Patience Must Be Learned

A horse is a very popular animal on most planets. It’s not called a horse on any of them, but it is still one. The same is true about almost every animal on Earth. They are on other planets too, but they aren’t called what we call them.¹

It's the same when it comes to language too. Just because we humans hear horse, dog, cat etc. sounds don’t mean they don’t understand what they are saying to each other – or even other animals. We on Earth have several different languages, but we can still understand each other. They do too.¹

Patience Must Be Learned

     Kaleom, a horse, galloped through a recently flowed field, and jumped a fence that suddenly appeared before him. He continued on until he reached his destination: Another horse pulling a Digger right behind him.

     “It’s almost time for eating, Gallian.” Kaleom kept pace with Gallian.

     “I know,” replied Gallian. “All I have eaten today is some grain the human Farmer gave me.”

     “You love grain – don’t you?” Kaleom asked.

     “Yes, I do.” Gallian stopped. “I don’t like it every day though. That’s what the Farmer thinks I like to eat.”

     The Farmer started shouting. He, the Farmer, sat on a big wooden chair under a large opened box he attached three sharp metal circles to. Gallian and Kaleom couldn’t understand what he shouted, but the anger in his voice, and him using the ropes in his hands connected to the brace around Gallian’s neck, said he was very mad about something.

     Just then, a small metal box on his hip made a noise. The Farmer picked it up and spoke into it. About a minute later he put the box back on his hip, and they headed back to the big red building they call home. Before they did that the Farmer lifted the metal circles to make getting home a lot faster. Kaleom ran back slightly in front of them.

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     After being disconnected him from the ropes, and the wooden box Gallian was place in one of the extremely small rooms, the Farmer left. As he was leaving he closed, and secured, the door to the room Kaleom returned to.

     A few minutes later, after making sure the Farmers or one of his family didn’t return, did Gallian and Kaleom leave their rooms. “Food will be ready shortly.” Tielina, a female horse, said.

     “I hope it’s not what that Farmer tries to give us to eat,” said Gallian. “I’ve see what some young humans do naked in what they think we like to eat.”

     “Of course it’s not,” said Tielina. “You ask me that every night.” A small packed food cube fell out of a hole, in the side of the building they lived in, in each room.

     “Carolene, collect those cubes.” Gallian asked Carolene to do. “The Tunnel Rats will be by soon to give it back to the humans.”

     “Even if we did eat it, and sometimes we do, these cubes aren’t big enough for us to eat anyway. I still think the Farmer does it on purpose to keep us alive but to make more profit from us too,” said Tielina.

     “I agree with that,” replied Kaleom. “All the humans are like that. Soon all the animals will wise up and take away this planet from the humans.”

     “Stop talking like that.” Responded Gallian. “You have to learn to be patience. Once you do that you will learn it’s not as bad as you think it is.”

     “It’s going to happen father,” said Kaleom. “I just don’t know when it will be done.”

     “Carolene, I asked you to do something.” Gallian started walking around their home peeking into each room there. “Where is Carolene?”

     “You told her she could go running around with her friends today,” said Tielina. “I sent Kaleom out to get her a few hours ago.”

     “Why didn’t you do that?” Gallian asked.

     “I did, but she wasn’t where she was supposed to be.” Kaleom acted nervous. “She never showed up there. I waited for over an hour. When she didn’t I came back home. Why should I give up eating because of her?”

     “That’s what I am talking about when I try to talk to you about patience,” said Gallian. “You should have stayed there until she got back there. Eating isn’t a good excuse for coming back without her. Food would have still been here for the both of you.”

     “What was I supposed to do?” Kaleom asked. “She could have been playing anywhere with her friends.”

     “I’m not sure what it is for humans, but in horse years you are almost sixteen, and your sister is around thirteen. As the oldest it’s your responsibility to watch out for her,” said Gallian.

     “I hate being the oldest,” said Kaleom. “It shouldn’t be my responsibility to keep track of her.”

     “Something could have happened to her. Did you ever think about that?” Gallian said then asked. “She could have been stolen. A lot of that happens all the time. Or even worse, a human could have had sex with her. Some male humans will do that with animals.”

     “There are four reasons we exist,” said Tielina. “They are for working in the fields, for creating more of us, for riding and for racing.”

     “You need to learn patience,” Gallian sounded madder with each word he spoke. “You’re not eating tonight. Go to your room, and think about patience. You don’t have too many years left before you’re an adult too. I have go out to find your sister.”

     Gallian headed for the door. Just as he was about to open it with his nose it opened for him. In walked Caroline – with the Farmer. The Farmer said something, but they didn’t know what he was saying. They don’t speak human.


¹A short blog entry from a blog that PureSciFi aka SpaceFaction hasn’t created yet.