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The Unforgettable Gift
     
    Ryan stared at Rachel. He loved her just as much as any boy could
love a cow. She was the most beautiful and friendly cow he’d ever met, which
might not have said much, since he only knew several.
                    “Hey, girl,” Ryan stroked her head so gently you’d
think he was afraid of breaking her. The cow just stared back at him. Ryan
could never really know this, but he could almost swear that Rachel did
actually understand him. There was just something about the gleam in her eyes.
Ryan knew animals were more intelligent than people gave them credit for.
Sometimes, and in many different ways, he knew they were a lot smarter. He
treated Rachel like a dear old friend. “You know what I have to do, don’t you?”
he whispered wistfully.
                    Ryan lived a simple life; he lived on a farm right
outside town with his father. They owned a meat shop in the city, selling meat
from the chicken, cattle and pigs they grew on the farm. They didn’t believe in
the way commercial meat was grown and packed; the modern husbandry practices
that involved animals being kept in small stalls where they could barely move.
They believed that free-range meat was better for both the animals and the
people. The meat ends up tougher, but more flavourful. They didn’t make or have
a lot of money, but it was enough to keep them alive and well.
    This simple life suited Ryan; he loved it. He
loved the raw and innocent ways of animals and all the naturalness of the
outskirts. The air was fresh, the surroundings were quite, and he had much time
to read. Anything; newspapers, magazine, and sometimes books. He didn’t
understand the values and priorities of city folk. He hated the big city and
all the noise and pollution. He hated how city folk felt so much better than
everyone else, and how rude they were to each other. They always seemed to be
in a hurry, never relaxing. He couldn’t imagine living like that.
    The only thing that might convince Ryan that
the city wasn’t as bad as he thought would be his urban girlfriend, Amy. She
was the sweetest, kindest and most beautiful girl he ever knew. She was also
quite wealthy, and her parents never approved of them. He always felt insecure,
because he knew he couldn’t provide what other guys could. This made her even
more of an angel; the fact that she saw past the dirty, poor farm boy and saw
someone better.
    He’d met her when she came into their meat
shop. She’d been looking for ribs to barbeque on her father’s birthday. Ryan
found her to be quite endearing, kind and innocent. Amy found him charming and
gentle for someone who seemed rugged as well. He explained everything he knew
about ribs, and then spent his lunch break talking about life on the farm. She
admitted that she’d never been to one. Ryan said that if she agreed to go out
with him, their first date would be to the farm. Amy happily accepted.
    Next month was going to be Amy’s birthday,
and Ryan wanted to give her something really special. Being from “high-class
society”, he figured that she liked jewellery a lot, so he wanted to get her a
nice necklace. But selling free-range meat could never earn enough for one that
would satisfy Ryan’s need to satisfy his girlfriend. So he decided to make one.

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    Ryan tried using shells; rope, rocks,
flowers and clay, but none could match the beauty of his girlfriend. Plus, he
didn’t trust his own sense of aesthetic. He had a simple life and preferred
simple things. What seemed unnecessary and ostentatious to him seemed to be
what people from the city considered beautiful. He knew that Amy wasn’t too
much like other city folk, and it was one of the things he loved about her, but
he couldn’t overlook the fact that her likes were also influenced by that.
    So, as he was tried to come up with ideas,
he thought of something so brilliant that he was determined to do it, no matter
what the cost. He loved Amy,