Surprise Encounters
Months went by and, occasionally, there would be reports of a horse that resembled the missing one spotted in nearby areas. Neighbors would inform the farmer about a fleeting glimpse of a horse along the edge of the forest or grazing in a distant field. This did not turn out to be more than a hope in each case as the sightings led nowhere.
These false leads were now the journey itself. They were encouraging him, beating him down, telling him to keep going but reminding him at the same time that the horse was impossible to reach. The possibility of its still being alive would lift him up, but he’d never know.
But all that was forgotten each time he catches a glimpse of his horse. The farmer would sometimes wonder how the creature was faring, what it ate, slept where, and how it managed to evade the dangers of the wild. It kept him going and reminded him of his task to bring the horse back home.
