A memory was niggling at me and I finally recalled it.
I bought a Shetland pony named Spirit with my paper route earnings when I was 11. She bucked. A lot. And was unridable. I broke her to harness and she helped me do my paper route every day. On Sunday mornings we would finish the paper route at the Circle K next to her pasture. She would wait outside while I bought a hot chocolate and a donut to share.
There’s a point to this nonsense. I promise.
Spirit grew to love our Circle K visits. She discovered that she could leap into the compost bin in the corner of her pasture, and from there she could leap out of her pasture.
She would trot next door to the Circle K and stand by the door until somebody opened it. Then she would amble inside looking for a donut and her hot chocolate.
Thank you Barbara for sharing your Ellie in the compost bin story which prompted this memory to resurface.