Wooden Pony Winter

Calico Jack felt the cold penetrate deep inside the core of the wood that made up his legs. Oblivious to the fact his maker failed to give him eyes and ears, Jack gazed out over the vastness of the lakeside park. From a wooden-pony standpoint, eyes and ears were merely a human trait anyway, Jack reasoned.

The season's first snowflakes fell, unfavorably caressing the hardwood of his solid body. The harsh bite of winter and a wretched sting of loneliness were deafeningly undeniable. Jack perked up, though, when across the expanse of the deserted park, a pair of Canada geese touched down a short distance from the lake's shoreline.

The geese, staying close to each other in a manner of loving protection, pecked at snippets of yellowed grass, frozen in uninterrupted rest until spring. Jack watched the pair and sensed the profound adoration they shared. Even a wooden pony knew the geese mated for life.

However, as is always the case, envy began to creep into Jack's knotty-wood awareness, clouding over the tender scene that played out before him. The air chilled deeply now as the impact of being alone resonated within his wooden pony heart. In actuality, he despised the Canada geese and their silly devotion yet Jack felt ashamed of his jealous behavior.

Jack thought about how hard winter was for a wooden pony. Kids did not come to play for months because of the cold. Few people visited the park once the snow started to pile up. Jack tried valiantly to shake the dismal attitude he was experiencing.

On a positive note, he did look forward to the week following Christmas. Someone always showed up in the park to try out brand new cross-country skis or snowshoes. More than once, a kind person stopped to take a brief rest in Jack's cart and that was always an uplifting occurrence.

In addition, he reminded himself, there is always the chance a lost snowmobiler or two whizzed by in search of the trail that ran around the lake. Things somehow did not appear quite so glum when Jack focused on a few positive aspects of winter.

Lost in thought, the wooden pony replayed in his mind the happiness he felt the day he received his new name. It was a breathtaking spring morning. A pretty lady and her energetic young daughter wandered over to see the little horse. The small girl climbed right into the cart without hesitation, making quite a racket in her excitement, he remembered.

In a serious tone, she queried her mother, "What is the pony's name?" Looking for a name, the mother circled the wooden pony and the cart. On the back of the cart, in the lower left hand corner, the lady saw a small branding burned into the wood. It read, "Pony #5." "I think you should pick a better name than Pony #5 for this little horse," the woman said to her daughter.

The little girl gave one entire minute of earnest thought to a name and reached a decision. "Mommy, I want to call the pony, Calico Jack." "Jack is my daddy and Calico is my cat," she announced to her mom as if her mom did not recognize either one of the names.

It was a glorious day for wooden pony #5. He officially had a real name. It was an even bigger relief to know, his namesake came from a beloved dad and the family cat...not the famous pirate, Calico Jack, who pillaged booty on the deep sea. He could live with that name, even though deep down he thought he resembled the legendary Sea Biscuit.

Startled back to reality by the loud honking of the Canada geese as they flew off overhead, Jack strained to see across the breadth of the abandoned park now. Snow was falling harder and visibility was down to a minimum. The lake disappeared behind the veil of white. Jack's only thought at this point is to survive the cruel winter as he waits patiently for an early spring.

This is an AC Prose Assignment. The Assignment asked us to base a short story on a photo, which as you can see, my photo is a wooden pony!