What the Moon Said by Gayle Rosengren Read Free Book Online

with Pa looking on. Bruno’s back was so wide, she had to hang tight to his mane and hug hard with her short legs or she would have slid right off. But oh, it was glorious to be on a horse at last.
    Esther would also have gladly fed and milked the cows—Daisy, Buttercup, Rose, and Petunia. They were sweet-natured, slow-moving creatures with mournful eyes. They didn’t fight to keep their milk or bite when they were being fed.
    But Pa took care of the barn animals himself. They were too important to trust to anyone else. Without the horses he couldn’t plant or harvest crops. He couldn’t get to town for supplies. Without the cows they’d have no milk to sell or to drink. The barn animals and the barn that sheltered them had to be kept safe from all harm. That’s why when Esther went to tell Pa dinner was ready that very first Sunday after church, she’d found him on a ladder in the barn doorway.
    â€œWhat are you doing, Pa?” Esther had called up to him.
    Pa looked down at her. “Hanging this.” He held up a horseshoe. It was so new, it sparkled in the sunlight that poured through the haymow window.
    â€œBut why?” Esther asked, craning her neck to see better.
    â€œFor protection,
Liebling,
” Pa explained. “And for good luck.” He pulled a hammer from his belt and tapped in first one nail and then another. Then he hung the two ends of the shoe between them so it made a U
.
    â€œIsn’t that upside down?” Esther called up to him.
    Pa rubbed his thumb over one tip of the horseshoe before he started down the ladder. “No, it’s just right,” he assured Esther. “The good luck stays in the shoe instead of spilling out like it would if it were hung the other way.”
    Esther sucked in her breath. “How do you learn these things?”
    â€œMy pa told me, just like his pa told him.” Pa had both feet on the ground again. He smiled at Esther. “Just like I am telling you.” He rubbed the end of her nose with his thumb—the same thumb he’d rubbed on the end of the horseshoe. “There. Some good luck for you.”
    â€œThanks, Pa!” Esther gasped. She was so excited, she almost forgot to tell him about dinner.
    From that moment on, she had been waiting impatiently to see what kind of good luck was going to come her way.
    That had been days ago, though, and nothing very nice had happened yet. In fact, that very morning had started out with Violet breaking the little mirror Julia had given her. Seven years’ bad luck! And if bad luck came to Violet, who was never far from Esther’s side, how likely was poor Esther to escape it?
    Then Grumpy the goose had nipped her leg not once but twice! Esther didn’t say anything to Pa because she didn’t want to hurt his feelings, but she was beginning to doubt the power of his lucky horseshoe.
    She was limping back to the farmhouse when she suddenly halted. Surely she had just seen a dog disappear around the side of the house! Heart pounding faster, she stood still as a fence post, watching. A few moments later, a white-and-orange head peeked around the porch.
    Esther wanted to jump up and down. She wanted to shriek for everyone to come see what she had found. But the dog was already frightened. She couldn’t risk scaring him away. She forced herself to be still, and she extended one hand invitingly. “Here, boy,” she called softly. She didn’t know if the dog was a boy or a girl, but she had to call it something.
    The dog took a few cautious steps toward her. He had a white and rust-colored coat, a long pointy nose, and ears that stood straight up except at the very tips. His plumed tail swished shyly back and forth.
    â€œGood boy,” Esther encouraged him. “Come on.” She squatted down and made a clucking noise with her tongue. “Come, boy.”
    The dog inched closer, tail still slowly swishing but head lowered