Bold Beauty (15 page)

“When what?” Summer asked.

“When would you have your abortion?” M asked, his voice clear.

“Whenever I please!” Summer leaned back and crossed her arms in front of her.

“A year old?” M asked, his voice firm. “Kid's a lot of work then.”

“Of course not!” Summer said it like M stood for Moron.

“A second before birth?” M asked.

“No! Before that!” Summer snapped.

“On the way to the hospital?”

“Before then.” But Summer's answers were losing force.

“A month before?” M pressed.

“Earlier.”

M kept at it, forcing Summer to back down—not seven months, not six, not five. Two babies right here in Ohio were born when they were four and a half and five months old. And they were normal, M told us.

“You can't pick a time because life starts at conception,” M stated. “No other point where you can draw a life line.”

Finally Summer lost it. “Nobody tells me I can't make my own choice!”

“Choose adoption,” M said simply. “That's what my bio mom did. And my folks and I are glad she did.”

Two people dressed totally in black stood up and cheered. “Go, M!”

Grant laughed out loud. “Can't argue with that.”

Ms. Brumby ended the debate. “Thanks to both teams for a thought-provoking debate. Mrs. Haven and I will be tallying scores and awarding points. But I'd say you all did an admirable job. Congratulations.” She clapped and everyone else followed her lead.

Grant hollered over, “M, you're really something!”

Summer wheeled on him. “I don't know why anybody would listen to a creep who wears black every day of his life!”

“Summer!” I shouted. “Better check those facts! M is only wearing black until they come up with a darker color.”

Catman hopped up onstage, snapping his fingers, his hippie/beatnik way of clapping. M gave me a high five. Barker thanked all of us, while Pat hugged everybody on both teams.

I made my way down to Lizzy and Dad. Lizzy hugged me and said all the right things before a bunch of her classmates came and swept her away. She was spending the night at her friend Katy's house.

Dad and I walked out together in time to see Barker's family pile into their yellow bus.

The cattle truck started on the fourth try. “Great job, Winnie!” Dad said, backing out and turning toward home. “I wish I had your confidence.”

“You? You're not afraid of anything.” I grinned over at him. “Except riding horses.”

“You knew?” he asked.

“Yeah, Dad.”

“I've ridden a couple of times—for your mother. She laughed so hard. . . .”

We were quiet for a minute, but it was a good quiet.

He turned onto our street, and the moon shone directly ahead of us. “Lately though, I've been more afraid of that contest Catman has been after me to enter.”

“That's why you kept putting off filling out that entry form?” The thought of my dad not having confidence in his inventions had never entered my mind.

“Guess I was afraid of losing, of having to admit I'm not an inventor, just an out-of-work insurance salesman.”

I started to tell him that was crazy, but he held up his hand for me to stop. “Anyway, after you jumped that hedge, I went in the house and filled out that contest entry form—on the back bike, not the rocker.” He pulled a rolled-up paper from his coat pocket. “The deadline is midnight tonight. Now all I have to do is have the guts to mail it.”

He pulled up in front of our house. The cab of the truck felt as full as the Barker van on Sunday morning, crowded with memories of my mom, and overflowing with
Immanuel,
God with us.

“Dad!” I cried. “I've got an idea.”

Minutes later Nickers strolled out of the barn with my dad and me riding double. Dad sat stiffly behind me, holding on so tight it was hard for me to breathe. In one hand he clutched the contest entry.

Nickers whinnied as she
clip-clopp
ed down our street. The wind howled at our backs the three blocks to the mailbox. I guided my mare close to the mail slot and pulled down the handle.

Dad hesitated.

“With my God, I can scale a wall!” I declared.

Dad sighed and shoved in the contest entry. “With my God, I can enter a contest!”

Nickers turned and headed home under a blanket of stars, windblown leaves showering us.

“With my God, I can speak in a debate!” I shouted.

“And ride a horse!” Dad yelled.

“And stand up to Summer!”

“And . . .”

We laughed at each other. But it felt true, as if we could go on and on, riding against the wind, the sound of Nickers' hooves steady and sure, and the possibilities endless.

Horses communicate with one another . . . and with us, if we learn to read their cues. Here are some of the main ways a horse talks:

Whinny—
A loud, long horse call that can be heard from a half mile away. Horses often whinny back and forth.

Possible translations:
Is that you over there? Hello! I'm over here! See me? I heard you! What's going on?

Neigh—
To most horse people, a neigh is the same as a whinny. Some people call any vocalization from a horse a neigh.

Nicker—
The friendliest horse greeting in the world. A nicker is a low sound made in the throat, sometimes rumbling. Horses use it as a warm greeting for another horse or a trusted person. A horse owner might hear a nicker at feeding time.

Possible translations:
Welcome back! Good to see you. I missed you. Hey there! Come on over. Got anything good to eat?

Snort—
This sounds like your snort, only much louder and more fluttering. It's a hard exhale, with the air being forced out through the nostrils.

Possible translations:
Look out! Something's wrong out there! Yikes! What's that?

Blow—
Usually one huge exhale, like a snort, but in a large burst of wind.

Possible translations:
What's going on? Things aren't so bad. Such is life.

Squeal—
This high-pitched cry that sounds a bit like a scream can be heard a hundred yards away.

Possible translations:
Don't you dare! Stop it! I'm warning you! I've had it—I mean it! That hurts!

Grunts, groans, sighs, sniffs—
Horses make a variety of sounds. Some grunts and groans mean nothing more than boredom. Others are natural outgrowths of exercise.

Horses also communicate without making a sound. You'll need to observe each horse and tune in to the individual translations, but here are some possible versions of nonverbal horse talk:

EARS

Flat back ears—
When a horse pins back its ears, pay attention and beware! If the ears go back slightly, the horse may just be irritated. The closer the ears are pressed back to the skull, the angrier the horse.

Possible translations:
I don't like that buzzing fly. You're making me mad! I'm warning you! You try that, and I'll make you wish you hadn't!

Pricked forward, stiff ears—
Ears stiffly forward usually mean a horse is on the alert. Something ahead has captured its attention.

Possible translations:
What's that? Did you hear that? I want to know what that is! Forward ears may also say, I'm cool and proud of it!

Relaxed, loosely forward ears—
When a horse is content, listening to sounds all around, ears relax, tilting loosely forward.

Possible translations:
It's a fine day, not too bad at all. Nothin' new out here.

Uneven ears—
When a horse swivels one ear up and one ear back, it's just paying attention to the surroundings.

Possible translations:
Sigh. So, anything interesting going on yet?

Stiff, twitching ears—
If a horse twitches stiff ears, flicking them fast (in combination with overall body tension), be on guard! This horse may be terrified and ready to bolt.

Possible translations:
Yikes! I'm outta here! Run for the hills!

Airplane ears—
Ears lopped to the sides usually means the horse is bored or tired.

Possible translations:
Nothing ever happens around here. So, what's next already? Bor-ing.

Droopy ears—
When a horse's ears sag and droop to the sides, it may just be sleepy, or it might be in pain.

Possible translations:
Yawn . . . I am so sleepy. I could sure use some shut-eye. I don't feel so good. It really hurts.

TAIL

Tail switches hard and fast—
An intensely angry horse will switch its tail hard enough to hurt anyone foolhardy enough to stand within striking distance. The tail flies side to side and maybe up and down as well.

Possible translations:
I've had it, I tell you! Enough is enough! Stand back and get out of my way!