Five Gates to Count

On Cox Road farms, gates keep jobs honest. Spike sat at the first timber latch.

Five gates today, he said. We count each one closed. A gate that is almost shut is still open in the story that matters.

Suzy zoomed to gate one — explore first — and rattled the latch gently. Closed. One.

Gate two leaned. Spike STOP-LOOK-THINKED. The stick in the gap was not a plan. He pulled the stick. Suzy shut the latch. Two.

Gate three was fine. Three. Gate four needed a bump from Spike’s shoulder. Four.

Gate five looked shut until Suzy noticed the chain hanging loose. Not magic. Looking.

Five gates. Five closed counts, Spike said. If we had counted feelings instead of latches, we would have been wrong.

Canberra started a quiet line as if the cattle approved of numbers done properly. Little Thunder stood at the rails and did not announce a better count.

You can count gates with us, Suzy told you. Touch each latch in your mind: one, two, three, four, five.

Farm maths is often just finishing the check you started.

Five gates. Five honest closes.