PLEASE LISTEN TO ME
By: Lynne G.
Little Joe had just finished eating a small amount of his breakfast that morning. His father, Ben Cartwright had been very upset with his youngest son for the last three weeks. " I want you to come straight home after school young man. Do you hear me?" yelled Ben. " Yes.. sir," the boy answered softly. " Be sure that you do. Now get going before you are late for school AGAIN !" Ben angrily told his ten year old son. The boy got up from the table, turned and walked out the door without saying anything to his father.
Ben didn't say anything either to his son as he stood by his desk. He walked back to the table to get another cup of coffee, and then he headed back to his desk to get started at the large amount of paper work he was behind in.
" Pa,
you didn't have ta sound so angry at Little Joe this morning," Hoss said
to Ben. " Hoss, I have every right to be angry with that boy.
He's been nothing but trouble for the last three weeks. He's late for
school. He doesn't come straight home after school. He doesn't do
all his school work or his chores, and you say I shouldn't be angry with
him. He isn't responsible at all. I can't trust him to even obey me
for one day!" Ben loudy told his middle son, Hoss. ." I'm sorry
Little Joe got to school on time that morning. He wasn't feeling well, because he knew his Pa was upset with him and that hurt this very sensitive child. His oldest brother, Adam was also upset with him, which also bothered him too. He didn't like it when Adam bossed him around, especially when Ben was away from the Ponderosa on business, and Adam was left in charge.
Ben had
been in
Little Joe was also very nervous because they were having three tests that day in school. One test was a spelling test. The other tests were a math test, and a long history test. He had studied for all three tests really hard, but he was still nervous about them..
On his way home from school the day before, he stopped at his mamas' grave to talk to her. He missed her so very much. He wanted to feel her loving arms around him, but knew that could never happen again. He told his mama all about the three test that would be given the next day. He started to cry, and he soon fell asleep for about 30 minutes. When woke up, he thought that he would study for the tests, since it was so peaceful there. Just being there he felt closer to his mama.
After 2 1/2 hours later, he realized at how late he would be getting home, so he gathered up his books, said 'bye' to his mama, and headed home.
As he rode into the yard, he saw his father standing there with his hands on his hips looking very angry. He thought to himself," please Pa don't be mad at me again." " Hi Pa ", the boy said. " Don't you 'Hi' me young man. Where have you been? DO YOU REALIZE HOW LATE YOU ARE ? Ben yelled as the boy got off his horse. Ben grabbed the boys' arm as he continued to yell at the little boy. " Pa, I can ex--------, but he child never got to finish what he was going to say. " I don't want to HEAR anything you have to say. Once again, your brothers had to do all your chores. You go up to your room NOW, and STAY there. I'll be up to see you in a couple of minutes for a little DISCUSSION ! NOW GET GOING !" Ben screamed as he pushed his little son towards the house.
Little Joe ran up the stairs to his room and he flopped down on his bed and cried into his pillow. Just like his father had said, Ben walked into the room. " YOU WILL STAND UP WHEN I ENTER YOUR ROOM," yelled Ben. The boy slowly got up, and he looked at the floor. He had tears running down his face. " I AM SO ANGRY WITH YOU. WILL YOU PLEASE LOOK AT ME WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU ! YOU NEVER LISTEN TO ANYTHING I SAY TO YOU ANYMORE ! WHY DO YOU INSIST ON COMING HOME LATE EVERY NIGHT AFTER SCHOOL ?" Ben yelled. The boy didn't say anything. Ben sat down on the bed, and he pulled the crying, trembling child over his lap and began to spank him very hard. After several very hard swats, he stood the very distraught child up to a standing position. " YOU ARE TO STAY IN THIS ROOM. YOU ARE TO DO ALL YOUR SCHOOL WORK, and THEN YOU ARE TO GO TO BED. YOU WON'T BE HAVING ANY DINNER TONIGHT EITHER ! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME BOY ?" " Yes---s... sir, " the child very softly said. Ben got up and walked out the door and slamed it shut. Little Joe laid down on his bed and cried his heart out.
That next day at school as class was ready to begin, Miss Jones told the children that they would the spelling test first, followed by the math test. After recess, they would have the long history test.
Finally the tests were over and it was lunch time. Little Joe wasn't one bit hungry, as he was too nervous at how he had done on his tests. Miss Jones gave the children a much longer lunch period so she could grade all the tests.
Miss Jones rang the bell for the children to come back into the classroom. She looked at the students as they sat down at their desks to make sure that they had all come back into class. She looked at Little Joe and she noticed that the child was looking rather pale and very nervous, so she smiled at him.
" Class, I'm very happy at all the test results, except for a couple of you. I'm especially proud of one child in this room. Little Joseph had three perfect test papers. Very good Little Joe," said Miss Jones with a big smile on her face. The boy sat there with his eyes and mouth wide open, in shock at what he had just heard. He couldn't believe that he had got all his tests right. Miss Jones handed out the test papers to each child. She smiled at Little Joe as she handed him his test papers. " Thank you Miss Jones," he said.
As Miss Jones let the students out for afternoon recess, she asked Little Joe, to please come up to her desk for a minute. " Yes Miss Jones?" he asked. " Little Joe, I'm so very proud of you today. I have a favor to ask of you dear, and I hope you can help me with something after school today." she said to the boy. " Yes Miss Jones if I can, I'll be happy to help you," he answered. " I need you to help me put up the new book shelves and to also put the new books on the shelves. I will send a note home with you for your father to explain why you are late getting home." she told the boy. " Yes ma'am, I'll be happy to stay and help you out." he told her. " Thank you dear. You may go out to recess now..With that said, Little Joe headed out to recess.
Doing the book shelves took much longer than Miss Jones had thought. " Thank you so much for your help Little Joe. There was no way I could have done this without you dear. Here is the note for your father. See you tomorrow," said Miss Jones. " Bye Miss Jones.
On his way home from school, Little Joe felt so proud of himself for getting perfect test scores. He couldn't wait to show his father and his brothers his test papers. He was so happy.
" I can't believe that boy would ignore what I told him this morning before he left for school. What am I going to do with him? It's dark and he STILL isn't home yet !" Ben angrily said.
As Little Joe rode into the yard, he was met by his very angry looking father. " YOU DON'T LISTEN DO YOU BOY? ADAM WILL YOU PLEASE TAKE CARE OF HIS HORSE? Ben yelled. " Sure Pa," Adam said as he looked at his baby brother and he slowly shook his head.
Ben grabbed
his little son by the arm as he started to pull the boy towards the house,
while yelling at him. " But..
Once in the
boys' room, Ben took off his belt, and pulled the scared child across his lap
and gave the boy a tannng like he had never had before. "
Ben stormed out of the room and he slammed the door shut.
Adam and
Hoss felt so sorry for their little brother. Ben usually wouldn't punish
his sons when he was this angry, but he had totally lost control this
time. They knew that their baby brother must really hurting now, both
physically and emotionally. "
Little Joe laid on his tummy in his bed. His little bottom hurt so bad. He felt now that his father hated him, and he didn't feel very good at all. He cried until he had no tears left. He cried himself into a very restless sleep.
When he finally settled down, Ben told Adam and Hoss not to go into Little Joe's room at all. " Pa, I hate to question you, but I...I mean Hoss and I think you were much too hard on Little Joe. Pa, you might have injured him, from what we could hear from down here," Adam said to Ben. " That's just too bad Adam. That boy just doesn't learn," said Ben loudly. " Pa, you didn't give him a chance to say why he was so late tonight," said Hoss softly. Boys look, I'm sick and tired of hearing all those so called excuses that that boy keeps coming up with. It's like he could care less as to what I tell him," said Ben
Next morning Ben asked Hoss to get Little Joe up for breakfast. As Hoss opened the door to his little brother's room, his heart just about broke at the sight of the child still dressed in the clothes from the day before. His little sweet face was tear streaked, and he was laying on his tummy. The boy was still sobbing in his restless sleep. Hoss was so angry with Ben for what he had done to his baby brother. He sat down on the bed and he very gently rubbed the child's back. " Punkin, it's time to get up. Come on little brother open yer eyes now," Hoss said softly. The boy slowly turned his head towards his big brother, and he gently turned onto his side. He reached up to Hoss and he cried his heart out again. " It's alright punkin. Are ya OK, baby?" asked Hoss. " I don't feel good Hoss and I hurt so much," the crying child said in between sobs. Hoss very gently picked up his little brother and held him close. He could feel how hard this child was trembling.
" What is taking those brothers of yours so long up there?" asked Ben. " Would you like me to go up and get them?" asked Adam. " Yes, Adam. Thank you," Ben said.
When Adam got up to his little brothers' room his heart broke as he saw his two brothers. He could see Hoss trying to comfort their little brother. He could hear the child's crying, and he could see the trembling in the child's body. He walked over to his brothers and he ran his fingers through the soft curly hair of his baby brother. " Hey, what's going on up here?" questioned Adam. Hoss, is Little Joe alright?" " No he ain't Adam. He's hurt, scared and exhausted," Hoss said with tears running down his face too. Adam was very concerned about Little Joe after he had a look at him.
" Hoss, why don't you go down and have your breakfast. Let me sit here with Little Joe," Adam softly said. " Punkin, Adam will hold ya now, OK?" Hoss said. The child let go of Hoss. Hoss stood up and Adam took his place on the bed, and he picked up his little brother.
Hoss sat down at the table not looking at Ben. " Well, whats going on up there?"Ben asked Hoss. " What do you care Pa," Hoss angrily told Ben. " What is wrong with you three anyway. I can't get any answers from you or Adam," Ben said as he got up and headed towards the door and left the house.
Ben rode into town for a business meeting and to get the mail from the last several days. He wouldn't be back home until early evening.
Hoss looked
up when he heard Adam coming down the stairs. " Is Little Joe OK
Adam?" asked Hoss. " He's finally asleep. I'm going to
keep him home from school today, since he isn't feeling good. I don't
think he would be able to sit down anyway. That poor little boy is
totally exhausted Hoss. Why don't you stay home with him today, and in a
couple of hours, see if you and Hop Sing can get some food into him.
It's a good thing Pa isn't here or I would let him have it. I'll be back
around
A couple of hours later, Hoss went up to Little Joe's room with some breakfast for the boy. He sat the tray down and gently woke up his little brother. " Hey short shanks, I brung ya some breakfast," Hoss said as he gently rubbed the boys' back. " Hi Hoss," he child very softly said. " Are ya hungry little brother?" Hoss asked. " Not very Hoss, but I will try to eat just a little," the child said. As the child slowly ate, Hoss stayed in the room and talked to the boy. " I'm done Hoss," he said. " Sure ya can't eat some more baby? Ya only took took two bites of food. " My tummy hurts Hoss. I'm late for school too," said a now worried boy. " You can stay home today punkin. It's Friday, so you can rest up. I'm stayin' home with ya to keep ya company," Hoss told the child. " Does Pa know I'm stayin' home?" asked the boy. " No he doesn't. Adam wanted you to stay home and rest," Hoss told the boy. " Adam said that?" questioned Little Joe. " Yup, he sure did baby," Hoss noticed his little brother's eyes starting to close. " Why don't ya get some more sleep, punkin." said Hoss. " Thanks Hoss," said the yawning boy.
Hoss could tell his baby brother was still very upset. He sat there and watched him sleep for a few minutes.
That night
at dinner, Ben told Adam and Hoss that an old friend and his wife would be
here tomorrow for a couple of days, while on their way to
" Pa, ya gonna let Little Joe out of his room?" asked Hoss.
" No I'm not Hoss. That boy can stay in his room til Monday," said Ben " Come on Pa, that little boy is really hurting and he needs you back in his life," said Adam. " When was the last time you saw him or talked to him Pa?" asked Hoss. " Yesterday up in his room when I tanned him," said Ben " You mean you haven't even talked to him since then.?" Adam questioned. " No, I haven't, and I don't intend on seeing him until Monday. So that's enough about him now !" Ben told his sons. Adam and Hoss looked at each other and shook their heads.
The next
morning Ben went into town to pick up
As
They talked all the way to the ranch. " Oh Ben, it's so beautiful here," said Cheryl as she looked around. " Thank you. We all love it here," said Ben proudly. " Ben we can't wait to meet your sons," Chad said. " They are fine boys. Adam graduated from Harvard a few months ago. He is 23 years old now. Hoss is 17 years old, and he works full time at the ranch, as does Adam. We love living on the Ponderosa. It's been a lot of hard work, but it's well worth it." Ben said. " Ben, don't you have a third son also?" asked Chad. " Yes, you are right. Little Joe is ten years old, and he is always in trouble of some kind. I'm at my wits end with that boy. In fact, he is confined to his room until Monday. That boy is nothing but trouble. Well, here we are," said Ben. " Ben, this wonderful ! said Chad as he looked at the house. After they got out of the carriage, Adam and Hoss came out . " Chad, Cheryl, these are my two son's, Adam and Hoss. " It's so nice to meet both of you," they said. " It's very nice to meet you two also," said Chad.
Adam and Hoss took the luggage into the house and up to the guest room. " Adam, did you hear the way Pa said 'his two sons'? He didn't even mention Little Joe," said Hoss sadly. " Yes, I did hear that, and I didn't like it one bit either," said Adam angrily.
During dinner that night, Chad talked about the military school he worked at. " That sounds like a good place to send my youngest son. He is out of control. I can't do anything with that boy," Ben told Chad. Hoss and Adam both looked at each other. " Pa, you can't be serious about sending Little Joe to military school," said Adam. " I'm thinking about it Adam. It just might be what that boy needs," Ben said. Hoss heard about all he wanted to hear. " Please excuse me, I have chores to do," he said, as he got up and walked out the door. " I've got chores also," said Adam as he too got up and left.
" Ben, I'd really love to meet Little Joe and have a little talk with him if it's alright with you," asked Chad. " Sure Chad, I'll show you the way. I'll be right back Cheryl," said Ben as he and Chad got up and walked up the stairs.
When they got to Little Joe's room, Ben wished him luck with the boy. Ben left to rejoin Cheryl down stairs. Chad knocked on the door. " Come in," said the boy in a soft voice. Chad opened the door and walked in. Little Joe stood right up, not knowing who the man was. " Hi Little Joe. My name is Chad Thompson. I'm an old friend of your father. " Hi Mr. Thompson. It's nice to meet you. Please sit down," Little Joe told him as he pointed to the chair. " Thank you," Chad told him. Little Joe sat down on his bed. " So, how are you Little Joe?" asked Chad. " I'm fine sir," said the boy. " That's good son. What do you like to do for fun?"had asked the boy. He could tell the child was very nervous. " I love to fish, and play with my friends. I love horses. Some day I want to handle to horse business here on the ranch, and break horses too." Little Joe told Chad. " Well, that sounds very interesting Little Joe. " Sir, what do you like to do for fun?" asked the child. " Well son, I love to sail, and fish. I'm also the head professor at a big military school in New England," Chad said. He noticed the boys' face turn very pale. " Are you alright Little Joe?" asked a concerned Chad. " Yes sir. My tummy is upset," the boy softly said. " Oh, would you like me to get your father for you?" asked Chad. " No thank you sir," said the boy, who was very near tears by now. " It was so nice to meet you little Joe. I hope we can be friends," Chad said to him as he stood up to leave. " It was also very nice to meet you too sir," said the boy. As soon as Chad left his room, Little Joe laid on his bed and he cried into his pillow. Now he knew his father hated him.
Chad came back down stairs and said to Ben, " Ben, that little boy is so charming, and he is so good looking too. He is also very polite as well. I don't think he is feeling very well. He is very pale, and he seems so sad about something. He said his stomach is hurting." " Chad, don't worry about him. He is fine," said Ben. " Ben, he's nothing like the trouble maker you said he was," said Chad. " Chad, he is just trying to be charming is all," said Ben.
" Ben, can I go up and meet him please?" asked Cheryl. " If you really want. It's the closed door on the right hand side of the hall.," Ben told her.
Cheryl knocked on the door, and she heard a very soft, " Come in." As she opened the door, she saw the little curly haired boy laying on his bed. He got right up and he wiped his eyes on his shirt sleeve. " Hi honey. I'm Cheryl Thompson . " Hi ma'am," said the child. She could tell he had been crying, and it almost broke her heart. " I'm really happy to meet you sweetheart. I've been wanting to meet you ever since we got here earlier today." " It's nice to meet you you too. I'm sorry I couldn't come down stairs and meet you earlier, but I have ta stay in my room til Monday," he softly told her. Cheryl sat down on the bed, and she asked Little Joe to come and sit next to her, which he did.
" Your father tells me that you look just like your mother," she said. " Yes ma'am, but I don't remember her too much.. That's her picture on the dresser," he said as he pointed to it. " You sure do look like her honey. She was a beautiful woman," Cheryl told the boy. " Yes she was. Thank you for saying that about my mama," he said quietly. Cheryl could tell this little boy was very upset about something. " How is your tummy feeling? Chad said you didn't feel very well," she said. " It's just upset. I'll be alright ma'am." the child told her.
" You know honey, I have a grandson who is 12 years old and he loves horses too.," Cheryl said. " Ya do. I love horses too ma'am. " I bet you can handle a horse very well can't you?" she asked. " Oh, yes ma'am. I have my own horse named Bear. When I get bigger I wanna break horses too," said Little Joe. ' My, that sounds very dangerous," said Cheryl. " Yes it is, but ya really have ta out think the horse as to what his next moves are," Little Joe proudly told her. " You know honey, I have a feeling that you will be very good at breaking horses. Well, I had better get back down stairs or Chad will come up here looking for me. It was so wonderfuul to meet you Little Joe," Cheryl told him as she gave him a big hug and kiss on his head. " It was nice to meet you too ma'am," he said he.
" Oh Ben, what a perfectly sweet little boy he is. and he's so cute too. I also think you are very wrong about that little boy," Cheryl told him. " Thank you for what you said about the boy Cheryl. He can be very charming when he wants to," said Ben. " From everything we have heard about the child, he sounds like a typical ten year old boy. Ben, I know I shouldn't tell you how to raise that child, but, that little boy up there is really hurting. He is so sad about something," Cheryl told him. " Ben, Cheryl is right. I see a lot of boys at school, and I know when a child is troubled by something. You need to have a talk with him, and get to the bottom of what is bothering him, and Ben, that little boy doesn't need to be sent to a military school. That would be the worse thing you could do to him." Chad told Ben.
Ben just sighed and said, " I guess I should have let him explain why he was so late getting home from school the other day. He tried to tell me, but I wouldn't let him. Adam and Hoss have been telling me the same thing too."
The next
morning Ben drove Chad and Cheryl into Virginia City to get the stage for San
Francisco. " I really wish we could stay longer Ben, but I have
to get the that convention. We really enjoyed seeing you, and meeting
your wonderful sons. The Ponderosa is so wonderful. It's like
heaven on earth,"
Ben stood there and watched till the stage was out of sight. He then turned and headed to check on the mail. " Mr. Cartwright," Ben stopped to see who was calling him. Miss Jones was heading his way. " Hi Miss Jones. How are you today?" Ben greeted her. " I'm fine thank you. How is Little Joseph ? He wasn't at school the other day. I hope the child isn't ill," she asked. " He wasn't feeling well from what Adam said. I had already left the ranch before Little Joe woke up. Adam thought he should stay in bed for the day. He keeps saying his stomach is upset." Ben told her. " That poor boy. I hope he feels better soon. You must be so proud of him Mr. Cartwright. I sure am," she said. Ben seemed confused. " Oh, I don't know what you are talking about Miss Jones. Please tell me," Ben asked her. " Well, I'm surprised Little Joe didn't tell you or show you his test papers. He had perfect scores on all three of his tests the other day, and I might add, he was the only child who had perfect scores too. One was a spelling test. One was a math test ,and the other one was a long history test," Miss Jones told Ben. Ben suddenly felt bad. He had no idea about the tests. " I'm sorry, I had no idea Miss Jones. I guess I was so angry with him for getting home so late, that I didn't let him tell me anything," Ben said softly. " Mr. Cartwright, I did send a note home with the boy explaining why he was so late. Didn't he give it to you?" she asked. " Oh, what have I done ? Again, I didn't give the boy a chance to do or say anything," Ben said feeling very ashamed at himself. " Miss Jones, I can't thank you enough for telling me all this. I have a lot to say to my son," Ben said.
After he picked up the mail, Ben rode home. He kept thinking of just what he had to say to his little heart broken boy.
THE END OF PART ONE