"Sammy and the Silly Goose"

       
                                            "Sammy and the Silly Goose"




  I think if people were more like animals, we would all get along better. Or at least there would be fewer problems. But then again there was Sammy.

  Sammy could well have been the runt of the litter when he was born. There wasn't much to him except this ball of fur that no brush could ever straighten out nor any amount of conditioner would make it lay down. He just had fur going every which way. I think that’s why they called him a wirehair Jack Russel. He was all but 1 year old when we noticed he had some strange affection for things that make strange noises. When the cars would honk for Sammy to get out of the street he defiantly would stand his ground until we would yell for him to get back on the pavement!

" Sammy, get out of the street. The car will hit you!!"

  He sort of would listen but his slow shuffle back to the curb spelled trouble and we imagined one day he would chase after anything that honked at him. After all he was a dog and that is what dogs do, chase cars.

  Day after day he would look forward to his walk at the dog park because he was the small guy on the block and every other dog wanted to chase him. Good old Sammy thought it was a game but the other dogs were just being mean to him and if it wasn't for the fact that Sammy ran like the wind, and they never could keep up with him, he was content and never knew what they really had in mind. He would dart in toward them and they would chase him around and around until they got tired of trying. But not Sammy. He was full of energy and would go and go and go, just like the energizer bunny.

  He liked to chase squirrels also but could never get the concept to look up at the squirrels going up the pole. He imagined they disappeared into the ground somewhere and he would circle the pole all day despite us telling him to just look up at the squirrel.

  But that all changed on day in the spring when he heard a honk off in the distance. He looked up and sure enough there they were. A whole flock of Geese honking away to find a place to settle for the night. That was something new to Sammy because the cars honked and he slowly would walk back to the curb thinking how he could make the car stop honking. Once he tried to chase the car but was promptly scolded by his owner!!

  But this was something different and Sammy wanted to find out why cars were up in the sky honking at him! Or so he thought. So he would look up and bark and bark as we would laugh at his new found attention. We would be so amused at him as he tried to figure out this new honking and why it was up in the air. He just had to know. Sammy was like that. If he didn't know what was going on, he soon would find a way to find out! And soon Sammy was about to find out the hard way!

  It was well into the spring now and mating season had begun as well as hunting season was fast approaching. Sammy would be reminded to not run off into the woods because the hunters might shoot at him. An he was too special to be shot by some hunter. He was a very good dog.

  Another month went by and each night Sammy would hear the geese honking away as they came close to the pond near the park. He ran off from his owners and they followed quickly behind to keep up with Sammy and keep him out of trouble. But trouble was Sammy middle name his mother would say all the time.

Finally Sammy came upon the pond and sure enough there were geese everywhere in the water and a few on the shore. So he wandered around to see if he could get close and ask why they made a noise like the cars he was mad at all the time.

  He came upon one big Goose that was sitting on a nest with one little baby goose under her wings. Sammy being his nature walked up to the big goose and wanted to see what was going on. Before he knew it, he got a big honk and peck on his backside and Sammy let out a yelp!  Rough Rough!! he hollered back at the mother goose. But she wasn't going to budge an inch. The smaller little goose could hardly make a sound and that puzzled Sammy greatly until he once again got too close to the mother. She let out another honk and Sammy got bit again. This time he ran away as the other dogs in the park laughed at him. That made Sammy mad and he was not afraid of anything, except maybe this car with wings that made a honking sound when he got too close.

  We grabbed poor Sammy just in time before he got another dose of honking and biting on his back side. And we laughed as we scooped Sammy up to go home. Sammy squirmed and squirmed and squealed a lot before he had to finally go back to the house.

But all night Sammy was determined to go see what was going on near the pond again and he dreamed about honking cars and flying honking cars and was confused until he finally fell asleep.

The next morning, Sammy was ready to go and his owner knew just what Sammy had in mind. A trip back to the pond. All the way there she tried to explain to Sammy that Geese make a sound like a car but were just an bird that makes that sound also. By the time Sammy reached the pond, he didn't see what he came for. The mother goose was no where to be found, only the little one sitting patiently by the nest. It was not like the mother to leave her children Sammy's owner explained and she too became worried about the abandoned little gosling. She called for the mother and Sammy looked up and down and all around but could not find the mother.

  Finally Sammy's owner walked to the other side and found what was left of the mother goose. The hunters had got her and all that was left were the feathers. It made her sad and Sammy sensed something was wrong too. They returned to the nest and the little one came out and walked up to Sammy, sat down beside him and snuggled up into his fur. Sammy bewildered looked back at his owner, his mother and wondered what to do.

  She told Sammy, " I think she likes you Sammy! We better bring her home with us" And so now the story began about "Sammy and the Silly Goose"

  Sammy didn’t have many real friends. Only the other dogs who would chase him around the park. He never knew that they really wanted to hurt Sammy and run him away from the park. But this new  friend was special. Every day Sammy would listen to see if the Goose would honk at him. He even tried to teach the goose how to honk but he sounded like a sick car horn that had no battery to make it sound right. So he barked instead and the goose tried to bark but it sounded like a honking bark, which didn’t really sound like anything poor Sammy had heard before.

  Months went by until one day while Sammy was in the back yard digging in the flower bed. Something his mother told him not to do, he heard a sound come from inside the house. I know that sound said Sammy. It's a honk!!! And sure enough, he went in the back door for little dogs, cut into the big door and there was the now big little Goose flapping her wings and honking wildly!!  That’s it he thought. That’s the sound the cars make. But its not a car its a goose. Mother had finally convinced Sammy that it sounded like a car but cars don't fly but geese do and they make a sound like a car.

  Sammy danced around the goose and barked wildly while the goose honked and honked away. Now Sammy was excited and ran to grab his leash to let mother know it was time to take his friend to the park and let everyone see the special friend Sammy had. A honking Goose.

  Mother agreed and father came home in time to go too. Sammy needed a leash but the goose was fine just following Sammy where ever he went. In fact the goose snuggled up to Sammy every night and fell asleep till the next morning. Sammy dragged on the least to hurry to the park while the goose just happily followed along right by Sammy's side.

  When they got to the park the other dogs were ready for poor Sammy and chased him down right away. But this time they found trouble behind them. Every time they got close to Sammy, the big goose flew down and pecked at the backside of the other dogs. She honked and honked until They got scared and ran off from away from the Goose; Sammys new friend!! At first Sammy didn’t understand but the goose made him understand that the other dogs were bad and wanted to hurt Sammy. They just all gathered and began to laugh at Sammy and now Sammy was mad too. He decided that it was his turn to chase the other dogs and told the goose to help him!!

  Soon all the dogs were running away as the goose swooped at them honking and Sammy chased at their heels to bite them. They were a good team!!  But Sammy was not a mean dog and felt sorry for the other dogs and soon said to the goose , " lets leave them alone"

  So Sammy and Silly Goose which mom called her all went back home for the night.

    One day in the fall Sammy's mom and dad decided it was time that Silly Goose had to find its way back south and go home with the rest of the Geese. So they took her to the corn fields and Sammy reluctantly said goodbye as did the goose also. She didn’t want to leave and neither did Sammy. They became really close friends by then. Little did Sammy know just how close they became. Silly Goose was in love with little wirehair Sammy and couldn't bare the thought of Sammy ever going away nor her flying south with her kind. She wanted to be with Sammy.

  What were they going to do now they though. Sammy's mom and dad got together and talked a while. He said dear, we are so much like them you know. You are someone real special and I was just a poor man. We seemed to come from two different worlds but look how wonderful it has worked out!  Sammy's mom felt a tear in her eye and thought real hard about what Sammy's father had said.
  Finally she said yes , people can be different but still come to be as one. That is what life is all about. And if more people could feel that way, the world would be a better place. If animals can feel that why can't people?

  The father said hey, its just a silly goose and our wiry little dog. They both seem to be really good friends so why not let her stay and see what happens this next year. They both agreed and then told Sammy and Silly Goose  (which mom named her) to see if they wanted to stay here together. Silly Goose immediately flapped her wings with joy and honked and honked until Sammy started to just dance around like a crazy bullfrog, barking and yelping almost sounding like the goose.
  They all went to the park where the other dogs were and they all immediately scattered to get away from Sammy, or so it seemed to him. The truth was they were getting far away from that Silly Goose who would honk like a car and yelp now like a dog. Sammy jumped around while Silly Goose chased Sammy all around the park. It was now their park and they could do anything they pleased. Sammy decided to jump on Silly Gooses back and see if he could fly too. Silly Goose flapped and flapped her wings until they were off the ground, Sammy hanging on for dear life as Silly Goose took him for his first ride into the sky.

  "Look mom and dad!" I am flying!! Now all I need to do is honk like Silly Goose and I will be just like her.

  Mom and dad laughed and gently told Sammy that he would always be a dog and Silly Goose always be a Goose, but that they could be together always as friends. But as long as they quickly came back down and landed in the field so as Sammy would not get hurt. Silly Goose gluided into the field and when Sammy got close to the ground , he jumped down and ran over to his family,,  Honk ! Honk!  he hollared as everyone laughed at Sammy's attempt to sound like Silly Goose,  Rough ! Rough ! went Silly goose and they all laughed all the way back to the house.

  The End      S A Gibbins