Tense & Perspective Exercise One

I peddle my bike over the short grass of the playground. My brother is peddling his bike beside me. My dad is waiting at the step-over-the-fence. We reach the step-over-the-fence and Dad lifts our bikes over it. He is very strong and tall. We climb over the step-over-the-fence and get back on our bikes. We are in a big field. It has lots of cows in, but they are far away.1

I and my brother peddle our bikes along the edge of the field towards the step-over-the-fence at the other end. We are going faster than Dad, who is walking some distance behind. We begin to race each other. It is fun.2

When we are halfway across the field, we begin to notice the cows are all looking at us. We keep going, but some of them begin to walk towards us. We begin to get scared, and peddle faster. Then, some of the cows begin to run towards us. Their feet make the ground shake. We are very frightened, and begin to peddle faster and faster. Now all of the cows are running. Their silence makes them scary, and it feels like I am in a dream.3

My brother falls behind me. He is not as fast as me. He gets stuck in a tuft of grass and calls to me desperately, but I keep on going. I am too scared to go back to him. My fear overrides my guilt. I don’t know why the cows are chasing us.4

I get to the step-over-the-fence and look back. My brother has freed himself and is approaching the step-over-the-fence. I am glad he is not going to be trampled by the nasty cows. I give him my hand and help him over the fence.5

I and my brother get behind the fence. We see the cows have stopped chasing us. They have gone after Dad instead. He stands in the middle of the field, like a giant. He is very angry. He is shouting and waving his arms around, even slapping the cows that get too close. They crowd around him in a thick circle, but he does not move. We are very scared for him, and full of wonder that our dad is not scared by so many big cows.6

But still, we see he is in danger. We think something bad could happen to him. We climb back over the fence and run to him. If he is going to die, we want to be with him. We don’t want to never see him again. We don’t want him to be alone, even though he is so strong and fearless.7

When we reach him, the cows are still very close, and he is slapping a lot of them and shouting at them. Eventually, they begin to wander away, and the circle gets thinner. Dad walks away from them and takes our hands. ‘Why did they chase us, Dad?’ I ask.8

‘Because they’re stupid,’ he replies.9

‘Why didn’t they trample you?’ I ask.10

‘I stood my ground and wasn’t afraid,’ he says.11

‘Oh,’ I say. I am full of admiration for my Dad, who is so big and strong. It seems like nothing can touch him. My heart is beating quickly and my legs feel weak, but I know we are safe. I feel protected while Dad holds my hand.12