Ch 15 Diversion

After they left, Phineas led the way out a side door.

"Where are we going?"

"I've been meaning to show you something," Phineas said and pointed to a shuttle stop. "This one goes around the east-side of the compound," he said as they climbed in.

They rode to the edge of the grounds and Jeff followed Bogg as he stepped off onto a dirt road. They walked together toward a barn that stood in the middle of a large open area. There were pastures with white fences on both sides of the road. Jeff could see some cows in one of the fields. Phineas walked into the barn, and as Jeff followed, he realized that though it looked a bit run down from the outside, it was very modern on the inside.

"Pete?" Phineas called, and there was a friendly answer.

"Hey, you finally made it," Pete said as he appeared from a stall on the left. He was gray haired and rugged looking, thin and wiry.

"This is Jeffrey," Phineas introduced them and Jeff reached out to shake hands.

"I've waited a long time to meet you, son," Pete said.

"You have?"

"Ever since I heard that Phineas was voyaging with you. So, I think I've got just what you want," he said to Bogg. He motioned them to follow him and grabbed a bucket, which he handed to Jeff, then hinged up a sheet of wood to reveal a storage bin with some grain in it. He scooped some up and dumped it into the bucket, then handed the scoop to Jeff.

"What're these for?" Jeff asked as Pete motioned for them to follow him outside.

"Make some noise," Pete told him, "go ahead, bang them together."

Jeff looked at Bogg in confusion and when he nodded, he hit the metal bucket with the scoop. Almost immediately he heard a whinny from somewhere out in the back pasture. He hit the bucket again, and as he watched, a horse appeared on the crest of a small hill in the middle of the field. As a foal appeared beside her, she began walking toward the barn.

Jeff watched the mare and foal approach in awe. They were actually walking right to him.

"Put the bucket down and step a bit away now," Pete instructed and as Jeff backed up, unable to take his eyes off the horses, he realized Bogg was already leaning against the fence, out of the way.

They watched the mare and foal approach and the mare put her nose into the grain bucket to eat.

"This is what I need some help with," Pete said, but Jeff was so taken with the horses that he didn't even hear.

Bogg put his hand on Jeff's shoulder. "Pretty nice, huh?"

"Yeah."

"She needs some training, so I thought you might want to do it while we're here," Bogg explained.

Jeff looked up at Bogg quickly, "me? Really?" he asked smiling. Then, "but I don't know how to train a horse."

"Pete can tell us what he needs done, and then I can show you how."

"This is great!" Jeff said enthusiastically.

Phineas smiled, "consider it a birthday present."

"When's my birthday?"

"The day I come home from the hospital, but we won't really be able to celebrate then, so I thought you could start this project and it'll give you something to do for a few weeks while I recover."

Jeff's mouth dropped open, there was so much to take in. After a few seconds he closed it and turned to Pete, "so what needs to be done to him?"

Pete smiled, "well, first it's a filly, and what she needs is to start getting used to people and things touching her. I've got some things for you to use over here. Phineas can show you what to do."

Jeff listened as Bogg took down several straps of leather and a small blanket. He explained that the filly wasn't used to anything being against her skin, but she would eventually need to wear a halter and saddle. Someone needed to get her used to having these items touching her. Jeff's job would be to put his hands on her nose and face, and gradually introduce pieces of leather and rope until she wasn't nervous about any of these items touching her. Then Pete would put her first halter on her.

"So do it a little at a time. Touch her nose for a few seconds at first, then run your hand over her back and down each leg. Show her the blanket first, so she can smell it, then touch her side with it. Eventually you want her to be comfortable with it on her back."

"Why do I have to touch her legs?"

"She'll need shoes when she's older. She'll need to let the farrier lift her leg to put shoes on. That's the big goal with her feet, get her to pick up her foot when you touch the back of her leg and stand on 3 legs to be shod. That'll take awhile, just getting her used to someone touching her legs will be an excellent first step. And never put yourself behind her, work from the side, horses can kick out when they get nervous."

"How do you know all this?"

Bogg smiled, "I love horses, you know that."

"I thought you meant you liked to ride."

"I do, but I just like being around them too. I used to spend a lot of my spare time here."

"So, I can really do this training?"

"Why don't you get started. See if she'll let you touch her nose?"

Phineas stepped back and leaned against the fence and watched Jeff step cautiously toward the filly. He was glad he could give Jeff this experience. He'd felt bad since he'd realized that Jeff's birthday would happen during the Reunion. He had vowed that he would let him choose a different time and place to spend each birthday, after their trip to Cape Kennedy had been so successful. So, between the reunion and his surgery, he felt that Jeff was being cheated out of a really great birthday present.

Jeff reached out toward the filly and touched her nose for a second before she shook her head and stepped away toward her mother. He stood enthralled as she began to nurse.

"Stay close to her and talk softly, she'll realize you aren't going to hurt her. Just take it slow," Phineas' voice was soft, Jeff was sure it was for the filly's benefit and he mimicked the tone.

"Easy girl, you're okay," he told her.

Pete walked around the side of the barn and paused, "I can show you around the rest of the barn now," he said.

"Can we?" Jeff asked Bogg.

"Yeah, actually I've got an errand to run with Tom and I was hoping you might like to spend part of the afternoon here til I get back."

"Definitely!" was Jeff's enthusiastic answer, so as Pete started showing him around, Phineas walked out to the front of the barn and met up with Tom.

"I really appreciate you doing this," Phineas said as Tom touched his arm and they disappeared.