The story revolves around a group of ponies, including the narrator, who are trying to understand a long-standing feud between their family and another family of ponies. They visit their grandmother, who tells them the story of how the feud began. She explains that the two families used to be friends and were even related by marriage, but a misunderstanding led to a bitter rivalry. The grandmother also shares the story of how the narrator's parents fell in love and got married in secret, despite their families' animosity towards each other.
The narrator and their friends then visit other ponies who were close to their parents, including a pony who sold firewood and a baker who helped the parents with their secret wedding. The baker shares the story of how the parents got married, and the narrator begins to understand the complexities of their family's history.
As the story unfolds, the narrator and their friends meet their grandparents, who had been estranged from them due to the feud. The grandparents apologize for their past behavior and welcome the narrator and their friends into their family. The story concludes with the narrator feeling more connected to their family and understanding the importance of forgiveness and reconciliation.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. The speaker is back in Pony Build after a long time.
2. The speaker has opened a famous pear jelly store in Vancouver.
3. The speaker needed a change of pace, which is why they left Pony Build.
4. There is a long-standing feud between the apples and the dogs.
5. The speaker's grandmother knows the history of the feud.
6. The grandmother has a stack of books that tell the story of the apple family.
7. The story involves a fight between the apples and the bears.
8. The grandmother's eyes are no longer what they used to be.
9. The speaker's parents were called Copper and were known for their honesty.
10. The speaker's mother was a performer.
11. The speaker's father had a nickname that was given to him by his friend.
12. The speaker's parents had a romantic gesture made by someone named Brightman.
13. The speaker's parents got married in a secret ceremony.
14. The ceremony was officiated by someone named Wright Max.
15. The speaker's parents made a vow to love each other.
16. The speaker's family is moving to Vancouver.
17. The speaker's family will expand their business and make jelly.
18. The speaker's family wants to get away from the annoying apples.
19. The speaker's family will have three intact lands in Vancouver.
20. The speaker's family will have a warehouse to make jelly.
21. The speaker's family will move away from the blue ones, who are also their family.
22. The speaker's family will choose between being nice and being a shovel.
23. The speaker's family will have to make a difficult decision.
24. The speaker's family will talk to their two grandparents.
25. The speaker's family will learn about their plans and their grandfather.
26. The speaker's family will find out that their parents had a secret wedding.
27. The speaker's family will learn about their parents' love story.
28. The speaker's family will find out that their parents were married by Wright Max.
29. The speaker's family will learn about the romantic gesture made by Brightman.
30. The speaker's family will find out that their parents made a vow to love each other.