Thomas frowned.
“No, Emily, you should not say that. What if it were Beauty? How would you feel?” he asked.
Emily folded her arms.
“I am tired of hearing, ‘Rose this… Rose that…’ The whole village talks about Rose. Even at school, the principal smiles whenever he sees her. He treats Rose better than the other children. Rose is always praised. She even goes on school trips without paying. I do not like it,” Emily complained.
“Emily… Emily…” Merry called from the fence. Emily quickly went outside. It was around 7:00 p.m.
“I want to inform you that we found Rose at her uncle’s place,” Merry said.
“Oh, that’s good news,” Emily replied, then went back inside. But she was not happy at all.
“Why do you look like something is bothering you?” Thomas asked.
“No, nothing is bothering me. I’m just feeling sleepy,” Emily lied. She did not want to show her husband that she was disappointed that Rose had been found. She went to bed with a heavy heart.
The next morning, Rose woke up happy and went to play near her uncle’s donkey. She was still afraid to touch it because it had hurt her before.
Her uncle came closer to her.
“How are you today, my child?” he asked with a smile.
“I’m fine, Uncle. I’m happy—I will always see your beautiful donkey,” Rose said, smiling.
“Later, her uncle took her to fetch water at the river. On the way, Rose began to cry.”
“Why are you crying, my princess? Are you missing your mother?” he asked.
“Rose looked at him and cried even more.”
“Why are you hitting this donkey so hard?” she asked.
“If I don’t beat it, we won’t reach the river in time,” he replied.
Rose did not speak again. She felt sorry for the donkey, and they walked home in silence.
The next day, Rose’s uncle and his wife went to a wedding. Rose was very happy because she was left alone with the donkey.
After they left, she started teaching the donkey to follow directions without being beaten. She rode it around the yard, gently guiding it. The donkey seemed calm and moved its tail from side to side.
At about four o’clock, Rose stopped. She went inside to read her English book so her uncle would not suspect she had been riding the donkey.
Her uncle and aunt returned at five o’clock.
“Oh! I knew you were not naughty. You always read your books—you are a smart girl,” her uncle said.
From then on, Rose kept spending time with the donkey whenever her uncle and aunt were away.
“Next Saturday,Rose’s uncle became very sick. His wife did not know who could take him to the hospital.”
She suddenly remembered, “Oh! John! Rose, my child, go to John’s house and ask him to come take your uncle to the hospital,” Aunt Lucy said.
“I will do that, Auntie,” Rose said and ran out quickly. But she returned a few seconds later.
“Uncle John’s wife said Uncle John has gone to the mountain,” Rose said.
Aunt Lucy then called another boy, David, who often helped them with Peter’s donkeys.
“Ma’am, I can’t control this donkey. Maybe if it was Bantu, I could ride it,” David said. (Bantu was old Peter’s donkey.)
“Auntie, I will take my uncle to the hospital,” Rose said.
“Ah, my child, you are still young. You cannot control this donkey,” Aunt Lucy replied.
But Rose quickly stood up, climbed onto the cart, and began controlling the donkey with a stick. She guided it to the door where her uncle was lying.
Aunt Lucy was shocked. Her mouth opened wide.
“Rose… am I seeing things?”
They lifted Rose’s uncle and placed him inside the cart so he could lie down.
Rose rode the donkey quickly all the way to the hospital. When they arrived, the nurses immediately gave her uncle first aid.
David and Lucy could not believe what they were seeing.
“Ma’am, how old is this child?” David asked.
“She is nine years old. She is really amazing. Have you ever seen a child control a donkey like this?” Aunt Lucy said proudly.
Rose was outside talking to the donkey as usual.
“I am still surprised that this child behaves like an adult. My husband will not believe that Rose brought him here,” Lucy said.
While they were still talking, a nurse came to them.
“Ma’am, your husband will be discharged at two o’clock. We are still observing him. It looks like he does not drink enough water,” the nurse said.
“Thank you for the information,” Lucy replied sadly.
Rose was very grateful for the donkey called Stompi. Stompi was the donkey’s name, which meant “small.”
“You are a smart donkey. You helped bring my uncle to the hospital and saved his life,” Rose said.
She was still talking to Stompi when her uncle, aunt, and David came out.
“Ahh… uncle!” she shouted and hugged him tightly. “Are you better, Uncle?”
Her uncle smiled and wiped her tears.
“I am better, my child. I am still a little sick, but I will be fine soon.”
He quickly changed the topic because Rose would not stop crying.
“Who rode Stompi? I know no one can control him easily—even for me it is difficult.”
Lucy smiled.
“Get in the cart and you will see who rode it.”
Rose’s uncle was shocked when he saw that it was Rose.
They all went home shortly after.
“Ahh! Who taught you to ride a donkey like this, my child?” Peter asked, shocked.
Rose laughed and answered her uncle. “I taught myself, Uncle,”she said confidently.
Her uncle was still weak, so his wife told him to rest
“Rose took the buckets, loaded them into the cart, and rode Stompi to the river. She enjoyed controlling Stompi without a whip. Lucy saw her already emptying the buckets.”
“Oh Rose, my child, thank you for the water. It looks like you knew we needed it,” she said.
As the sun was going down, Rose felt lonely.
“What is wrong, my child?” Lucy asked.
“Tomorrow I must go home. School opens on Monday,” Rose said sadly.
“Oh, I forgot school is reopening. Let me wash your clothes,” Lucy said.
“Don’t you miss your mother and your friend Beauty?”Lucy asked.
Rose smiled softly.
“I miss them. But I will also miss Stompi.”
