Story Time With Daddy

Scooting back his chair from the breakfast table Daddy started chuckling a little. We knew he was about to share another story from his childhood and settled back to listen.

Since I came out of a family of twelve children it was always a treat to be the one that was allowed to accompany Dad to town.


On this particular Saturday Dad had hitched our dependable old horse Bill, to our single open buggy and asked me if I want to ride along with him. I hurriedly scrambled up and sat down beside him I was barefoot even though the air had the nip of fall in it. We didn't talk much as we drove to town but both enjoyed the beautiful fall colors of the sugar maple leaves and all the other brilliant reds,oranges, and yellows. The wide brim on my tattered straw hat flapped in the breeze. We arrived in town and stopped at the feed mill where Dad got several bags of feed while I sat on the buggy waiting for him. After Dad had paid for his purchases we went to the grocery store where he picked up a few things that Mom needed and then to my joy he bought an ice cream cone for me to eat on our way home.

As we were driving along we noticed a young boy walking beside the road ahead of us carrying a pail. As we drove up almost next to him he suddenly turned around and flung the whole pailful of cold creek water right in our faces. The shock of the cold water hitting our face and chest had us both gasping for air. Dad immediately stopped the horse and handed me the reins and jumped off the buggy. He grabbed hold of the boys neck and marched him right into his parents barn to tell them what he had done.

I sat shivering on the buggy waiting for Dad to get back. I never did find out what happened in the barn but was proud of my Dad, even as I sat there wishing for warm dry clothes.