The Salvations of Abda (part one )

from: Sixteen Hours in Qatar. A collection of short stories.

My wife, Nalini, meant it as a joke- “Why not register Adba as an ESA animal, now, before we go to India?” Abba, which means ‘calamity’ in Sanskrit, is our rescued animal. We recently saved her from the Santa Fe Animal Shelter, where she had been abandoned and labeled unadoptable. The animal had been raised from newborn to calf by a hope-filled twelve-year-old girl. Adba was being groomed to become a show animal and was the girl’s pet as well. 

Unfortunately, the young woman became pregnant.  Soon after, her parents disowned her. At first, the young woman and Abda got by with help from friends, but those friendships quickly wore thin. It seemed like too little time before the pair were walking the streets, working street corners, trying to sell “really fresh milk” for five dollars a cup. At night, Abda grazed the outer weeds along the park fence while the girl slept on picnic tables just beyond the lights. It was a harsh life living in the shadowy suburbs of Santa Fe- the so-called Enchanted City.

As time passed, life became even harsher. The first soft snow of fall came early, but cold. Brisk, windy days were followed by weeks. When nearly two months passed, Abda could no longer produce milk. Then, on one bitterly cold October night, the girl hugged her companion for the last time. Tears of parting and longing ran over the lids of the girl’s eyes and down her cheeks. She unbuckled Abda’s bell, let it drop to the ground, and turned away. Both knew this was the end and walked forever away from the other in opposite directions into the night.

A few days later, when the authorities found Abda boys were throwing rocks at her. The emaciated animal was being chased onto a highway off-ramp, where speeding cars from Albuquerque had to swerve or stop to avoid hitting her. She could hardly walk, but stumbled awkwardly and wildly on her way. By then, Abda would never qualify as veal, or even burger beef.  At best, she might be a cover model for Upton Sinclair’s book “The Jungle.”

The young girl’s dreams of a 4-H ribbon and a future grass-fed only dairy farm were over. It became a sad story for all concerned.

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PLEASE NOTE: “The Salvations of Abda” is part of a tale, and little else.

*1- “Who’ll Stop the Reyn”, (soon to be available from Piedmont Publishing at a bookstore near you).

*2- ESA also known as- essentially spoiled adults.

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Please note: the author bears no grievance or ill feeling towards people who are honestly in need of ESA animals. I do object to those people who abuse the system and then parade their pets around just because the system is so easy to abuse.Please ‘like’ if you do, ‘comment’ if you can, enjoy none the less. Thanks- dalton

Piedmont Publishers

613 words

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