Nobody Asked Gerald
A girl, a goat, and a puddle that could wait
Isla had a lot to say. She always had a lot to say. Today she had: The thing about her boot. The thing about the puddle the boot went in. The thing about what was IN the puddle. And four other things.
Gerald was a goat. Gerald lived in the field behind the house. Gerald had opinions about most things.
Isla climbed the fence. "Gerald," she said. "My boot went in a puddle and it was a very big puddle and the water went all the way up to here —" She showed Gerald where. "— and there was something IN the puddle, Gerald, something brown and suspicious and —"
She stopped.
Gerald was standing in the corner of the field. Not his usual corner. The other corner. The small wet corner behind the old water trough where nobody usually stood.
Gerald's ears were down. Both of them. Pointing at the ground like they didn't want to be ears anymore.
Isla looked at Gerald. Gerald looked at the mud. The brown suspicious thing in the puddle could wait.
"Gerald," said Isla. Quietly this time. Gerald didn't move.
Isla climbed all the way over the fence. Into the field. In her already wet boot. She walked to the corner. The small wet corner. Behind the old water trough. She stood next to Gerald.
She didn't say anything about the boot. She didn't say anything about the puddle. She didn't say anything about the brown suspicious thing. She didn't say any of the four other things.
She just stood there. In the wet. Next to Gerald.
Gerald's ear moved. Just one. Just slightly. Toward Isla.
They stood there for a long time. The Scottish rain came down. Very quietly. The way Scottish rain does when it's trying to be polite.
After a while Gerald leaned sideways very slowly until his enormous goat head was resting on Isla's shoulder.
Isla didn't move. Gerald was very heavy. Isla didn't mind.
She never found out what was wrong with Gerald. Gerald didn't say.
But she stayed until his ears came back up. Both of them. Pointing at the sky like ears again.
Then she climbed back over the fence. Her boot was soaking. The brown suspicious thing could wait too.