Tales From The Glades Of Ballymore

by Bob Brooks

  Next on the route were Malcolm and Maeve Mole and their children Melrose and Merwin. The moles had set up a table draped in a white tablecloth on their dock. On the table were tea and Maeve’s famous strawberry jam cookies. Although the visitors had eaten recently, they knew they couldn’t resist this treat. Even the ducks were gurgling with anticipation, and they don’t usually eat something like strawberry jam.

  The moles loved their new clothes and the flowers. They had been very busy tunneling and had worn out most of their work clothes. Everyone got waterproof overalls and gloves. The gloves had a hole in the end of each “finger”. The holes were for their claws to stick through so that they could dig effectively. Merwin also received his new spring jacket.

  Maeve placed the flower basket in the center of the table, and it looked very elegant. She invited them to sit down and enjoy the delicacies. Afterwards, she gave them each a few extra cookies to take home.

  Now it was time to visit the Weasels, Wilde and Wilder, on the west shore. The weasels were the unofficial security guards of Ballymore. They were fairly young and tended to be mischievous. The ducks tied the raft up to their dock. No one was in sight, so they went up to the cottage door and knocked.

  After a brief period Wilde opened the door.

  “Oh, we didn’t think you would be here so soon,” he said. “Please come in.”

  They entered and Wilder rose from the table to greet them.

  “Hello, everyone. We’ve been looking forward to getting our new security gear.”

  They had ordered sturdy cloth bags, tan military style outfits, and black boots. They would use the bags to collect nuts and berries from the woods or so they said. The new outfits were needed to improve their effectiveness as security guards.

  “There are times when we need to be stealthy, and these will be a great help. I have an idea to add green splotches to them. Then, they’ll be even more effective,” said Wilde. “Thank you very much.”

  They didn’t seem that interested in the flowers but did thank Rhonda for them.

  After everyone was back on the raft, Rhonda commented to Reginald that she didn’t see why the weasels needed to be more stealthy. To her, they seemed pretty sneaky already. She was not so sure about the use of the bags either.

  Reginald said, “Eventually, we’ll find out if they’re up to something. We always do.” He laughed.

  The ducks pulled the raft northward to Mrs. Porcupine’s cottage. Mrs. Petunia Porcupine provided fruits, vegetables, and baked goods to the residents. She graciously welcomed them to her home. Of course, she offered more tea and pastry. This time they had to decline and explained why.

  “Well, at least I can give each family a nice strawberry pie to take home,” she said. They happily accepted this goody.

  Reginald unpacked Petunia’s new clothes, a pair of pink overall jeans and two spring bonnets. Overall jeans were very popular in Ballymore.

  “Oh, they’re so beautiful!” she exclaimed. “Thank you.”

  She also marveled at the flower arrangement.

  As they were leaving, Petunia enquired, “Will you be going to see Dr. Brigit soon?”

  “Yes, she is our next visit,” answered Reginald.

  “Would you be so kind as to deliver this pie to her. I think she is having a special dinner tonight.”

  “We’ll be happy to,” said Reginald.

  He took the fresh, warm pie and they were off.

  The following five deliveries to Dr. Brigit, Bartholomew, the bluebirds, Morris Muskrat, and beavers were uneventful but very much appreciated by all.

  The frogs’ cottage was on the southeast shore, so the ducks began to tow the raft to the west. The westerly breeze was a little stronger, and they had to paddle strenuously. It helped that most of the deliveries had been made, and so the raft was lighter. The Frogs (Farley and Fionna and children Finn and Faith) were the Ballymore artists. They came to Ballymore about five years ago, and their art has been quite popular. Everyone has at least one painting in their home. Typically, they are asked to paint family or community events. Everyone but Finn painted. He was still young and more interested in “adventures”.

  The frogs’ lived in a normal looking cottage, from the outside. The inside looked like a swimming pool. With the exception of the small kitchen, dining area, and art studio, there was water everywhere. Large lily pads floated on the water. The frogs used them as seats and beds. Like the beavers’ home, their cottage had a second entrance that was underwater.

  The frogs had ordered dry-suits. A dry-suit is the opposite of a wet-suit, which keeps water out. The frogs preferred to stay wet. If they were planning on being away from the water for a long time, they would thoroughly soak themselves and put on their dry-suits. The suits worked well, but they probably wouldn’t use them much.

  On to the chipmunks’ home. What can be said about the chipmunks? Foolish, light-hearted, irresponsible, fun-loving, good-hearted, helpful? Yes, they were all of those things and more. The chipmunks did not have a specific trade. They helped out on many different projects and were happy to do so. Last month’s kite riding antics were a good example of their outlook on life. The parents, Charles and Cheryl, had mellowed some with age but were still kids at heart. The chipmunks saw the raft arriving and rushed down to meet it. They clamored aboard and grabbed their new clothes (swimming trunks) and the flower basket. Charles and Cheryl apologized for the excitement and thanked Rhonda and Reginald for everything.

  The last delivery was to their neighbors, the squirrels. The Squirrels (Sedgewick and Sofie and children Shane and Seely) lived in a treehouse. Thankfully, the squirrels met them on the dock so they didn’t have to climb the steps. It had been a long day.

  The squirrels wanted walking boots for spring. They had recently begun to go on long hikes, and they needed to protect their paws. Their most recent hike was south to the church in Waterford hamlet. The squirrels saw the church and its bell but didn’t enter the hamlet as they had no desire to be seen.

  The deliveries were finally complete. It had been a tiring but satisfying day. The ducks were the most exhausted since they had towed the raft all over the pond. The final part of the trip was to drop the rabbits off at their dock. The only items left on the raft were for the ducks.

  The westerly breeze had increased further, and the ducks struggled to pull the raft against it. Devon yelled back, “We may have to zigzag our way to your dock. The wind is quite strong.”

  Then, the raft began to move forward faster. Neither the wind speed nor its direction had changed. It was as if some invisible force was helping the ducks. Everyone was surprised, but no one questioned the good fortune. In a few minutes they were at the rabbits’ dock.

  After docking, Devon said, “Sometimes there are strong currents near the surface. I think we just got lucky.”

  No one noticed the large dark shape moving away from the raft under the water.

  The rabbits thanked and hugged the ducks. The ducks left for their home and a well earned rest. Fortunately, the direction to their home on the island was mostly with the wind.

  The tired Rabbit family went inside and prepared a light dinner of soup, lettuce, and bread. Afterwards, they fell asleep without even trying.

  The next morning, right after breakfast, Rachel was pulling weeds at the back of the garden. She noticed a small pile of yellow flowers at the edge of the woods. When she approached, she saw that the pile consisted of dandelion heads. Someone had pulled them and put them there deliberately. Why? Hmmm.

  Leading from the pile and into the woods were more dandelion heads. One had been placed every foot or so. Obviously, Rachel was curious.

  She followed the winding trail of flowers back into the woods about a hundred feet. Then, it turned to the right and continued. After another fifty feet the flowers led to a small glade surrounded by pine trees and bushes. The flower path ended in the center of the glade. There, it formed a small circle. Rachel hopped into the circle, stood there a
nd listened. She heard the wind through the pines but nothing more. It was a nice glade, so she decided to sit for a while.

  After about a minute a soft voice said, “Hello.”

  Rachel looked around in the direction of the sound and answered back, “Hello.”

  The voice seemed to be coming from behind some thick bushes about twenty feet to her left.

  Another minute went by.

  Rachel said, “Hello. Are you there?”

  The voice answered, “Yes.”

  “Why don’t you show yourself, and we can talk?” asked Rachel.

  After a while, “I can’t.”

  “Oh my! Why not? Are you a ghost?”

  “No. If I come out, you will run away.”

  “Why, in the world, do you think I will run away?” asked Rachel.

  “Because everyone does.”

  “If I promise not to run away, will you come out?”

  “No.”

  “If you won’t come out, how can we ever be friends?” offered Rachel.

  That was an amazing question and required thought. No one had ever said anything like that before to the voice.

  “Can we just talk for a while, please?” pleaded the voice.

  “Yes, but it’s always nice to know to whom you are speaking,” answered Rachel. “My name is Rachel Rabbit, and I live with my family very near here. We have a very large flower garden. Yesterday we delivered many flower baskets to everybody in Ballymore.”

  “Yes, I know.”

  “You know! You know much about me, but I know nothing of you. Are you a spy?”

  “No.”

  For the first time she sensed the voice was smiling.

  “My name is Samuel. I used to be called Sam.”

  “I am pleased to meet you Sam. Why do you say you used to be called Sam? You are still Sam, aren’t you?”

  “Yes, but now I am called something else. You are the first animal who has talked to me in a long time.”

  “Everybody is very friendly and helpful here in Ballymore. I think everybody would talk to you. Have you tried?”

  “Yes. I’ve tried many times. When they see me, they get scared and run away. They call me the ‘Pond Creature’.”

  Rachel’s mouth dropped open, and she began to shake a little.

  “Are you afraid, too?” asked Sam.

  “No!” she lied.

  “If you are, I understand, but I won’t hurt you. I have never hurt anyone. All I eat are reeds from the pond.”

  Rachel gathered herself. She thought about how many times she had been misunderstood and how many times she had misunderstood.

  “Yes, everyone is afraid of the ‘Pond Creature’. They are often afraid of what they don’t know. I’m afraid of the ‘Pond Creature’ also, but I’m not afraid of you. Are you sure you’re the ‘Pond Creature’?”

  “Yes, that is what they call me.”

  “Well, that needs to be fixed right away,” said Rachel strongly.

  “But how?” asked Sam.

  “I will call a meeting and tell everybody,” answered Rachel.

  “No! No!” said Sam quickly.

  “Why not?”

  “I’m not ready. I’m scared.”

  “Will you come out now?”

  “I will come out if you close your eyes,” said Sam.

  “Okay, I will close my eyes.”

  “Are they closed?”, asked Sam.

  “Yes, completely.”

  Sam crawled slowly from behind the bushes. He moved to the center of the glade and stood in front of Rachel. She heard him moving along the ground and getting closer to her. She was scared but kept her promise.

  “I am standing in front of you now,” said Sam.

  “Yes, I know,” answered Rachel.

  “Raise your left paw,” instructed Sam.

  She did.

  “Now, move it a little to the right. Now, down slowly.”

  She lowered her paw and felt a hard, rough, cold skin.

  “Where is your fur?” she asked.

  “I have no fur. I’m a turtle,” he told a half-truth. “You can open your eyes now.”

  She opened one eye and looked straight at the mouth of a large snapping turtle with reddish eyes.

  Rachel Meets Sam

  “Oh, my! You’re a snapping turtle,” she said with a little fear in her voice.

  “Yes, I’m sorry,” and he lowered his head and began to sob.

  “No!” Rachel said. “I mean you’re a large and beautiful snapping turtle, and you are my friend.”

  Sam raised his head to her, smiled, and sobbed even more.

  She put her paws on his head and they stood there for a while. Now, she was sobbing, also.

  Finally, she said, “Okay, you are part of this community. Everybody should meet you and see how nice you are.”

  “I’m sorry, but I’m not ready to meet anyone else yet,” responded Sam.

  “Ballymore is a nice place, and I want to help you meet everyone.”

  “Thank you, Rachel, but before I meet the others, could we meet again?” asked Sam.

  “Yes, we can, and I would like that,” she responded. “But I have to leave now.”

  “I understand. It was very nice to meet you. I’ll leave a flower trail again as a signal. Please don’t tell anyone that you met me.”

  “I promise,” said Rachel as she placed her paws on his head again.. “But promise me that you’ll think about meeting the others.”

  “I promise, also. Thank you, Rachel, my friend,” said Sam with some emotion in his voice.

  “Goodbye, it was nice to meet you too,” said Rachel.

  As Sam watched her leave, Rachel hopped back towards her cottage. She couldn’t believe that she had met and talked to the “Pond Creature”. Now, they were even friends!

  Sam was both happy and scared about what had happened. He hid in the woods the rest of the day. Towards dark he slipped back into the pond unnoticed.

  While the rabbits were involved with their annual flower basket effort, Bartholomew was beginning his own ambitious project, the HMS Ballymore. Before the boat could be built, it had to be designed. His ship book contained some detailed drawings of an Irish Hooker, which were a great help. He decided that some features of the original boat were unnecessary for Ballymore. For example there was no need for sleeping quarters or a kitchen below the deck. The boat was not going to be a hotel or floating restaurant. Instead, the space could be used for cargo or storage as needed. By eliminating these and other unneeded features, it would be much easier to build.

  He spent an evening copying and modifying sketches of the boat from the book. It would be designed to be sailed by a crew of two. When there was no wind, it would be small enough to tow.

  The following morning, he sent messages to Morris and Burton asking if they could come to a meeting at 7 bongs that evening to discuss the design. As I have mentioned, Morris and Burton were the most experienced woodworkers in Ballymore. They arrived just after dinner. After considering Bartholomew’s initial designs, they had a number of suggestions. The three animals worked together that night and made good progress. It still took four more meetings before the design was finished and ready to build.

  First, a suitable construction location was needed. Ideally, the boat should be built on land and then launched into the pond, but that would not be easy to do. The animals had no way, they could think of, to move the completed boat over land and into the pond. It simply would be too heavy.

  Bartholomew suggested that the boat be built above the water and then lowered into the pond. If they could find a very narrow cove, they could build a dock across it. Then, they could build the boat on the dock. When completed, it would be slid off of the dock into the pond. Would it work? We will see.

  Just such a small cove was located on the north side of the pond not far from Morris Muskrat’s cottage. It was only eight feet wide and about twenty feet long.

  The next step was to obtain the wood
for the dock and boat. Bartholomew calculated that they needed wood from seven medium sized trees, four for the boat and three for the dock. No living trees were to be cut. Bartholomew asked Stoddard Swan to fly around the pond and see if he could find any dead trees near the shoreline. His search was successful. Within a day he found a number good possibilities. Some of them were white oaks. White oak was the best wood for boat building. Bartholomew found that important fact in his ship book.