Village Shepherd

Ben was excited. It was a cold winter's day, but Uncle Sol was coming to visit. That meant there would certainly be a long walk in the country, and Uncle Sol made long walks in the country the most exciting things Ben had ever experienced.

His younger sister Lisa, was less enthralled. She hated the country, and trudging over muddy fields or through bleak woods was not her idea of fun. She dressed up warmly in her anorak and scarf and leather boots and made sure she had a fashionable soft hat and gloves to complete her outfit.

Uncle Sol was equally pleased to see both of them. He hugged them both, then turned towards the door. "Are you coming then?" he asked.

Ben tugged at Uncle Sol's hand and almost ran to the car in his eagerness. Lisa slouched into her anorak and glared moodily at the ground, hanging back as much as she dared.

Uncle Sol drove for half an hour or so. Then he turned off the road and parked in a little clearing in a wood, especially designed for cars. Neither of the children had been there before, and Ben looked around with interest. He knew exactly how the morning would go, and within moments he had run over to the side of the path and was peering at the ground.

"Over here, Uncle Sol," he called. "The grass is really trampled down here, and I'm sure there's a smell of fox in the air."

"Well done, Ben," Uncle Sol said. "I do believe you're right. And look, over here in the bank near that big tree, can you see it? I think it might be the fox's den."

Lisa sighed. She knew this was only the start. The whole morning would be spent peering at this and that, gasping over deer tracks and last season's birds' nests, exclaiming over the droppings of weasels and field mice. She wasn't the least bit interested, for as far as she was concerned once you'd seen one weasel you'd seen the lot. And as for mice, Lisa was extremely glad they lived in the country and not near her home.

Still, she trotted along behind her brother and Uncle Sol, doing her best to appear interested whenever Uncle Sol pointed out some marvel of the countryside to her.

Towards the end of the morning, both Uncle Sol and Ben grew very excited. They had followed the tracks of deer deep into the woods, and seem to think that if they moved very silently and very slowly, they might spot a deer.

Sure enough, when Lisa was absolutely freezing and thought her feet might drop off at any moment, there was a muffled whisper from Uncle Sol, who grabbed both their arms. "Look," he hissed, pointing through the undergrowth.

Lisa couldn't see anything but tree branches, and felt so miserable by now that she didn't care if she never saw a silly deer again. But Ben's face was shining. He had instantly picked out a pair of fine antlers, almost disguised as the branches of a tree, and he was ecstatic.

"This is the most wonderful day of my life," he breathed. And he and Uncle Sol shared a moment of pure joy as they gazed on a handsome red deer which slowly emerged into focus. Lisa caught a brief glimpse of the deer and had to agree it was quite a sight, but she was aching to go home.

Ben never forgot that day, and went on to develop his early interest in wildlife by becoming a naturalist when he grew up. Lisa shuddered whenever she remembered that day. She grew up to become a fashion model. She went to live in the City, and was glad that she never had to visit the country again.

As for Uncle Sol, he went on loving both of them with all his heart. He saw a lot of Ben, but to his eternal sadness he only saw Lisa when she was in some sort of trouble and she wanted him to bail her out. Uncle Sol always did his best for Lisa, but somehow was never quite able to meet her expectations, and so she drifted further and further away from him until in the end Uncle Sol became only a distant memory for Lisa. And she never did learn to love the country.