name’s Stranded!” I tell Chad before leaving to go wash up for supper.
*****
            The next day I run outside to give the calf some milk. I have a small bottle that I am feeding him from. Sadie comes over, and we gently play with him. We also give him several more bottles of milk, along with some pieces of hay.
            “I wish we had some cows, Andi.” Sadie tells me.
            “Like I wish we have some sheep.”
            “Yep.”
            “I love new calves, but this one is so special, Sadie!”
            “Maybe I should tell Pa we need to get a cow.”
            “I can’t see your pa agreeing to getting a cow.” I tell Sadie.
            “Me neither.” Sadie replies.
            “Until then, Stranded can belong to both of us.”
            “Ok!” Sadie replies.
*****
            The next day, I give Stranded another bottle of milk. He also eats a bit more hay. The day after that, Chad puts Stranded in a pen with our mama cow, Rosie, and he drinks from her. Sadie and I continue to watch and play with Stranded. We play with Stranded all the time. Sometimes we bottle feed him, but most the time he drinks from Rosie. Sadie and I also roughhouse with Stranded, and he likes it. We also introduced Stranded to Bella’s newest litter of kitten. Stranded was kinda interested is Bella’s kittens, but he was most interested in Cora. Cora hopped on his back and Stranded seemed to enjoy her.
*****
            I run out of this house this morning, only to freeze because I hear a different voice. I know all the ranch hands voices do not sound like this voice. I can tell this man is very angry, and it is not Chad. I go outside to see who’s yelling.
            “That cow was mine!” the voice yells, “so that calf is mine too!
            “Mr. Moss,” Mitch said calmly, “the cow didn’t have a brand.”
            “It was my cow!” Mr. Moss yells even louder.
            “Sir, we have no proof that the cow was even yours. For all we know, she could have belonged to the Hollister’s’!” Chad looks ready to explode. He never tolerates grumpy neighbors well. Mitch, on the other hand, has a lot of practice.
            “I’m bringing the law on you!” Mr. Moss yells, as he mounts his horse. Silence filled the yard as Mr. Moss left, with a cloud of dust trailing behind him.
            “Will he bring Sheriff Tate here?” I ask Mitch.
            “No, he knows Justin’s our brother, and his cows don’t have any brands on them.”
            “Ok, Mitch.”
            “You want to know what I think Mr. Moss is going to do?” Chad says.
            “What?” I ask.
            “I think Mr. Moss is going to move back East. He’s had so many troubles running his ranch, and I heard his sweetheart lives in the East, so I think he’ll be going back there.”
            “You really think so?” I ask.
                        “Yep.” Chad answers. “I think so.”
        Mr. Moss never called the law, he just moved East, just like Chad said. I kept the Stranded, and Sadie and I played everyday ‘till school started. Then I played with Stranded everyday after school, and Sadie would come over on Saturday and Sundays. Mitch sold Stranded a year and a half later, with my disapproval. Chad insisted. Oh well, Rosie has a calf due in a week, so I will have another calf for Sadie and I to play with.

~Andi Carter, age 9