Little Horse Learning to Walk
Shh, speak softly…
A chestnut foal was just born on the sandy banks of a river. It can’t stand up yet, and it can’t walk.
Look, the little horse has opened its curious, shiny eyes like round, black gemstones. This is its first glimpse of the world.
The first thing it sees isn’t its mother, father, or the fresh grass, flowers, or the sun, but a busy centipede scurrying by, a multi-legged centipede.
The little horse lies on the ground, curiously counting in its mind, “1, 2, 3…”
It counts over and over, but when it gets to “11,” its eyes blur, and it has to start counting again. In the end, the little horse never gets an exact count, and just before the centipede disappears, it glances proudly at the chestnut foal, as if saying, “You may be big, but you only have four legs!”
Maybe the centipede didn’t really look at it that way, or say those things, but the little horse suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable.
“So, it seems walking depends on legs. Multi-legged creatures can walk, but I… I’m big, but I only have four legs. It looks like I’ll have to wait until I grow more legs before I can stand up and walk!” the chestnut foal thought.
The little horse continued lying on the ground, staring at the nearby grass and the gently flowing river, feeling very hungry and thirsty. But without being able to walk, what could it do?
Just then, a young man with a limp approached from the other side of the river, walking cautiously with a stick. He walked carefully, getting closer and closer to the chestnut foal. Then, he stepped on some stones and crossed the river!
“1, 2, 3.”
That’s right.
Count again: “1, 2, 3.”
That’s right!
The little horse thought in amazement, “This person, how can he walk with only three legs? Not only can he walk, but he crossed the river. The stones are so slippery, and crossing the river is so dangerous, yet he really made it across. Is he going to say something to me?”
“What a handsome foal! You must run like the wind!” the young man said.
The chestnut foal couldn’t care less about the compliments; it was just nervously and eagerly thinking, “If a person with three legs can stand up, I can stand up! If a person with three legs can walk, I can walk!”
When the young man reached out to “pull” it, the little horse surprisingly stood up on its own, something it could hardly believe, but it still didn’t dare to walk.
Across the river, a few snow-white sheep ran over, with four legs each, and they stopped by the river, bleating at the young man. The young man was so taken with the chestnut foal that he ignored them, so they stubbornly crossed the river on the stones and ran over.
The little horse immediately felt overjoyed. When the snow-white sheep stepped forward to protest, the foal had already started to walk, “1, 2, 3, 4! 1, 2, 3, 4!” It walked right onto the green grassy field, took a few delightful bites, then ran over to the river, and took a few refreshing sips.
“Soon, I’ll be able to fly!” the little horse said to its reflection in the water.
Alright, we can finally speak loudly now. Should we cheer or clap? It’s up to you!
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
