The Canine Connection by Betsy Hearne

Author:Betsy Hearne
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Margaret K. Mcelderry Books
Published: 2009-07-15T00:00:00+00:00

fiona and tim

FIONA WAS SLOW AND SILENT, but all children have their own ways. In an Irish family of eight girls, slow and silent are lost in the general din. Her mother paid very little attention to her. It seemed the best way to cope, overall, and Fiona did not demand attention. From the beginning the girl lived in a world of her own and looked different as well. In contrast to her seven redheaded, rosy-cheeked sisters, Fiona had mousy brown hair and colorless skin. Her sisters secretly believed that she was a changeling whom the fairies had swapped for their real baby sister, stolen away at birth. As for Fiona’s father, he paid her no attention at all. The man was overwhelmed by a steady stream of daughters who subjected him to harassment at home and teasing from the lads when he retreated for a pint at the pub. What was wrong with Fiona, as far as he was concerned, was being female. Beyond that he didn’t know—since in those days there was no money for doctors or tests—and perhaps he couldn’t care. There was just the farm and the endless work on it. A slow child who listened no better than she talked, which was never, seemed useless compared to the others, who could at least help their mother. Fiona would never have found her work on the farm had it not been for Tim.

Tim was quiet, too, but not slow—one of a hearty litter born the same time as Fiona. The puppies were all black furred with white legs, white ruffs, white tail tips. But only Tim had large brown eyes ringed with tan—luminous eyes. When his brothers and sisters went to other homes, Tim stayed, and he and Fiona played like twins. When she first crawled across the cottage floor toward the open doorway, he waited patiently outside where a dog belonged and nuzzled her as she came within reach. When she continued into the yard on all fours, he followed her toes. When later she rose to walk, pulling on the fur of his back, he stood steady, though only a yearling. When she learned to run, he ran ahead of her. One chased the other. The other chased the one. They rolled in the grass and mud. They fell asleep piled in a heap of matted fur and sticky hair and bones as light as bird wings. Awake, Fiona watched Tim without a word—she seemed to have no words—and turned her head to look where he turned his head to look. And Tim watched Fiona, herding her around the yard or toward the door when her mother called. Tim paid attention.

Fiona began to wander, for where Tim went she went as well, and Tim went with the sheep.

“Born to it,” said Fiona’s father, and he began to train Tim for the work of rounding up the flock, sending him to circle them with a wave of his arm, dropping him to the ground with a drop of his hand.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.