Sammy Squirrel Hates Fireworks
Sammy Squirrel was very worried. It was the 4th of July again. All his friends, Bobby Bear, Slinky Fox, Snow White the Bunny, Tuffy Tiger, Daisy Giraffe, Stripes the Zebra and Spikey Hedgehog, were very excited.
‘My father has got the biggest catherine wheel you have ever seen,’ said Bobby.
‘Wow,’ said all his friends, ‘we can’t wait to watch it go round.’
‘Do you remember how high my rockets went last year?’ asked Stripes.
‘Yes,’ nodded everyone in agreement. His rockets had flown right over the top of the tallest trees, as all the animals, even the giraffes, craned their necks to watch in awe. ’Have you got some more this time?’
‘Of course I have, and all of you can take turns to set them off, I have plenty,’ said Stripes generously.
All this while, Sammy stood at the edge of the group, under an oak tree, his nose quivering with fear. He remembered the smell of gunpowder and the loud noises from the year before. He had snuggled into his tree hollow with his paws over his ears, quite sure that the next one would come right in and singe his bushy tale. It was a terrible night and he had barely slept. He simply could not understand how his friends enjoyed it so much. Every time there was a loud burst from a cracker, he remembered gunshots fired by ferocious hunters. This year too, he intended to hide away until this horrible evening was over.
‘Sammy, Sammy,’ yelled Tuffy, as he realized that Sammy had missed most of their conversation. ‘Have you brought any firecrackers?’
‘No,’ said Sammy, horrified at the thought. ‘I hate crackers and I hate 4th of July. I just want it to get over as soon as possible.’
‘But why?’ asked his friends in astonishment. ‘It is lovely, it really is. You cannot have seen the beautiful colors that light up the sky. Have you ever burst a gift cracker and found just the toy you wanted? It’s amazing,’ said Snow White, holding Sammy’s paw.
‘Don’t worry, I will share my crackers with you,’ said kind hearted Daisy Giraffe. ‘I have plenty of them you see, and it is always more fun to watch your friends burst crackers than to do them all yourself.’ Sammy was not convinced and as soon as dusk fell, he ran and hid in his hollow. He heard his brother Bushy and some of his friends call out to him several times, but did he respond? No sire, not he! He did not want to take any foolish chances with his life. He could hear sounds of merriment, a lot of laughter and clapping throughout the evening. He was just a little curious when he heard everyone cheering loudly, but refused to go out and investigate. What a foolish squirrel he was!
Next morning when he woke up the sun was shining brightly through the window. The first person he met that morning was Stripe sporting a brand new bowler hat, looking very smart. Next he saw Daisy Giraffe, strutting around proudly showing off a pink daisy shaped brooch pinned to her collar. Sammy wondered why everyone was wearing such nice new things. He then saw Bushy, his brother coming towards him in excited leaps and bounds. As he came nearer, Sammy saw that he too was holding a very smart brush with a bright blue handle. Sammy had seen a brush just like this in Greedy Goblin’s shop and had been meaning to buy it for ages, but it was kind of expensive and he never seemed to have enough money. So he called out to Bushy.
‘Hey Bushy, where did you get the brush?’
‘Oh, where were you yesterday, Sammy?’ asked Bushy. ‘We were all looking for you. You missed a fine party.’ ‘A party?’ questioned Sammy.
‘Yes,’ said Bushy, ‘the king of Green Glade forest, Mr. Mighty Lion, had a special 4th of July party for us. It was the best party I have ever been invited for, with fireworks, food and presents. There was a beautiful show as fireworks lit up the sky in all the colors you can imagine. After that, there was a big feast with jellies, cakes, ice‐ cream, delicious cool ginger‐honey juice, big juicy nuts, fresh fruits and vegetable salad for all of us. At the very end, each of us was allowed to choose a special present for ourselves from Mr. Goblin’s shop. That is where I got this brush.’
Sammy regretfully remembered hearing his name called out several times, but he had simply dug in deeper into his hollow so that no one could find him. Oh, he was so envious of the nice new presents each of his friends had, but it was too late to do anything about it now, wasn’t it? He sadly munched on some stale lettuce leaves, as he wistfully thought of the delightful feast he had missed. ‘Oh Sammy, what a foolish squirrel you have been with your silly fears!’ said Bushy. ‘Now cheer up, do, I will share my brush with you.’
So Sammy cheered up again, and you can see him and Bushy brush their tails to get a nice swish to it every morning. He has vowed not to be such a coward anymore, and is eagerly awaiting the next 4th of July celebrations. To be honest, so am I, aren’t you? I wish I get invited to the party too.