Watch more bedtime stories on our YouTube channel.
Once upon a time, there was a pony named Max. He lived at a riding school together with lots of other ponies. Max was too young to be ridden, so he stayed out in the field all day while the other ponies taught little boys and girls how to ride. Max was very happy. He loved chewing grass. He loved jumping over the obstacles that were set up for the bigger horses. But most of all, he loved being cared for and groomed by all the children.
Max lived happily until one day, when a bit was placed in his mouth.
“Now your training is about to begin,” whispered the girl who put it on him as she gently rubbed his muzzle. “Soon you’ll be ridden just like all the other ponies.”
“That’s fine!” Max thought. “It looks easy enough to be ridden. I’m sure I’ll be really good at it.”
But Max was terribly wrong. Being ridden was not easy at all. And he wasn’t very good at it. Having a person sitting on his back was actually quite scary. It made him wobble and feel unbalanced. And the world outside the field was full of awful things like noisy tractors, screaming children, and worst of all – plastic bags flapping in the wind.
Max wished that no one would ever ride him. He wished everyone would just leave him alone out in the field. So he made a plan. He would not let anyone ride him.
The next morning, when one of the stable hands tried to catch him, Max pinned his ears back, kicked out, and ran away. And from that day on, he kicked at anyone who came near him. It didn’t take long before no one dared to approach him. Now Max was alone. At first, he was very pleased with himself. But soon, he began to feel quite lonely. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t want to be ridden, but he missed being cared for and groomed.
One evening, something magical happened. A snow-white horse appeared.
“Don’t be afraid,” whispered the horse. “I am your guardian angel. I’ve come to help you. Follow me!”
The white horse spun around and leapt high into the air. Max jumped after it, and together they galloped across the night sky until they reached a field.
“Look down,” said the white horse kindly.
Max looked down and saw a small pony lightly jumping over an obstacle with a little girl on its back. Max blinked and neighed in amazement. The pony was him. But who was the girl riding him?
“That’s Katherine,” said the white horse gently, as if reading his thoughts. “See how kind and gentle she is. She would never hurt you.”
Max stared and stared until everything grew blurry. He blinked and suddenly found himself back in his own field at the riding school. The white horse was gone, and he was all alone again.
“Oh,” sighed Max sadly. “It was just a dream.”
But he couldn’t forget the sweet little girl.
The next morning, Max hid in the corner of the field as a small girl came up to the fence.
“Hello, Max,” she said, holding out a carrot.
Max crept out of his hiding place and stared. It was the girl from the dream. It was Katherine!
Katherine climbed over the fence and slowly walked toward Max. She didn’t want to scare him.
“Come on, my friend,” she whispered gently. “I won’t hurt you.” Then she stood still and waited.
At first, Max refused to move. But then his curiosity got the better of him, and he slowly walked toward her. She didn’t move at all. Suddenly, Max felt very brave. He walked up to Katherine’s shoulder and lowered his head. Katherine reached out and stroked his muzzle. Then she gave him the carrot. While Max happily chewed, Katherine carefully placed a halter over his head.
“There you go, my friend,” she said softly.
From that day on, Katherine was always allowed to catch Max. And it wasn’t long before she was allowed to sit on his back. By the end of summer, Max and Katherine were best friends, flying over the jumps together. And who do you think won the summer show jumping competition? Of course, it was Max.
The white horse had helped Max learn to trust others again.
Want to read more bedtime stories right now? Explore bedtime stories to read online for free:
https://bestbedtimestory.com/bedtime-stories-to-read-online/
