by Bob Brooks
Rhonda was planning her annual flower basket distribution. It was one of her favorite projects. For everyone her spring creations were one of the rites of the season. Each one was homemade and filled with gorgeous flowers and colored eggs. A pretty bow was attached to the handle to complete the gift. This year, there would be fifteen baskets in all.
This morning, the children went into the woods to gather sticks for the baskets. They each carried a sturdy cloth bag. There were a lot of sticks and twigs on the ground from the winter storms, but most weren’t suitable for flower baskets. They needed to be a certain shape, diameter and length. Color didn’t matter as the baskets would be painted. The children first hopped south, away from the pond, and stopped in a glade that looked promising. As they were searching the area, a voice startled them.
“Boo! What ARE you doing?” asked the voice. Then, the voice hopped off a nearby branch and landed between them. It was Shane Squirrel.
“You, really should be more polite,” said Rain.
Shane laughed and said, “I’m sorry. What are you doing?”
“We’re gathering sticks for the spring baskets,” answered Robbie.
“Can I help? I know a place where there are a lot of sticks.”
Shane spent more time in the forest than they and knew better where to find things.
“Sure,” answered Rachel.
“I’ll climb up in the trees and lead you to them. It’s not very far.”
In an instant he bounded up a nearby pine tree and sat on its lowest branch about fifteen feet off of the ground. He said, “Let’s go.” He jumped from branch to branch in a southerly direction. Shane was a pretty fast branch jumper and had to slow down occasionally to let the rabbits catch up. After about ten minutes he stopped and pointed down to a large pile of interesting looking sticks. Unfortunately, the pile was on the other side of a creek that they would have to cross. This was the same creek that flowed from the pond.
Shane saw the problem and said, “There’s a small tree that has fallen across the creek up there,” and pointed about twenty feet upstream.
The creek was about five feet wide at that point. The tree trunk was pretty narrow, but they managed to hop across it safely. Once on the other side, they went to the pile of sticks. It was a very good collection. Apparently, the sticks had floated downstream and had been trapped where the creek turned. The rabbits dug through the pile and quickly chose all of the sticks they needed.
However, their bags were heavy now and a little difficult to carry. That would make recrossing the creek more of a challenge. Rachel went first, a little wobbly but successful. Rain was next, a little wobbly but successful. Robbie was last, a little wobbly but,”whoa!” he yelled as he tumbled in the air off of the tree trunk. Splash! Splash! Gurgle! He stood up in the cold water totally soaked and covered with some kind of weed, which was in the water. Everyone but Robbie thought it was very funny. He also lost his bag, but it was caught by the stick pile when it floated downstream.
As his stick bag was still on the wrong side of the creek, he had to go back and retrieve it. Since he was already in the water, he couldn’t get any wetter, so he hopped down the creek and picked up his bag. Then, he hopped back across the creek to where the others were waiting and still laughing. He crawled up the bank and shook himself vigorously, thereby, wetting Rachel and Rain.
“Hey,” they protested.
Now, Robbie got to laugh. After everyone settled down, his sisters helped him pick the weeds out of his fur. Shane watched the whole comedy from the safety of a dry tree. When they were finally ready to go home, they thanked Shane for his help and followed their own path back the way they had come.
While the children were gathering sticks, Rhonda was tending the garden. She got up early and was enjoying the day. One of the pleasures of arising early, was to watch her bumblebees begin their daily routine. Of course, they weren’t her bumblebees, but she liked to think of them that way. A few years ago in March, she built four nests out of flower pots, hose, and a few other things. She placed one nest at each corner of the garden and waited. In a few weeks she had bees. She was surprised at how quickly they arrived and always wondered from where they came.
Were they waiting patiently for her to build the nests?
Bumblebees are sociable creatures and they quickly formed a mutually beneficial relationship with Rhonda and her garden. There were about a hundred bees in each nest, and each morning a squadron of bees could be seen leaving to begin their day. After a quick flyover each group settled down in their quarter of the garden. They kept busy with pollinating and nectar gathering. It also seemed to Rhonda that the bug population had decreased since the bees moved in. She was very pleased with the arrangement and, apparently, so were the bees.
As Rhonda hopped through the garden, she noticed that several leaves on her rose bushes looked brownish. The leaves should have been a healthy, spring green. She picked a leaf and examined it. There was no evidence of insects; it was simply brown and dry. That was most disturbing. She reviewed the care she has given the roses. The bushes were three years old. They were properly spaced and watered as needed. She was diligent in removing insects such as Japanese beetles, but it was too early in the season for them. There was no obvious answer.
She decided to send a sample leaf to Bartholomew and ask him if he could look in his plant books. But, right now, the weeds needed pulling. As she was removing them from between the rose bushes, she felt like someone was watching her. She turned to the left, and indeed, there was a worm staring at her from a small hole in the ground. Only his head was above the dirt. As soon as she looked at him, he disappeared down his hole. She laughed and resumed the weed pulling. A minute later, the worm was back. Again, she turned and again, he hid. Now, she kept her gaze on the small hole. In another minute his little head appeared for the third time.
“Caught you,” she laughed, and down he went. Are we playing ‘hide and seek’, she thought.
“I would love to play ‘hide and seek’ with you Mr. Worm, but I have so many weeds to pull. Perhaps, we can play later,” she said.
It was good to have worms in your garden because they aerate the soil, and plants love aerated soil. There were a lot of worms in Rhonda’s garden. A few minutes later the worm appeared again. This time he crawled out of his hole and over to a small brown leaf that had fallen off one of the rose bushes. He pushed the leaf to a nearby pile of weeds, which Rhonda had made. Then, he turned around and looked at her.
She said, “Well, thank you very much Mr. Worm.”
Then, she thought, worms know a lot about soil and plants. Is this worm is trying to tell me something? She picked another brown leaf from a rose bush and placed it at the base of the plant. The worm crawled over to the leaf and also pushed it to the weed pile.
The worm looked at her again.
“You want me to take all of the brown leaves from the plants?” she asked.
The worm didn’t move.
“Okay, I will.”
It took about fifteen minutes for her to prune the rose bushes of the brown leaves. The worm stayed until she was finished. Then, he crawled back into his hole and disappeared. Well, that certainly was interesting, she thought.
Just then, the children hopped from the woods. Rhonda was quite pleased with the sticks they brought back but did notice that Robbie was wet. She smiled and said nothing. The creek bath was never mentioned. The children took the sticks out of their bags and lay them next to the cottage so that they could dry in the sun. As you can imagine, some sticks were wetter than others.
The children hopped inside to have a snack. Their father, Reginald, was in his clothes shop. The shop was just a room in the cottage with tables, two sewing machines, and pieces of cloth everywhere. Sometimes, Rachel and Rain would attach some of the cloths to themselves and run around the yard pretending to be ghosts.
Reginald, with help from the family, designed and made the clothes for the residents of Ballymore. Rhond
a designed dresses, but there were not many requested.
Like most of the other animals, Reginald couldn’t read or write. That meant he wouldn’t have been able to take measurements or make clothes of the proper size. Not a minor problem, to say the least. However, it was solved with the help of Sean Swan and Bartholomew. Sean procured a cloth measuring tape from somewhere, and Bartholomew taught Reginald how to use it. Thus Reginald became the Ballymore tailor.
Four times a year, February, May, July, and October he visited each home and took orders for the upcoming season. He would deliver the clothes and other fabric-made items in April, July, September, and December.
Right now, he was finishing a seam on a spring jacket for Merwin Mole. Most of the spring clothes and other items were already made and would be delivered with Rhonda’s baskets.
Shortly after dinner, there was a knock on their door. Reginald answered.
“Why Bartholomew, how nice to see you.”
Bartholomew entered and greeted them all. Rhonda had been expecting a reply from Bartholomew but wasn’t expecting a visit.
Bartholomew said, “I studied my plant books and have a probable answer for your rose bush problem. The leaf you sent me looks a lot like a picture in one book. It says that a fungus is the likely explanation.”
“Does the book say what can be done about it?” asked Rhonda.
“Yes. The brown leaves should be removed as soon as they appear. That should stop the fungus from spreading, and eventually, the plant will be fine.”
“You’re kidding!” exclaimed Rhonda.
“No, I’m not kidding. Why would I be kidding?” asked Bartholomew.
Then, Rhonda told Bartholomew about the worm she met in her garden.
Bartholomew said, ”It sounds like you have a very smart and helpful worm.”
“It certainly does,” she laughed.
Bartholomew had to rush off to a meeting he had called regarding the new boat, so he said goodbye and left.
Rhonda appreciated Bartholomew’s visit and was very pleased with what he had told her. She thought she should figure out a way to thank the worm. As it turned out, she never saw that worm again; so she didn’t get the opportunity.
Over the next week, the rabbits kept busy making the baskets. The sticks were cut to size and weaved together. It was a slow process but was a family tradition, and they enjoyed it.
On Tuesday evening of delivery week, Devon Duck visited. As mentioned before, Devon and his wife Dahlia and children Declan, Darma, and Dierdre provided the Ballymore residents with a delivery service. They had a small raft, which they kept at their dock on the island. The raft had five hooks on both its front and back edges. Harnesses could be connected to each hook, and the ducks could then tow the raft.
When the swans procured any items, they left them in a shed near the ducks’ dock. Twice a week, weather permitting, the ducks delivered everything to the residents. They also made deliveries between residents. If the item was small and needed immediately, they would use air-mail.
This evening Devon had come to discuss the upcoming delivery of the flower baskets and clothes. The scheduled day was Thursday. It would be a large delivery, so all five ducks would participate.
Devon said, “We can be here at 7 bongs to load the raft. As always, we’ll provide covers to protect the flowers and other items.”
Reginald said, “Very good. We’ll arrange everything on the raft in the order in which they’ll be delivered. I would like to begin at the island. Then, go to the southwest end of the pond and travel clockwise around.”
“That’ll be fine as long as the wind cooperates, but if it shifts, we will have to change that route,” responded Devon.
Occasionally, the wind wouldn’t let them travel in the direction they wanted.
“I understand,” said Reginald. “So, we’ll see you early on Thursday. Thank you very much for coming.”
“You’re welcome, and I wish you all a good evening,” said Devon, and he left.
The family sat down at the dining table to finish weaving the flower baskets. Twelve had already been completed, so there were only three left to complete. After the baskets were weaved, they were painted a rich chocolate-brown color. Rhonda finished making the ribbons and bows. Tomorrow would be a busy day. The flowers needed to be picked and the baskets arranged.
Wednesday morning was cloudy and cool. It didn’t feel much like spring. A breeze rustled the flowers in the garden. Each one seemed to be saying, “Pick me, pick me”. Rhonda decided the makeup of the baskets. There would be tulips, lilies, daffodils, marigolds, Queen Annes Lace, and ferns for a base. Colored eggs were nestled between the flowers. The whole family participated in picking the flowers and creating the arrangements.
The swans had delivered a large box of eggs on Monday, and the children hard-cooked them last evening. They were ready to be colored. Rhonda had several food color dyes that she used for cake frosting. From the group she chose purple, green, yellow, and pink. The eggs were divided into four groups, and soon there were purple, green, yellow, and pink eggs rolling around the table.
After adding the eggs to the baskets, she carefully attached the ribbons and bows. By 4 bongs fifteen gorgeous masterpieces sat on the dining table. Everything else was also ready; so finally everyone could relax.
The following morning, the ducks arrived with the raft. Rhonda invited them in for tea and toast before beginning the trip around the pond. The weather was similar to Wednesday’s, but the breeze was lighter and coming from the west.
Devon proclaimed the weather acceptable when he said, “So far, so good.”
The flowers, clothes, and other items were carefully loaded on the raft in the assigned order. The ducks made sure that the load was evenly distributed. Delivering flowers to the bottom of the pond was not a good idea. There were fourteen deliveries in all; the fifteenth basket was kept for themselves.
At 8 bongs, they left for their first stop, the swans. As they approached, the swans were waiting on their dock for them. The animals knew that today was delivery day and would be home if they could.
“Welcome! Welcome!” Sean said as Dierdre tied the raft up to the dock. Everyone hugged. Hugging was not the normal custom, but it felt like a special occasion.
Reginald gave them their new clothes. Sean had ordered a lounging robe, a large umbrella, and a water-proof head mask. The umbrella would be used for shade, probably on the dock. Stoddard also got a head mask plus a pair of slippers.
The head masks would make flying in the rain more comfortable and safer. When they needed to fly in the rain (which they tried to avoid), water would run up their beaks and right into their eyes. They could blink a lot, but it wasn’t comfortable and was unsafe. One time, during heavy rain they bumped into each other as they were trying to clear their eyes. Neither was injured but, in general, it’s not a good idea to crash into other swans when you’re flying. The masks were specially designed to divert water away from their eyes. The swans were eager to test them, but that would have to wait for a rainy day.
It wasn’t necessary to try on the clothes to see if they fit properly because they and the other animals had been to Reginald’s shop at least once for that purpose.
Then, Rhonda gave them their basket. “Oh, how beautiful,” exclaimed Sean.
“Thank you so much,” said Stoddard.
With that, the first delivery was complete, and everyone was very happy.
Dierdre untied the raft and they said goodbye. Their next stop was Grenby Groundhog’s hut on the southwest shore.
They soon saw Grenby’s weather flags flapping in the breeze. Green-Blue-Purple were the highest three. Good weather predicted. They could also see Grenby in his chair wearing his usual outfit (red and white striped pajamas with green bathrobe, if you forgot). Very attractive, if you like that sort of thing.
Grenby didn’t rise from his chair as they approached.
He said, “Ah, it must be flower day. Time goes by so
fast. Just yesterday it was Wednesday.” He laughed.
The animals smiled and greeted Grenby. He had ordered a pair of green and white striped pajamas for summer. He also ordered a hammock. While, technically, not clothes, it was something Reginald could make. Grenby said he would attach one end of it to the flagpole and the other end to a post on his dock.
“Then, I can flap in the wind, just like my flags.” Everyone laughed.
Rhonda gave Grenby his flower basket.
He took it, winked and said, “Do you think they are better with salt or pepper? Just kidding, just kidding! Thank you.”
After they were back on the water, Robbie said, “Grenby is so weird!” The other children nodded in agreement.
“Yes, he’s different, but he means well, and he’s a good weather forecaster,” their mother reminded them.