"It's very important that we re-learn the art of resting and relaxing. Not only does it help prevent the onset of many illnesses that develop through chronic tension and worrying; it allows us to clear our minds, focus, and find creative solutions to problems.",
Thích Nhất Hạnh
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A4Chapter 8: A Talk At Home
O
n Sunday morning Mr. and Mrs.Arable and Fern were sitting at breakfast
in the kitchen. Avery had finished and
was upstairs looking for his slingshot.
"Did you know that Uncle Homer's
goslings had hatched?" asked Fern.
"How many?" asked Mr. Arable.
"Seven," replied Fern. "There were
eight eggs but one egg didn't hatch and
the goose told Templeton she didn't want
it any more, so he took it away."
"The goose did what?" asked Mrs.
Arable, gazing at her daughter with a
queer, worried look.
"Told Templeton she didn't want the
egg any more," repeated Fern.
"Who is Templeton?" asked Mrs.
Arable.
"He's the rat," replied Fern. "None
of us like him much."
"Who's 'us'?" asked Mr. Arable.
"Oh, everybody in the barn cellar.
Wilbur and the sheep and the lambs and
the goose and the gander and the
goslings and Charlotte and me."
"Charlotte?" said Mrs. Arable.
"Who's Charlotte?"
"She's Wilbur's best friend. She's
terribly clever."
"What does she look like?" asked
Mrs. Arable.
"Well-l," said Fern, thoughtfully,
"she has eight legs. All spiders do, I
guess."
"Charlotte is a spider?" asked
Fern's mother.
Fern nodded. "A big grey one. She
has a web across the top of Wilbur's
doorway. She catches flies and sucks
their blood. Wilbur adores her."
"Does he really?" said Mrs.
Arable, rather vaguely. She was staring
at Fern with a worried expression on her
face.
"Oh, yes, Wilbur adores Charlotte,"
said Fern. "Do you know what Charlotte
said when the goslings hatched?"
"I haven't the faintest idea," said
Mr. Arable. "Tell us."
"Well, when the first gosling stuck
its little head out from under the goose, I
was sitting on my stool in the corner and
Charlotte was on her web. She made a
speech. She said: 'I am sure that every
one of us here in the barn cellar will be
gratified to learn that after four weeks of
unremitting effort and patience on the
part of the goose, she now has something
to show for it." Don't you think that was
a pleasant thing for her to say?"
"Yes, I do," said Mrs. Arable. "And
now, Fern, it's time to get ready for
Sunday School. And tell Avery to get
ready. And this afternoon you can tell me
more about what goes on in Uncle
Homer's barn. Aren't you spending quite
a lot of time there? You go there almost
every afternoon, don't you?"
"I like it there," replied Fern. She
wiped her mouth and ran upstairs. After
she had left the room, Mrs. Arable spoke
in a low voice to her husband.
"I worry about Fern," she said.
"Did you hear the way she rambled on
about the animals, pretending that they
talked?"
Mr. Arable chuckled.
"Maybe they do talk," he said. "I've
sometimes wondered. At any rate, don't
worry about Fern - she's just got a lively
imagination. Kids think they hear all
sorts of things."
"Just the same, I do worry about
her," replied Mrs. Arable. "I think I shall
ask Dr. Dorian about her the next time I
see him. He loves Fern almost as much
as we do, and I want him to know how
queerly she is acting about that pig and
everything. I don't think it's normal. You
know perfectly well animals don't talk."
Mr. Arable grinned. "Maybe our
ears aren't as sharp as Fern's," he said.
