SYDNEY AND RACHAEL
A
True Story of the Love of a Bearded Dragon
displaying his black beard. He sat in his carrier and wouldn’t come out,
threatening to bite anyone who ventured close. Rachael, who had been
given Sydney by a lady who could no longer take care of him, sat
patiently by, waiting for him to calm down. But he wouldn’t have any of
it. The trip had been long and scary, even for a Bearded Dragon.
And who was this red-headed person anyway? Why did she take him
so far away from all that he was used to? And what kind of place was
this? Who lived here? Sydney thought he heard some thumping on the
floor. What was that? A rabbit? I have to live with a rabbit? The whole
afternoon went by. Rachael sat next to the carrier, talking in a
soothing voice, and trying to make Sydney come out. “Sydney,” she said,
“come out and I will show you your nice new home. It’s a fine aquarium,
with sand and branches for you to sit on. And your dinner is there all
ready for you.” Finally, Sydney realized he was hungry and decided to
come out and get some food.
After that first
day, Rachael came every morning to feed Sydney and the other animals in
the Pet Shop. Rachael explained to all of them that it wasn’t really a
shop, they would never, ever, be sold. Just a pretend shop, so they
could all be educational animals, teaching children how to take care of
their pets. An educational animal is a fine thing to be, thought Sydney.
When she was done taking care of the other animals, Rachael would pick
Sydney up. She would pet his scaly back and coo into his ear, telling
him how much she loved him, how he was her number one pet. Then she
would take him for a walk. Sydney treasured his walks with Rachael. They
walked outside on the sandy paths of the donkey rescue and they saw many
donkeys. Sydney wasn’t
scared of the donkeys, but he always kept a weary eye on the sky. He was
a little concerned about the very big hawks that would sometimes fly
above. But Rachael would
calm him down, speaking softly, telling him that she was protecting him
and that she would never let anything bad ever happen to him.
Sydney, the Bearded Dragon, finally realized that he had arrived
at a very good home, where he had found his person and true love in a
red-head named Rachael.