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Hot Cocoa

Farm Life

By Susan KulkowitzPublished 3 years ago Updated 3 years ago 5 min read
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Hot Cocoa
Photo by Francesco Ungaro on Unsplash

I was raised on my family farm caring for the animals and I learned to love and respect them.

When she was just a babe, I would sit in the stall with our newest racehorse, Hot Cocoa who was born my first Christmas home. She would lay down next to me and put her head on my lap. She's a very affectionate philly. She loved to nibble my ears and tug on my hair. As she got older, and I would rub under her chin and neck, she would rest her head on my shoulder. Now that she’s 14.8 hands, she likes to rest her head on the top of my head while I scratch under her chin.

She always seems to know when I was coming to see her. Even when she was out in the pasture with the other horses and various animals. She would come running to see me, flaring her nostrils, her tail stiff, whinnying. She was truely my friend. And she was funny.

One Christmas, my whole family went to a movie in town. When we came home the front door was wide open. Me and my dad creeped into the house ready to jump any intruder. Turns out the intruder was not only our yearling horse Hot Cocoa but also two goats, Billy and Betty who were standing on the dining room table eating the table cloth. They had already eaten all the cookies my mom had made and they even ate the boxes she had put them into. Hot Cocoa the yearling was now curled up on the living room couch licking her self. She whinnied when she saw me but did not get up. The goats jumped off the table and ran into the kitchen knocking things over and breaking stuff in their rampage. Goats are so rambunctious that once you get them going, it gets harder and harder to settle them down. We had to block the entrances to different rooms to steer them toward the front door. It took the whole team of us just to catch them!

"I must have forgotten to shut the door" said grandpa Rob. "I was the last one out."

"And I must of left the barn door open." said my dad.

"And now we have a mess and no cookies. " said my mom.

"We'll clean this up." I said. My brother Bob and his wife said they would help.

"Now I have no cookies to donate to the church." My mother was really upset.

"I"ve always wanted to learn some of your recipies' Carol said. "I will go by the store tomorrow and then you can teach me some of your secrets. I love those pinwheel cookies and the lemon Russian tea cookies. I would love to help make new cookies for the church."

My family has a way of moving on with things. So much unpredicable stuff happens on a farm you learn to roll with the punches. "OK" my mom sighed.

"I'm really sorry daughter." Granpa Robert said.

"I feel sorry for the goats!" Im sure they ate way more than their fill!"

“I hope that philly didnt fill up on cookies.” My dad said and then mumbling added, “I was looking forward to having some.”

“And people think pigs are pigs!” Bob chimed in.

"Will someone get this horse off the couch!" my mother yelled from the living room. I went in and gave our sweet philly a hug and then asked her to get off the couch. She refused. She stretched out with her head resting on the arm of the couch, her feet dangling slightly over the edge. the TV kept turning on an off and we could only assume that since we couldn't find the remote, she must be sitting on it! We joked about how she just wanted some TV time.

My dad got a carrot from the refridgerator. "The goats ate all the apples" he said with a sigh coming out of the dining room. Hot Cocoa the philly eyed the carrot but was too comfortable to get it. She stretched her head out to reach it, but otherwise did not budge. Suddenly the TV went on. He put the carrot up to her nose, She took a nibble. The TV went off. Now it was on. Every time that horse shifted her weight the TV would either go on or off. And the funniest part about it, was the show that came on. It was Mr. Ed. The show about the talking horse! She was probably watching until we showed up and ruined everything. Watching TV and having snacks with the goats. She really knows how to make us laugh, and we love her. And the goats too. Even though they make so much trouble. When they were kids, they were the cutest things ever. Hopping sideways and jumping straight up for no reason. Hard to get mad when you know them as babies. Well, mom was mad. I was entertained.

"Thank goodness the cake was in the fridge!" Mom said. That cake is too expensive for our goats!" Mom started a tradition of getting one of those Death by Chocolate cakes from the Baker's Spoon Bakery every year. Rich and chocolaty like our horses.

By Helena Lopes on Unsplash

Me, Bob and my dad all had to literally push the philly from behind to get her off the couch! And she just kind of casually slid off like our dog Bo does. When she finally got up we found the remote. My brother walked the yearling out of the house to the barn. "I wonder what she thinks?" I said to my dad. "Who knows." He said. "She's our little Hot Cocoa." He smiled.

"Who wants cake!" My mom said.

“Not waiting for dinner?” I asked.

“After all that chaos I'm gonna have myself a piece!" Mom said. Dad and me both raised our hands.

"Better put one out for Bob too."

Bob came back holding the lead and no horse. "She's back in her stall." He said. 'The goats followed me in so I put em in their stall as well." "Is that chocolate cake?" his eyes lit up. "After all that, I am definately having a piece of that cake."

My family really knows how to roll with the punches. We sat in the living room watching Mr. Ed and eating our well deserved cake. Life on the farm, never a dull moment.

By Jayden Sim on Unsplash

Excerpt
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About the Creator

Susan Kulkowitz

Writing saves lives. Some of you will understand, as you may have already been saved by writing. Put it on paper. Interpretive Solidification. Make it real, Allow freedom in expression to be control. Weave your words. Save your life.

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