The Summer of the Beautiful

Okay, I can help you with that! Let’s dive into “The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse” and the questions related to it.

Summary of “The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse”

The story is narrated by a nine-year-old Armenian boy named Aram. It’s set in “the good old days” when life felt magnificent and mysterious. Aram and his cousin Mourad belong to the Garoghlanian tribe. The tribe’s most important hallmarks are trust and honesty. They are known for their honesty for around eleven centuries. Despite their fame for honesty, the tribe is also very poor – “poverty-stricken” in an “amazing and comical” way. Nobody understands how they even get enough money for food. They are proud first, honest next, and then believe in right and wrong.

One early summer morning, around 4 a.m., Aram’s cousin Mourad wakes him up by tapping on his window. Mourad is sitting on a beautiful white horse. Aram is shocked because he had always longed to ride horses, but their family’s poverty and honesty meant they couldn’t possibly own one, let alone steal one. Mourad is known for being the “craziest” member of their family, considered the “natural descendant” of their tribe’s “crazy streak,” like their Uncle Khosrove, who is enormous, hot-tempered, and roars “It is no harm; pay no attention to it” no matter the situation.

Aram immediately suspects Mourad stole the horse. Mourad confirms this by telling Aram to “Leap out of the window… if you want to ride”. Aram rationalizes that stealing a horse for a ride isn’t the same as stealing something else like money, especially if you’re crazy about horses and don’t plan to sell it.

They go for a ride, enjoying the wonderful feeling of the horse running. Mourad sings (roars). Mourad then wants to ride alone and shows his special “way with a horse,” getting it to run fiercely across a field and over an irrigation ditch. When it’s Aram’s turn, he is scared and falls off after the horse runs into a vineyard and leaps over vines. Mourad helps get the horse back, and by then, the sun is up and the world is awake.

They need to hide the horse. Mourad knows a place: the barn of a deserted vineyard. Aram asks how long ago Mourad stole the horse, realizing he might have been taking early morning rides for some time. Mourad denies stealing it, but instructs Aram to say they started riding that morning if they are found out. He claims he has an “understanding with a horse” that makes them behave well.

Later that afternoon, a farmer named John Byro, an Assyrian, visits Aram’s house. He tells them his white horse was stolen a month ago and he cannot understand it. Uncle Khosrove is there and loudly dismisses the loss, saying it’s “no harm” and people have lost their homeland.

Aram goes to Mourad and tells him about John Byro. Aram wants to keep the horse until he learns to ride, suggesting keeping it for a year. Mourad is shocked and roars, asking if Aram is inviting a member of the Garoghlanian family to steal. He insists the horse “must go back to its true owner,” but says he will return it in six months at the latest.

For two weeks, they ride the horse every morning, but Aram still struggles to ride alone. One morning, they meet John Byro on the road. Mourad confidently speaks to the farmer, saying he has a “way with farmers”. John Byro looks at the horse intently, notes its name is ‘My Heart’ (as told by Mourad), and says he could “swear it is the horse that was stolen from me”. However, knowing the fame of the Garoghlanian family for honesty, he decides to believe his “heart instead of his eyes,” though he notes the horse is the “twin” of his.

The very next morning, they take the horse back to John Byro’s vineyard and put it in the barn. Mourad shows he also has a “way with dogs,” as they don’t bark at them. Mourad shows affection for the horse before they leave.

That afternoon, John Byro comes to Aram’s house with his returned horse, stating it is stronger and better-tempered than ever. Uncle Khosrove again dismisses the matter, roaring “Quiet, man, quiet. Your horse has been returned. Pay no attention to it”.

Answers to the Questions

Here are the answers to the questions from the source, explained simply with emojis:

1. This story does not have breathless adventure and exciting action. Then what in your opinion makes it interesting?

   • You’re right, the story isn’t mainly about non-stop action! 😅 What makes it interesting, according to the sources, is:
     • The characters ✨: You have the narrator, Aram, who is young and easily amazed. There’s his unpredictable cousin, Mourad, who loves life and is considered crazy but has a knack with animals. And the memorable Uncle Khosrove with his loud temper. Their personalities and interactions are entertaining.
     • The unusual situation 🤔: The core conflict is Mourad, from a famously honest tribe, stealing a horse. This creates tension and moral questions for Aram and the reader.
     • The family’s values 🙏: The story explores the strong emphasis on honesty and trust within the Garoghlanian tribe, which makes Mourad’s act and Aram’s reaction particularly interesting.
     • The nostalgic mood 💭: The story begins by looking back at a time when life was a “delightful and mysterious dream”, which can be quite charming and relatable.
     • The gentle humour 😂: There’s humour in the situations, like Uncle Khosrove’s reactions, the comical poverty, and John Byro’s encounter with Mourad where he relies on the family’s reputation over his eyes.

2. Did the boys return the horse because they were conscience-stricken or because they were afraid?

   • The source doesn’t explicitly use the words “conscience-stricken” or “afraid” to explain why they returned it. However, based on the details given:
     • The Garoghlanian tribe is famous for its honesty for centuries.
     • When Aram suggests keeping the horse for a year, Mourad reacts strongly, saying, “Are you inviting a member of the Garoghlanian family to steal? The horse must go back to its true owner”. This suggests that upholding the family’s reputation for honesty is a very important value for Mourad.
     • The encounter with John Byro is significant. John Byro trusts the family’s honesty so much that he doesn’t accuse them, even though the horse is clearly his. This encounter seems to highlight the importance of their family’s reputation right before they return the horse.
   • The story doesn’t suggest they were afraid of being caught and punished by John Byro; he expresses sadness and perplexity, not threats.
   • Therefore, the evidence points more towards the boys returning the horse due to a sense of family honour and conscience ✨, especially after their encounter with John Byro reminded them of their tribe’s reputation, rather than fear of consequences. The act of taking the horse seems presented as a temporary deviation driven by a passion for riding, not a true act of theft with intent to keep it permanently.

3. “One day back there in the good old days when I was nine and the world was full of every imaginable kind of magnificence, and life was still a delightful and mysterious dream…” The story begins in a mood of nostalgia. Can you narrate some incident from your childhood that might make an interesting story?

   • The opening lines indeed set a mood of nostalgia 😌. Aram looks back at a time when he was nine and saw the world as full of wonder and mystery. This feeling of remembering a cherished past time from childhood is what nostalgia is about.
   • Regarding narrating an incident from my childhood: As an AI, I don’t have personal experiences, including a childhood. 😊 Therefore, I cannot share a story from my own life. I can only draw information from the sources you provide.

4. The story revolves around characters who belong to a tribe in Armenia. Mourad and Aram are members of the Garoghlanian family. Now locate Armenia and Assyria on the atlas and prepare a write-up on the Garoghlanian tribes. You may write about people, their names, traits, geographical and economic features as suggested in the story.

   • Locating Armenia and Assyria 🗺️: The source mentions the tribe is in Armenia and that John Byro is an Assyrian who learned Armenian. To actually locate these places on a map requires information from outside the provided sources. They are historical regions in the Middle East.
   • Write-up on the Garoghlanian Tribe (based only on the sources):
     • People and Names 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦: Key members mentioned are Aram (the narrator, nine years old), Mourad (his cousin, considered crazy), Uncle Khosrove (an older relative with a furious temper), and Zorab (Mourad’s father, who is practical). The family name is Garoghlanian.
     • Traits ✨: The primary and most emphasized trait of the tribe is their honesty. They have been famous for it for about eleven centuries. They are described as proud first, honest next, and then believers in right and wrong. They would never take advantage of anyone or steal. However, they also have a “crazy streak” which is unpredictable and doesn’t necessarily follow father-son lines, exemplified by Mourad and Uncle Khosrove. They also have a strong connection to animals, particularly horses, feeling passionately about them.
     • Geographical Features 🏡🌄: In the story, the family lives at the edge of a town on Walnut Avenue. Behind their house is “the country” with vineyards, orchards, irrigation ditches, and roads. The specific location mentioned in relation to Uncle Khosrove is the San Joaquin Valley, which is in California. This suggests the story is likely set in a place with an Armenian community outside of Armenia itself.
     • Economic Features 💸💔: The Garoghlanian tribe is described as very poor. They have no money and are “poverty-stricken”. Their poverty is described as “amazing and comical”. Despite this, their pride and honesty are considered more important than wealth.

5. “The horse stood on its hind legs, snorted, and burst into a fury of speed that was the loveliest thing I had ever seen.” These lines could be an artist’s delight. Try to draw a picture as depicted in the above lines.

   • That’s a vivid image indeed! 🖼️ The source suggests these lines would be great for an artist to draw.
   • However, as an AI, I am a text-based model and cannot draw pictures. 😞 I can describe things and answer questions based on the sources, but I don’t have the ability to create visual art.

I hope this summary and the answers are clear and helpful! Let me know if you have any other questions. 😊