Homestead Ranch

By Arika Horner

Veronica, an accelerated business student, lives on her family farm, Homestead Ranch, in Salyersville, Kentucky. Growing up, she took an interest in writing fiction and poetry when she wasn’t helping out on the ranch. Her father pushes her to become a business student, but Veronica has other dreams along with her sister. Her world is catapulted into a new trajectory when she applies for a scholarship at New Haven, a school for young authors, and meets the guy in the red f-250.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: May 19, 2022
• ISBN: 9781665560085

Arika Horner

Arika Horner spent her free time writing as a child. But she didn’t think much of it. When she entered college, she realized her passion for writing after a professor thoroughly enjoyed her work. In April of 2022, Horner graduated from Western Michigan University with a Bachelor’s degree in English focusing on Creative Writing and Journalism, and lives with her fiancé. She hopes her stories will inspire others to follow their dreams.

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© 2022 Arika Horner. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or

transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse  05/18/2022

ISBN: 978-1-6655-6009-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6655-6008-5 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in

this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views

expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the

views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled

by, And that has made all the difference." – Robert Frost

"That’s the only way I know

Don’t stop ‘til everything’s gone

Straight ahead, never turn round

Don’t back up, don’t back down

Full throttle, wide open

You get tired and you don’t show it

Dig a little deeper when you think you can’t dig no more

That’s the only way I know" – Jason Aldean,

featuring Luke Bryan and Eric Church

Thank you to everyone who has listened to me,

and encouraged me to reach my dreams.

Thank you to my family for making me who I am.

I couldn’t do it without any of you.

Love you.

Contents

Chapter 1   Mamma’s Place

Chapter 2   Sisterly Bond

Chapter 3   Breaking Free

Chapter 4   Decision Making

Chapter 5   A Chance Meeting

Chapter 6   Unknown Connection

Chapter 7   New Beginnings

Chapter 8   Past to Present

Epilogue

1.jpg

Polyptych

Self-Portrait

1998-

Every part of me is represented through a multitude of pigmentation that designs my portrait. I began as a blank canvas at birth, waiting to be filled in with color. Who I am was not known? Who I became was yet to be determined? I was the OG of a black and white sitcom that aired on Friday nights when the kids were out of the house at the drive-in movies. I was the foundation of a Victorian farmhouse, with its bones ready to be sculpted with embellished millwork. I was the shallow barrel vault ceiling of the Sistine Chapel before the brush of Michelangelo’s four-year frescoes. Wait!

I felt the stroke of a No. 7 detail brush sculpting my pupil as it forms an iris. The bristles tickled my exterior as I began to see the world through different lenses. Before long, my face was formed as multitudes of painters crafted the being of my soul and designed the interludes of my identity. Wait! I felt it again. A No. 9 fan brush breached my linen canvas with a flush of coloration. It began to surface just as the impressions of orange, green, blue, red, brown, purple, and yellow became my colors of me.

For now, I am being filled in by numerous 4 x 6 panels as they become a sole. But one day, I’ll be the mosaic pallet of many others.

Orange: Vitality

1922-2011

A great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother filled with the color orange, a combination of energy and joy. Tootsie was her name, for she was as sweet as a tootsie pop on Easter morning. At the golden age of 89, cheeks still filled with rosy color and eyes twinkling with life, she cared for all. Hunger had become foreign to her as she filled the tummies that entered her home. Not a discriminative bone in her body, anyone she met became an extension of her family tree. As a child, I would walk across the field to her white two-story farmhouse, excited to see the great-grandmother that was so much more. She was the canner of pears and supplier of sweets for six children, fourteen grandchildren, and thirteen great-grandchildren. To us, her energy radiated from one generation to the next. She was the mortar to the cement of our family unit that could never be mended. Tootsie, my great-grandmother, brought the vitamin c of life to my childhood, shaping the essence of my optimistic spirit.

Green: Nature and Abundance

1947-2021

Mary, quite contrary, was far from the truth. Mary, my equine grandma, made my childhood greener. My summers were filled with instructing sessions, laughs, smiles, and horsey fun. She taught me the value of nature and the trust given by the animal. She lived and breathed essence on her family farm. Born with Spina Bifida, she lived an abundant life until she was called home. Defying most expected mental and physical debilitation cases, she finished college and made it to the Para Olympics, not once but twice, as she renewed her greenery. Her supposed weaknesses became one of her biggest strengths as she lived past the thirty-year life expectancy.

In childhood, I watched a four-foot uneven legged woman guide me through the obstacles of taming the beast. I learned to sit in the saddle with my boobs to the sky and straight lines from shoulder, hip to heel, while my elbows remained by my side. At times, I found it tedious. However, I thought if Mary could do it, I definitely could. Her desire to live in the abundance of her dreams encouraged me to achieve mine. I would watch her, thinking, wow, she doesn’t live at her limits. Is that the person I want to be in my adult life? Looking back through those memories, I remember she is the essence of my dreamer’s attitude.

Blue: Sadness

1974-2021

At 47, a godfather passed. He had diabetes due to a poor diet and a lack of insulin to fuel his cells. For many years, doctors suggested he go on insulin so that sugars