Pancake’s Big Show

Pancake was a pony as round as a warm pancake and as fluffy as a dandelion puff. His hooves sang, “clip, clop, clippity-clop,” and his nose liked to visit pockets.

Mia was Pancake’s rider. She brushed his soft coat until it shone, straightened his tiny saddle, and set a small blue bow in his mane. “Show time,” Mia said. Pancake sniffed her jacket. “Neigh-um?” he asked, which clearly meant, “Carrots?”

They went to the Sunny Field Fun Show. Bright banners fluttered. Cones stood like little orange soldiers. Jumps were painted like strawberries, toast, and jelly. The air smelled like hay and popcorn. Pancake tried to eat the air.

“Helmet on, heels down,” said Mia’s coach, Mr. Tom. “And no nibbling the decorations.” He looked at Pancake. Pancake pretended not to hear and made his best innocent face. It was very round.

In the warm-up ring, Pancake walked proudly. “Clip, clop,” went his hooves. “Snack, snack,” whispered his nose. He followed a bumblebee by accident and then sneezed—“NEIGH-CHOO!”—so hard Mia bounced like a pea on a spoon. She giggled and patted his neck. “Bless you, Pancake.”

First came the Teeny Trot Test. Mia read the letters by the fence. “We make circles like pancakes,” she told him, “and squiggles like noodles.” Pancake loved both those words. He wiggled his ears and made a very round circle. Then he made a noodle shape that looked a bit like a curly fry.

The judge smiled and wrote, “Enthusiastic.” Pancake tried to read over the judge’s shoulder. He accidentally snuffled the clipboard. “Not a snack!” Mia whispered, laughing.

Next was the Wee-Jump Course. The jumps were tiny, but Pancake was large in spirit. He eyed the toast jump, licked the strawberry paint (just a little lick), and then—boing!—he popped over like a happy frog. “Wheee!” said Mia. “Wheee!” agreed Pancake with his tail.

Over the jelly jump, Pancake leaped extra high. His legs went “tuck, tuck!” and Mia’s bow did a little dance. The crowd clapped. Pancake looked very pleased and bowed his head, which accidentally booped a flower pot. “Oops,” said Mia. “The flower is fine.” The flower seemed surprised.

Last was the Bendy Pole Weave. Orange cones lined up, very serious. Pancake began: left, right, left, right. He tickled the first cone with his whiskers. It giggled (in a cone kind of way) and wobbled. Pancake snorted. “Excuse me, cone.” He tried again: left, right, left. A hat blew off a boy in the crowd. Pancake caught it on one ear and pranced on proudly, a pony with a hat. Mia stopped, set the hat back on the boy, and gave Pancake a pat. “Lovely hat, wrong pony,” she said.

They finished with a tidy trot and a tiny bow—Mia bowed from the saddle, and Pancake bowed his nose to his chest. The judge announced, “What a cheerful pair! Please welcome Mia and Pancake to the ribbon rail!”

Ribbons shone in the sun—blue, red, yellow, green, and one with polka dots. Pancake stared very hard at the polka dots. They looked like snacks. The judge pinned a ribbon on Mia’s shirt that said, “Best Giggles.” Mr. Tom pinned a matching one on Pancake’s bridle that said, “Happiest Hooves.”

“Clip, clop, clippity-hip-hop!” sang Pancake on the way back to the trailer. Mia gave him crunchy carrots shaped like tiny pancakes. Pancake crunched and smiled with his whole face. He tried to lick Mia’s cheek but got her helmet instead. “Not a snack!” Mia reminded, still laughing.

As they headed home, the banners waved goodbye, the cones stood tall again, and the jumps waited for the next silly day. Pancake swished his tail, full of carrots and pride. He wasn’t the biggest pony, or the neatest pony, but he was the funniest pony with the happiest hooves, and his clip-clops made the whole show smile.