7% l 31. The Hunting Trip

Alphy and Margurita had been married a few months when Alphy decided to go hunting. He did not want to leave his new bride home by herself, so he asked Margurita if she wanted to come too. She agreed to go with him.

It was the fall of the year. The air was crisp. The leaves were vibrant with color. They were multicolored — shades of crimson. orange and yellow. The woods was silent, except for the rustle of

leaves.

Alphy had told Margurita that they needed to be very quiet. As they walked they could hear birds in flight and the occasional sound. of a twig breaking underneath their feet. Suddenly there was a partridge in their path. Alphy saw it first. He motioned Margurita to be quiet. The partridge was moving slowly. Alphy pointed his gun and took aim. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, the partridge flew up from the brush and was gone. Alphy wondered what had scared it. Then from the comer of his eye, he saw Margurita waving both arms frantically in the air.

Alphy commented, “No wonder the partridge flew away.” He decided to call it a day, as there wouldn’t be much chance of taking; home any game, not while Margurita was in the woods. Alphy thought the next time he goes hunting, he will go by himself.

On their way back Alphy told Margurita that she would never make a living at hunting or fishing.

She responded, “The poor partridge. She may have babies to look after. We don’t know.”

There would be no more hunting trips with Margurita. But in the future, the couple would often go for long walks in the woods together, especially after the family had grown. And during his later years, Alphy would grow to appreciate nature as much as Margurita did. In their senior years, Alphy and Margurita would feed flocks of E

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