New Story Whale Bedtime Story! The Squirrel and the Cashew
A new Story Whale standalone bedtime story...
Hiya there!
Today’s bedtime story is a little tale about a boy, a treehouse, a family of squirrels, and some cashews in the floorboards. Essentially, it’s got it all. With that said, we’re going to skip the lead in today and get right into it!
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Now, without further ado…
For Harry, the treehouse was his happy place. He loved it more than anywhere else in the world. If he had it his way, he would sleep in it every single night. It would become his home. He would live there his whole life, gradually upgrading it over time, perhaps expanding to other nearby trees, building out his own treehouse city.
Currently, Harry’s treehouse was essentially just a very big wooden box in a tree in his yard. It was big enough for him to stand up inside it and wide enough for him to play handball against one of the walls. Still, to Harry, it was heaven.
His favourite thing to do in the treehouse was to paint little stories onto the interior walls, sort of like old cave paintings. His paintings would tell all sorts of stories, his own personal legends. Like the time his cat Pumpkin ran away from home, or the wonderful time his dad brought him along to work for a day.
*
One day, Harry went out to his treehouse as usual.
Harry climbed up the ladder but suddenly slowed down as he got closer to the top. He could hear a sound coming from inside the treehouse. A scratching sound. He looked inside and found a creature frantically digging its little claws into the floorboards. A squirrel! Harry couldn’t help it — the squirrel made him squeal (try saying that three times quickly!) and Harry almost leapt backwards off the ladder. Wibbling and wobbling, he had to take a moment to try and steady himself so that he didn’t fall.
Once he was steady again, he looked back up at the squirrel in the treehouse. Now the squirrel was staring right back at him.
The squirrel’s big skittish eyes spooked something in Harry and he found himself rushing down the ladder and running back into the house.
Shaken up by the incident, a couple of days passed before Harry finally went back to his treehouse.
He went out to the yard and climbed up to the top of ladder, then peered cautiously into the treehouse. Carefully scanning around, it looked like the coast was clear — no squirrels in sight. Harry climbed into the treehouse and made his way quietly across the floorboards towards his usual reading nook.
As he passed the spot in the floorboards where the squirrel was usually scratching, he paused to take a lot at what had been so interesting to the little critter. In between the floorboards he saw a few bits and pieces of cashews. So that’s what the squirrel had been after!
Harry continued to his corner and started reading his book. He was still feeling very on edge though.
While Harry was reading, a squirrel suddenly appeared in the little window into treehouse, just as his nightmares had predicted... A moment later, another one popped up next to them. A third then appeared and Harry couldn’t take it any longer. He bolted for the door and scrambled down the ladder.
*
For the rest of the week, the treehouse was off limits. It didn’t even feel like his treehouse anymore. It belonged to the squirrels.
Harry would sit on the couch in the living room and look out at the treehouse in the yard, reminiscing about the good old days, wishing he could have his home back. That’s when it hit him…
Harry got to work preparing and then went out in the yard. Everything set, he climbed up the ladder to the treehouse. Looking inside, the squirrel and its family were all there, each of them scratching at the floorboards, focused.
Harry steeled his courage. Carefully and quietly, he reached into his pocket for the cashews he had packed. He took a handful of them and scattered them over towards the squirrels.
The squirrels were briefly startled, but then they realised what had been thrown. The feast was on!
From then on Harry was part of the squirrels’ family. Or they were part of his family. He wasn’t certain which one was the case. What he did know was that he now had some new friends.
Each day, when Harry went up into the treehouse, the squirrels would be there to greet him.
One Sunday, Harry gave them an especially big handful of cashews and then went over to the last unpainted wall of the treehouse. He had brought his paints and paintbrushes along with him. While the squirrels ate their cashews, Harry started work on his newest treehouse painting…
The story of a boy, a handful of cashews, and some new squirrel friends.
Thanks for reading everyone!
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