by Donna West
One day, Daddy asked Tommy, “Do you want a horse?”
“Oh yes, Daddy! Please!” Tommy said.
So Daddy spent all the next day in his workshop in the basement. He worked and worked. When he was done, he gave Tommy the horse he had made.
The horse was black all over. It had a thick stick body and a carved wooden head. It had a mouth and nostrils and ears. It had big, brown eyes, all carefully painted by Daddy.
“Thank you, Daddy!” Tommy said. “He’s pretty! I’m going to call him Tonka!”
Every day, Tommy rode Tonka to wonderful adventures in his back yard. Tommy was a knight in shining armor. He was an Indian on the plains. He was a cowboy on the range. He was a jockey at the races.
Tonka was the best horse in the world. He ate the greenest grass. He drank the freshest water. He slept on the sweetest straw.
When it was time for bed, Tommy put Tonka away in his toy chest in the basement.
Tonka waited patiently for tomorrow’s adventures.
But the day came when Tommy was too old to ride Tonka...
