Cabbage the Golden Retriever

By J. Arthur Thomas

Names. We all have them. Some of us when we are born are named after one of our parents, maybe even a grand or great-grandparent. Others might have been named in honor of a close friend who died. But what happens when one is given a name that they don't like? Or it makes them uncomfortable or, worse yet, teased? What if they would rather be called by a nickname they came up with or a friend gave them?

Such is the dilemma of Cabbage, a golden retriever, whose given name is Wyatt Lucas but who prefers to be called Cabbage. Daily, Cabbage faces two bullies, Psycho and Manage, two brothers who make it their aim to daily torment Cabbage because of his small size and because of his nickname. Cabbage's closest and best friend is a Chihuahua with the ferocity of one hundred pit bulls and rottweilers put together. The new school year for Cabbage and his friends will undoubtedly teach them a lesson none was expecting but will leave a lifelong impression.

Join Cabbage in his first adventure where he discovers the meaning of his given name, where he learns to stand up to bullies without the use of physical force, how to not judge another wrongly without knowing who they are and where they came from and, finally, accept his given name with pride.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Newman Springs Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Dec 29, 2022
• ISBN: 9781638817697

Book preview

Cabbage the Golden Retriever

What’s in a Name?

J. Arthur Thomas

Copyright © 2022 J. Arthur Thomas

All rights reserved

First Edition

NEWMAN SPRINGS PUBLISHING

320 Broad Street

Red Bank, NJ 07701

First originally published by Newman Springs Publishing 2022

ISBN 978-1-63881-768-0 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-63881-769-7 (Digital)

Printed in the United States of America

To my daughters Connie, Iris, Hannah, and Cathylynn: my passion for whom I write.

"M onday? Cabbage groaned, looking at the wall calendar in the barn where he slept. Ugh! I can’t believe it! Why, of all days, does this have to be Monday? I hate Mondays! And it’s raining, and— Deep in the pit of his stomach, Cabbage had another dreadful feeling. It couldn’t be! It shouldn’t be! It mustn’t be!" But there in black and white, was the first day of school. How Cabbage loathed the first day of school because of new teachers, new students, and having to come out of his comfort zone. Cabbage always looked forward to three events during the school year: holiday vacations, his birthday, and, most of all, summer vacations.

Cabbage always liked Mondays—when school was out, not raining, and when the neighborhood bullies weren’t trying to torment him. He was always excited when Mondays were fast approaching as he knew his personal job on the Tokarski family farm changed. It was something he looked forward to. Mondays were something he couldn’t wait for. That was until the Paque brothers, Psycho, a black pit bull, with yellow teeth and a quick temper to match his personality, and Mange, a brown rottweiler with white paws, moved into the neighborhood.

If ever there was a picture definition of trouble, these two were it in living color. Before deciding that their greatest joy was terrorizing Cabbage and his friends, Psycho and Mange repeatedly went around the neighborhood,