Geronimo - Part I

by Rayna
(Mesa, AZ)

This is Geronimo!

Claire rushed into the kitchen in tears on her last day of school. "Claire! Are you alright?" Asked Claire's mother. "Claire what happened!" "It's okay mom. I'm fine." Claire began. "It's Tilly. I think we may have a new addition to the family!" Claire exclaimed hugging her mom. "Oh That's wonderful! I'll go get your father! You go get changed and meet us in the barn!" Her mother said. Claire quickly raced upstairs, changed her shirt and pants, got on her riding boots and hat; and she raced down the stairs. "Bob." Claire heard her mom calling her dad. "Mom. He's plowing the fields! I'll go get him!" Claire smiled and squealed to herself. "We should name him Trigger, or Geronimo!" Claire thought. When she reached the crop field she shouted"Hey Dad! Bob! Hello! Tilly's in the barn! Come quick!" And Claire ran towards the barn. "It's okay Till!" She comforted her mare. Tilly was a 4 year old 15.5 H.H appaloosa/Morgan who had recently been adopted by Claire's family for Claire's birthday. Little did they know Tilly was pregnant at the time.
After the birth of the beautiful foal Claire ran inside to look up names on the internet. "Admiral, Afterglow,All My Heart , Ace..No...Nothing seems to fit!" Claire thought aloud. she read on "Amazing, Glory, Morning, Areo,Lysine..Bell..Believe.." Claire began to get frustrated. "Mom!" She yelled trudging outside. "What is it? Colt or Filly?" Claire asked smiling at the young foal. "I don't know Bob? You check it." Claire's father smiled. "Look like we got ourselves a colt here!" Her dad laughed. "Yes! How about the name Geronimo mom?" Claire asked. "Please please please!" "Okay. Hello little Geronimo!" Her mom teased the colt.
When Geronimo was little over a year old, Claire began to ride him. One day Clair tacked young Geronimo up that day and she took him for a trail ride on her property. When the trail ride started after Clair made Geronimo trot, He began clicking his tongue and pawing the ground, and flaring his nostrils. "It's okay boy! I know this run down old trail like the back of my hand." Claire comforted Geronimo. Suddenly he began thrashing his neck until he shook the reigns loose from Claire's grasp! Geronimo began to gallop, dragging Claire by her stirrups! Claire managed to free herself, but the only question left was "Where is the horse!" Claire frantically searched left and right, but the horse was nowhere to be seen. Claire searched through her bag for her home made horse whistle, but she had left it at home. "Geronimo!" Claire called. She got up, wiped the mud from her face, and followed the deep hoof prints in the soft mud. She followed them all the way to a large patch of grass where Geronimo lay chewing a piece of bark from an oak tree. Claire did not know this was poisonous. "Hey! Geronimo! Come on you naughty horse!" Claire scolded grabbing Geronimo's bridle. Claire slowly mounted him and thought, "Maybe I should do a trail ride with Tilly instead." When Claire was a little less that 20 minutes to her house, Geronimo suddenly fell to his side crushing Claire. Claire managed to free herself, but she looked into Geronimo's eyes only to find a blank feeling less stair. "Oh no!" Claire cried grabbing out her cell phone. "MOM! Geronimo! He's hurt! We're by Cave Creek trail!" And she hung up the phone. "It's okay Geronimo! Mama's coming. Hang in there big guy."

Claire comforted her horse.

WAIT FOR PART 2!

Geronimo Part 2

by Rayna
(Mesa, Arizona)

This is Geronimo!

Within minutes Claire's dad arrived in the pickup with her mother. Her dad climbed out of the truck and approached Geronimo. "What do you think happened?" Claire asked her dad. "Dunno. I just got here." He mumbled. "Oh Geronimo. I always knew you were trouble. Claire did he eat anything unusual?" Claire's mother asked stroking his face. "Well he did eat some tree bark but-" Claire began. "Oak! That's poison to any horse! within 30 minutes of eating it, Bang. It travels to their heart." Claire's mother said. "Do you mean he's going to die?" Claire asked in shock. "It's possible." Her dad said feeling Geronimo's chest. "Oh I knew this trail ride was a bad idea!" Claire began. Her dad pulled out his cellphone and dialed their veterinarian's number. "Ya Bill? We got a sick horse here. 'guess he ate some poison oak. Ya. Ya we're by cave creek. That worn down old trail on our property. ya. Okay. see ya in a few." Her dad hung up the phone and stared at the poisoned horse. Claire smiled at him and said,"It's okay bud." "Claire come on. We need to get you all cleaned up. and look. It's going to rain tonight." Claire's mom said dragging Claire into the pickup. "But.." Claire began as her mom drove away. The two of them were silent for the first five minutes until Claire asked,"Ma?" "Yes sweetheart?" Her mom replied. "Are they gonna shoot'im?" Her mom paused and looked at Claire. "Oh no sweetheart! They're gonna do whatever they can to help Geronimo!"

That night, as the thunder roared, and claire lay in bed, she thought she heard a very faint gun shot. "It's just the thunder.." Claire kept saying to herself. It had been 4 hours and her dad still hadn't returned. "Oh I hope Geronimo's okay.." Claire whispered to her Australian shepherd dog Jack. As the thunder roared,and the rain came down in torrents, the lightning danced around her room like horses in a storm. They reared and ran and nickered and whinnied. Claire smiled at the sight. As she began to fall asleep, she had a dream. Geronimo lay in a field and Claire lay next to him. The wind ran through his mane. Claire wore a white dress. The clouds danced in the sky. they were all shaped like horses. They reared and danced. Claire was awoke by the violent thrash of thunder and horses screaming. Claire quickly dragged herself out of bed and looked out her window. There lay a mother and her foal using a dead tree for shelter in the horrible monsoon. Claire's eyes widened. She quickly pulled on her coat and boots,and flipped her hood over her head. She tiptoed down her stairs and out the back door. When Claire approached the two horses they suddenly disappeared! everywhere Claire looked she saw horses! She felt as though she was in a dream! But as Claire approached a beautiful black stallion, it reared hitting Claire in the neck. Instantly she fell to the cold muddy ground.

Claire awoke the next morning to her dog's wet slimy tongue.Her neck hurt terribly. "Hallucinations...When will they stop!" She whispered. She quickly raced into her house and got dressed. Then she ran into the kitchen and looked at her dad. His expression was horrifying. a mixture of sadness,and anger. "How-How's Geronimo? Will he make it?" Whispered Claire to her dad. "The vet too him in. $500! Can you believe it? He said there is not much he can do but he can try." Claire looked down. She ran up to her room and cried on her bed for the rest of the morning.

For the next three months Claire visited Geronimo in the vet's office every Friday, Saturday,and Sunday. Soon Geronimo was up on his feet again! One day Claire looked around the Vet's office and peaked out his window. There trotting around the pasture was Claire's beloved horse Geronimo! She ran outside and stroked his neck and fed him carrots and sometimes she even rode him bareback for about an hour!

By the day Geronimo was ready to be brought home, he looked like the happiest, healthiest, strongest horse in the world! Ever since then Claire has been careful around Oak trees and on trail rides she learned to take more care. Geronimo lived to be the happiest horse on earth!