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Show Wednesdoy, November 27, 1985 Vflfflfll ExftffiSt 1 Spanky and the magic corn A By to search for food to feed our seven brothers and sisters. This piece of corn will only last through breakfast so we will be out again this morning looking for lunch. You are lucky to be stuck in a tree where somebody brings your food, Jacob mouse complained. Jimmy and I were over by that log cabin that some of those Pilgrims built last year. They have some Indians in the field with them and they are putting all this good corn in holes in the ground. Me and Jim, we just grabbed this piece and ran. I wouldnt go over there if I was you. Those Pilgrims have a cat! Those cats eat birds, too, you know. Spanky was confused. Why would anyone want to put corn in a hole in the ground? he asked the mice. Jimmy mouse stood up tall and tried to look very important. Merle Young Express Society Editor Spanky Sparrow stirred under the warmth of his mothers feathers. He was anxious to get to the edge of the nest and practice flapping his wings. Spring was almost over and he was determined to learn to fly. Spanky and his two sisters, Sylvia and Serena, had pecked their way out of three tiny eggs several weeks ago and soon their thin pink straggly little bodies (complete with big black eyes and oversized orange feet and beaks) had changed to fuzzy little balls of fine feathers and now at last to a small feathered version of their parents. Spanky grew a black hood of feathers that extended into his shoulders and had wing and tail tips to match. He knew somehow that he was becoming very beautiful. His sisters were almost all gray and had specked gray and black tips on their wings and tail. Mother bird was very proud of her trio and father bird had shown how much he cared for them by bringing the fattest worms, seeds, berries and grubs he could find for the hungry brood. Spanky squeezed past his sisters and inched his way from under his mothers protective wing. He stretched out his neck trying to peek over the edge of the nest but could only see the branches and new green leaves sprouting around his home. I will get up on the edge of the nest and do my wing exercises, Spanky said to himself. And he hopped up quick as you please to his favorite spot. One two, one two, the little bird chanted and his wings went up and down in rhythm. He was soon distracted by a noise beneath the tree. Spanky leaned as far as he dared over the edge of the nest and looked down. Two little field mice were fighting over a kernel of dried yellow corn. Where did you get that? Spanky yelled. The two mice stopped their scuffling and looked all around. They didnt think about looking up into the tree. I said, where did you get that piece of corn? Spanky repeated. The mice finally looked up. They spotted two bright black eyes and a little beak which was open and squaking at them. Who wants to know? the mice asked in angry voices. Spanky was a little surprised at their attitude but politely said, Hello, my name is Spanky and I am a bird who lives up in this tree. I am practicing my wing flapping so I can learn to fly. I saw you with the corn and wondered where you found it. The mice looked at each other and back at Spanky. You want to get some dont you? the biggest mouse asked in a grumpy voice. We dont have any extra and so we are not going to tell you, said the smaller of the two mice a little more meekly. Spankys feelings were hurt because he had never had anyone talk to him that way. Oh, never mind. I couldnt get down to get your darn old corn if I wanted to, he said. The mice shook their heads. I guess hes got us there. Maybe we can tell him, said the large mouse. I am Jacob and this is my little brother Jimmy. Our mom sent us out Thanksgiving story for children , It is my belief, he said, that when corn is put in the ground it is magic. It turns into a tall green stem with pockets that grow long whiskers. When the whiskers dry up and are ready to fall off, you can look in the pocket and find more corn than a mouse can eat in one winter. Having said this, he sat down to scratch behind his right ear and left Spanky and Jacob with their mouths open in amazement. When he was through scratching he cleared his throat and went on with his fantastic story. Last autumn when I was just a baby, I climbed up one of the stems that were growing near the Indians place by the stream. I thought it was a tree because it was so tall but there was no bark on it. When I got to the whiskers on top of the pocket, I could smell the corn. It smelled better than anything I had ever smelled before. I crawled down into the pocket and there before my eyes was corn! A mountain of corn! More than I had ever seen before. Jacob and Spanky were quiet for a long time. They just stared at Jimmy thinking about all that wonderful corn. As soon as I can fly, I will go over to the Pilgrims house and see if the magic corn in the ground will make some stems and pockets like the Indians, said Spanky and he began to nap his wings furiously. To his surprise he raised up about three inches from the edge of the nest and almost fell out when he came down with a sudden bump. The little sparrow was so excited about the corn and his short flight that he started to sing and squak at the top of his lungs. His mother and sisters were startled awake and the mice had taken their kernel of corn and ran home to share it with the mouse family. Spring turned into a warm welcome summer that beckoned Spanky, Sylvia and Serena farther and farther from their nest. They had become almost as big as their parents and were now pecking their own worms from the ground and seeds from plants. Mother bird had taught them about things to fear and with a wave of her wing, sent them on their way. Spanky kept an eye on his new friends, the mice, as he flew about the forest and fields in Massechuet-tes- . Summer was joyful, easy and nice for a bird, he decided. On one of his most recent flights he had come across the log house that belonged to the pilgrims. He circled around the house but could not smell any golden corn nor see a stalk as big as a tree without bark. Diving closer to the house he saw a scraggly black cat sleeping on the porch and it frightened him so that he overlooked a number of tall green stalks growing in neat little rows and circles near the house. I think Jimmy is mistaken, he said to himself. There is no such thing as a mountain of corn in a pocket with whiskers. And he flew off to the stream to find a quiet place for a bath and a good dusting in the sand along the shore. Spanky knew that something was changing in the air. It was colder at night and the trees were putting on brightly colored dresses. Some of the grasses had turned a golden hue and had heavy heads filled with grains and seeds. It was a bounteous time for the birds and there was plenty to eat for everyone. They gathered in joyous flocks in the fields to peck, scratch and gossip. Spanky listened carefully but none of the older birds ever mentioned the magic corn and he had almost given up the idea of ever finding it. One day as he was playing a game of hop the twig with his sisters, he saw two mice making their way through the grasses. The mice darted from rocks to clumps of grass and then in and out of logs all the time twitching their whiskers and looking from side to side. He few down to a fallen tree where he could get a closer look at the two. Why its Jacob and Jimmy, he exclaimed. Hey you guys. Where are you going? The mice stopped short and looked up at Spanky. Today is the day we go after the magic corn, Jimmy said proudly. Aw, I dont believe that story anymore, Spanky noted. I flew all over the Pilgrims place and couldnt see any stalks as big as trees. Well, they are there, Jimmy in- sisted. We have been keeping an eye on the magic corn for months, Jacob chimed in, and the whiskers on the pockets are just getting brown. Why are you hiding then? Spanky asked. Dont you realize there is a cat out there? Jacob reminded him. Well I can fly away from the cat. He could never catch me, boasted the little sparrow. In fact I am going to fly over there right now and get some of that corn. The mice looked a little worried. Then they began to whisper to each other and kept looking up at Spanky who was sitting pompously on a maple sapling. Spanky, we will help you get some corn if you will help us, they coaxed. Spanky considered what they said and then asked, Why do you need my help to get the corn? The mice wiggled their pink noses and then asked Spanky to fly down and they would tell him about a plan that would be of benefit to both the mice and the birds. Soon the trio reached the edge of the corn field with Jacob in the lead and Spanky flying close over Jimmys head. They could hear the sound of children laughing and many people talking. A variety of smells were wafting through the air that made the little animal's stomachs with ache hunger. Spanky flew to the top of a pine tree to see what all the hub-buwas about. There in the yard of the Pilgrims home "was the most b beautiful sight he had ever seen. Long tables and benches that had been built from rough hewn logs were filled with mountains of food. There were pumpkins, potatoes, and apples that the little bird recognized from his summer scouting trips and a multitude of other things all sending off smells., smells and even more smells. But the thing that caught the eye of the little bird was a big pile of something that smelled like corn. The kernels were stuck onto a long thing that made it look like a corn mountain. He could hardly wait to fly down and tell his friends. Just then he saw a group of people in brightly colored blankets. They had their faces painted with colors like the autumn leaves and had feathers from many of the sparrows bird friends sticking out of their heads. These are the Indians that mother told me about, he whispered to himself. The Pilgrims walked out to greet the Indians and all sat down at the long tables. They were smiling and happy. It must be because of the magic corn, Spanky surmised. Having that much magic corn could make anyone smile. He was just ready to dart down to tell the mice about the sight below when he caught a glimpse of a black animal slinking through the corn stalks. Look out! he screeched in his loudest voice. Its the cat. But it was too late. Jimmy and Jacob hadnt been able to wait another minute for a bite of the tempting corn and had gone into the corn field. Without a moments hesitation the little bird flew toward the cat. He dived at the green eyed monster just as it was about to pounce on Jacob. Run, run. I will keep the cat away! he cried. The cat stood on its hind legs and swatted the air narrowly missing Spanky. He dived and swooped and swooped and dived until the cat was so dizzy that it toll over. By then the mice had run back into the woods and taken cover in a rotting log. Spanky had used up most of his strength and needed to find a place to rest that was safe from the cat. He flew to the top of a corn stalk and sat on a fat place that was sticking out between the leaves. The cat circled around the corn for a while but lost interest in the bird and returned to where the Indians and Pilgrims were feasting. Spanky took a deep breath and as he did, the most wonderful smell went right into his little nose holes. It was corn and he was sitting on it. He looked down at the place he was sitting. It looked like a pocket that was sprouting a whole lot of dried whiskers. He pecked around the edges of the pocket and pulled away some of its covering. There inside, just as Jimmy had said, was a mountain of golden good smelling sweet corn. How will I ever be able to carry this back to share with the mice and my sisters? he wondered. The crafty little bird thought and thought and then he pulled a big green leaf from the corn stalk. Spanky placed the leaf on the ground and began pulling kernels of corn from the ear and placed them on the leaf one at a time. When the leaf was filled with as much corn as Spanky thought he could carry, he gathered up the corners and tried to pick it up. He tugged and tugged and finally up an inch... a foot... two feet.. until he had flapped his way to the top of the corn. He flew as quickly as he could with his precious bundle in tow to the rotted log where his friends waited. It was a Thanksgiving Day for the birds and mice who enjoyed a feast of corn together. And it was one of many trips that the three friends made to the corn patch that fall. They had learned the true meaning of Thanksgiving. Friends helping friends and trusting in each other can bring blessings to all. 3 |