Old MacCollum and The Gold

Old MacCollum was walking
down a garden path.
He spotted something shiny
under the bird bath.

He walked up real close,
inspected with his eyes —
a pile of gold nuggets!
Imagine his surprise!

He stood up quite tall
and looked all around.
Is there any person here
who sees what I have found?

His eyes did not spy
any people near.
The true nature of MacCollum
will now become clear.

He could take the nuggets,
a treasure — like a king,
have an artist fashion
Mrs. MacCollum a gold ring.

Oh, she would love that.
Would love to show her friends.
So, it is decided?
No, that is not how this ends.

MacCollum instead turned
and left the gold behind.
Now on a mission,
the gold’s owner he must find.

That is Old MacCollum —
a man that you can trust.
Aware of his greedy side
but do the right thing, he must.

I’m sure you will wonder
what happened next.
MacCollum found the gold’s owner.
How the gold got there is complex.

Thrilled to have found it,
the owner felt quite free.
He said to MacCollum,
What can I give to thee?

My wife would love a ring
to show all her friends.
She got a gorgeous ring
and now our story ends.

Tadpole’s Tale

everyone called him Tadpole
not his actual real name
it stuck a long time ago
came from his favorite game

he always loved the river
would go there everyday
started catching tadpoles
before he had much to say

he would always put them back
right where they had come from
it was something in his spirit
to like this kind of humdrum

he would often simply sit there
with his feet stuck in the water
the shady trees kept him cool
as the days grew hotter

the river was his place
everyone could see
by this stretch of water
is where Tadpole loved to be

time passed on along
as it always does
the folks around grew older
we know where Tadpole was

in the spring the rains would come
the river would grow wild
it was a day like this
when Tadpole saw the child

across the raging river
from Tadpole’s special place
a vital little boy
a big smile on his face

he was running with a puppy
no doubt a new playmate
between the two and the river
there was no wall or gate

Tadpole sat and watched
it was a gorgeous thing to see
two souls open and joyous
the air filled up with glee

the puppy running circles
the little boy giving chase
they moved onto the riverbank
a sloping, slippery place

it happened in an instant
the puppy tumbled first
the boy followed right after
then Tadpole burst

up from his resting place
he dove into the rampage
the future holds its breath
for all unknown at this stage

the puppy flailed on the surface
Tadpole clutched him in real quick
but he couldn’t see the boy
the mud and sticks too thick

he looped his arm on a giant branch
lodged into the bank
he saw the boy’s leg float by
grabbed it just before it sank

hard to know how he did it
but he did it nonetheless
he heaved the puppy and the boy
up to solid ground — alive but a real mess

just as it seemed
the river would not win
the branch Tadpole clung to
snapped and floated in

straight to the rapids
rocks and wild water
the only creatures built for this
fish or maybe otter

Tadpole went under
he did not reappear
his fate was determined
this moment, day and year

the boy and pup got better
time passed, as it does with no fail
one final little note
here in Tadpole’s Tale

if you go down by the river
at a certain time of night
just before the sun is gone
when the light is just right

you can see Tadpole sit there
in his special perfect place
his feet stuck in the water
a smile on his face

marigold (part 6)

Walking in the wind was one of Marigold’s favorite things and this morning it was very windy! It was still quite early but she was out, doing her morning exploration, she called it her walkabout.

She would survey the flowers, the trees and shrubs. Looking for changes both below and above. She walked towards the stump, yes, the now famous stump. As she got closer her heart started to thump…

Another pencil - it was just sitting right there! Marigold was stunned, she was locked in a stare. Her mind was racing, her thoughts were alive…

How did this happen again? What is going on? How can we figure this out? Where could a pencil just come from? Is this some kind of trick? What will we do now? What is going on?

Just then Cody skittered along, when he saw Marigold’s face he worried something was wrong.

“Marigold, what happened?” Cody let out a combination squeak and scream.

Marigold pointed to the pencil and the words, out they streamed, “Another pencil, there like before. The mystery is deeper, I have to think more.” With that Marigold plopped herself down, right on the leaf covered dirty hard ground.

Cody decided to leave her alone. He would go find the other Detective Club members and share what was known.

Marigold sat there, trying to think. She sat and she stared, not even a wink. As she was trying to puzzle it out, she was startled indeed by a friendly small shout.

“Hey, you there! Can I ask you a question. I may have left my pencil here after my last drawing session. Have you seen it?”

Marigold’s eyes grew as big as saucers and she whipped around to see a teenage boy standing there. He was carrying a big drawing pad.

In an instance she knew, the mystery was solved! This boy left his pencils on the big log while he was drawing the view she had seen. So simple, so perfect, so truly delightful!

She bounded up and grabbed the pencil from its perch, “Is this it? The one you left. Can you now stop your search?”

“Oh, and by the way,” she rummaged through her coat pocket and produced yesterday’s appearing pencil, “did you leave this one yesterday?!”

“Yes yes, those are my pencils. My favorites for drawing in fact. Thank you so much for finding them. I must have just set them down and forgotten.”

He reached out his hand, “Hi, I’m Peter. And thank you again.”

Marigold reached out and shook his hand, she felt like a real adult, “I’m Marigold. I’m the head of the local Detectives Club and we are so glad to have this case solved.”

Peter chuckled.

Just then Marigold noticed that Cody had returned with the rest of the club. “Oh, let me introduce to everyone! This is Bernice, and Reginald, and Mildred and Mattie, and Stan, and of course here’s Cody.”

Peter thought he heard something that sounded like a squeaky scream coming from the little mice, and, wait a minute… were their lips moving? And then he thought he heard a sound like a owl’s hoot but maybe a word as well. He was truly perplexed. Of course, the entire Detectives Club was excited and they were all talking at once. But Peter was probably a little bit too old now to really understand anyways. It takes a certain kind of person to keep their ears open to really hearing.

Instead, he thanked Marigold again, glanced around at the animals, nodded his head, and was gone.

Marigold declared “Time to celebrate our first case solved by the Members of the Detectives Club! Good work all! Hip hip hooray!!”

Everyone was happy, except maybe Stan. What do you think he was doing? Of course, he was taking a nappy.

marigold (part 5)

I will tell you a story now of the club members exploring the place where the pencil was found. Well, not Stan, he is snoring.

The ground was covered in leaves and the wind had been blowing. If there had been footprints there was no way of knowing.

The club members searched for clues each in their own way. None of them knew what to do, that’s for sure, but it was still a very exciting day!

Mildred and Mattie scurried low to the ground plenty of effort but nothing was found.

Bernice flew to the top of a very tall tree she scanned from above, but there was nothing to see.

Reginald he stalked from around the edges, rooting in holes and under some hedges.

Marigold and Cody stayed close to each other. Cody was like a little squirrel brother. But they found nothing that looked like a clue. Marigold wasn’t sure what really to do.

She plopped down on the big stump, put her chin on her hands, wondered aloud and started to slump.

“Cody, what are we doing to do. Without any clues I can’t see how we can solve this little mystery! Where did this pencil come from. This is a really big conundrum.”

Cody looked at Marigold with his almond shaped eyes and said, “I know, this is a real surprise. I thought we were the best detectives around. But there is no clue to be found!”

As they were sitting there Marigold noticed something. Something she hadn’t seen before. The view down the valley from on top of the stump, it was a view someone might come here for. But that little fact, it passed through her mind…for nothing interesting about it did she find.

And so … our detectives are feeling quite low and the rest of the day moves on quite slow. Let’s leave them now to go their own way but tomorrow will be a quite surprising day!

marigold (part 4)

I will tell you a story now
of that same Detectives’ Club meeting
the last of the members finally arrived
and here was the sound of their greeting.

Mildred and Mattie were fighting
as sisters sometimes do
“squeak squeak squeak” they both cried loudly,
“I am mad at you!”

Reginald was a regal looking skunk
he was sitting quietly
wondering why he was summoned
his tail high in the air, waving sprightly.

Stan was a slightly surly
fairly round racoon
he could be trusted to take a nap
every afternoon.

He looked as if he might
fall asleep right now
but Marigold starting speaking
and got his attention somehow.

“Thank you all for coming
to our first official meeting.
The Detectives’ Club has our first case!
My heart is really beating!”

“I want to tell you all what I know so far.
Please everyone listen closely.
I only know very little really
just what I found mostly.”

“I was walking around this morning
and noticed something odd
there was this red pencil sitting
just all alone on a big log.”

(At this point Marigold held up the pencil.
She wasn’t touching it with her fingers,
she was using two leaves as little makeshift gloves…
you know, she didn’t want to disturb any fingerprints!)

“I looked around and saw nothing more
and I saw no real clues.
But maybe I missed something…
explore the scene of the crime, that is what we should do!”

At the mention of the words clue and crime
the mood in the Detectives’ Club Clubhouse
changed and the excitement was like just before opening birthday presents…

Mildred and Mattie were tittering and twittering and their tails were quivering!
Bernice’s eyes seemed to grow to twice their normal size!
Cody looked like he might jump right out of his skin.
I don’t think a squirrel ever looked so excited!
(Well, maybe when finding a long buried nut.)
Reginald’s tail looked taller and more bushy than ever.
His face may not have changed, but his tail told the tale.
Stan, well, he mostly still looked surly and a little tired,
but if you looked very closely, you would have seen his nose
and whiskers were twitching pretty wildly!

“I think that right now we should
head back there and see.
I will lead us all
to the place under the tree
where I found the pencil
and we can look for clues
but don’t disturb anything
whatever you do!”

And so the chase begins,
the club is is on the case.
To see them all earnest now
would put a smile on any face.

Let’s leave our friends
to make this walk alone
we will join them once again
when they enter the clue finding zone!

marigold (part 3)

I will tell you a story now
of later that very same day.
The Detectives’ Club had gathered
in their own unique way.

The clubhouse is more of makeshift
tent made of sticks and a tarp.
It sits under some willow trees
and the ground under has nothing sharp.

In the middle of the clubhouse
made of a giant old piece of tree
is a wobbly table
and around it do sit three.

Here we have Marigold
anxious to get started.
And Bernice is here, feathers fluffed
ready to be very smart.

Also here is Cody, a cute little squirrel
and Marigold’s best good friend.
Cody has a wild imagination
he can always pretend.

In fact we hear him now…
offering ideas
for how the pencil got here
they call this his idea diarrhea. (YUCK!)

"Well, it could have been a construction worker making plans
or wait, there is no construction planned.
Or maybe there was a school teacher who brought her class here,
but wait – wouldn’t we have seen them?
I bet it was dropped from a survey helicopter
or maybe it was a pencil delivering drone who dropped it by mistake!
Is there such a thing as pencil delivering drones?
Maybe late at night, when we are all sleeping, pencils come to life!
Maybe there is a whole world of pencils and pens and paper that are alive
and we just haven’t met them yet - oh my, that is an exciting idea!
I know! It was a ninja who stopped here on her way to a great adventure
and she was marking her map! Yes that has to be it!
Or wait - I’m sure this is it!! There must be a pencil salesman who is here
in our town and he was taking a shortcut and one of the pencils dropped from
his case! Yes yes, that has to be it!
Marigold, I think I solved it !!!"

"Oh Cody, I love you. And maybe you are right.
but we have to find some clues,
make your ideas airtight!"

Bernice looks quite annoyed,
but kindly says, in her owl-ey voice,
"hooowoo Cody, woowhere doo yoouu
get yyooouuur ideas? Toooooo many choooiicces!"

Maybe Cody is right
and he has solved the mystery.
But we won’t know until later
because for now, this story is history.

(Please close the book now,
you can come back later.
Also, I’m sorry Owl Speak is hard to read
but I’m sure you can manage if you try.)

marigold (part 2)

I will tell you a story now
of a bright Tuesday morning
when Marigold gathered the Detectives’ Club
without really much warning.

She had found a pencil
sitting on a stump
back in the back of the gardens
where there is mostly only leaf lumps.

"How does a pencil get here?
It can’t just come from the sky.
We have to investigate quickly.
We have to figure out why?"

Just as she was hatching her plan
along came Mildred and Mattie.
They were young little mouse twins -
Mildred was kind; Mattie could be bratty.

“Good Morning Marigold,” squeaked little Mildred.
“We are out exploring and how are you?”
Marigold knelt right down and spoke direct to both,
“I’m so glad you are here, we have so much to do!”

"I found this mysterious pencil, just lying right over there!
How did it get here? I see no real clues.
We have our first real mystery, we have to gather the club!!
Everyone is welcome, even if they haven’t paid dues!"

Mattie was very excited, her tail was practically quivering!
“Marigold, I will run and get Reginald. Mildred, you can get Stan.
Oh my this is so so exciting!!
Is this a very good plan?"

"Yes, it is perfect Mattie. That leaves Bernice and Cody.
I will go and find them now, I hope neither are out.
Just gather at the clubhouse and wait
and if you need anything just shout."

The twins scampered away and
Marigold quickly turned. Now making her way
towards the large grove of oak trees
where Bernice the Owl usually stayed.

For now perhaps we set this down
and leave a little tension
oh but one thing, I did forget to mention…

The title of this story is:

The Case of the Appearing Pencil

marigold (part 1)

Between two smallish hills
tucked between two big mountains
lived a young girl named Marigold
her house, it had a fountain.

The neighbors called it Flower House
because it was almost covered
by plants and flowers everywhere
paradise for bees when discovered.

Marigold was very bright
a clever sharp young girl
what most people didn’t know
her best friend was a squirrel.

Marigold had a ton of friends
who lived right in the gardens
and if you think this makes her silly
I would say, I beg your pardon.

For a clever young girl to make friends
with what lives around her
this may sound preposterous
but your judgment, do defer.

You may come to love them all
these creatures great and small
I will tell you a story now
the does describe them all.

(A note to you dear reader: A new world we enter today. I’ve met Marigold before, in my imagination. The time has come for her to come out to play.)

the pumpkin’s hidden prize

Today we have something a little bit different.
A short story? Maybe? But longer than most.
It might take a moment to read the whole thing
so maybe consider some tea and some toast.

This is a story of a pumpkin, she was fairly normal sized
but nothing much about her was really very prized.

No one even bothered carving into her
they just set her outside, decor for the season procured.

The thing about outside there are creatures and beasts
and on pumpkin meat squirrels love to feast.

Gangs of squirrels came and picked little holes
this pumpkin felt mangled right down to her soul.

(You didn’t know that pumpkins had souls?
I hear you asking that.
Well, in this world they do and otters wear hats!)

There she was sitting all holey and sad
thinking no thoughts that weren’t rather bad.

She looked around at the pumpkins beside her
they all had nice carvings, prizes they were.

All she had were awful chewed holes
her grief took over, no one there to console.

And just then a mean kid came walking right past
and kicked our sad pumpkin with a mighty blast.

She rolled to the bushes and she lay there quite still
the world outside had stolen her will.

She gave up thinking that she would matter
and figured her life would end with no chatter.

She felt discarded and like no one cared
she was picked full of holes and felt despair.

But here’s the thing, sometimes when things look quite dark
something magical happens and it starts with a spark.

Here we need to turn our attention to a bunch of sticks
a makeshift nest for a few small chicks.

This sparrow mother had her babies too late
and the weight of the cold was getting too great.

But here’s our spark and the touch of magic
that turns our tale from everything tragic.

Our pumpkin was lying there next to the sticks
the holes in her side were sized just for chicks
to crawl right inside and be toasty warm
and so our pumpkin a home she did form!
Those chicks were protected just long enough
to grow big and get the right stuff
to make it through winter and even beyond
nesting around a quaint little pond.

Remember our pumpkin, she had felt real despair
for having been treated with so little care.

She thought her life would amount to no thing
no trumpets announcing, no music to sing.

But the things that had made her feel so sad
it turns out those were the prizes she had!

Without the holes the chicks could not
have gotten in and gotten hot!

And she was there because of the kick
it really seems like a magic trick!

The things about her that she resisted
those were the special parts she had been gifted
and when the world needed her most
she was able to play the host.

So there you have it, a tale of a pumpkin
and how those things that feel most tragic
might be the things that give us our magic.