by Katie Clark –
Mary Anne trekked through the fluffy, white snow. Trees stood like walls around her, but none of them were quite right.
“Good morning!” she called to Mama Redbird.
Mama Redbird chirped a friendly greeting. “What are you doing out so early?” she asked.
“I’m looking for the perfect pine tree for my Christmas party tonight,” Mary Anne said. “Would you like to help?”
“I have to collect breakfast for my family first,” Mama Redbird said. She plucked a berry from a branch.
“Please, let me help you!” Mary Anne said.
She gathered a fistful of berries and placed them in the nest on the lowest branch. Three baby birds chirped their thanks.
“Thank you!” Mama Redbird said.
Mary Anne nodded and kept walking.
“Howdy ho, neighbor!” a squeaky voice rang through the forest.
Mary Anne glanced at Mr. and Mrs. Squirrel. “Hi there!” she said. “I’m going to find a perfect pine tree for Christmas. Would you like to come along?”
“Can’t,” said Mr. Squirrel. “We’ve got to store these nuts for the winter.”
“I see!” Mary Anne said. “That’s an awful lot of work. I can carry some.” She took an arm load of acorns and put them inside the tree. “Good luck, and don’t forget my party tonight!” she called as she walked along.
Mary Anne breathed in the chilly air. It tickled her throat and chilled her nose.
“Excuse me!” a voice interrupted her.
“Oh!” Mary Anne said to Snow Bunny. “I didn’t see you there.”
Snow Bunny wriggled her nose. “That’s okay. No one ever does in the winter.”
Snow Bunny raced around, gathering sticks and pinecones. Mary Anne frowned. “What are you doing?”
“I have to build a burrow for my babies!” Snow Bunny said.
“I can help,” Mary Anne said, and she gathered a bundle of scratchy twigs.
“Thank you so much!” Snow Bunny said as Mary Anne continued on her journey.
“You’re welcome. I would love for you to come to my Christmas party tonight, and bring your babies, too!”
Mary Anne came into a glimmering, shimmering clearing. The snow twinkled from every branch on every tree. And that’s when Mary Anne saw it—the perfect tree! It stood at just the perfect height for her small cottage. It was the perfect fullness for her narrow room.
“And it has the most perfectly piney scent!” she said, breathing in deeply. So she dragged the tree home, and set it up in her cottage.
Mary Anne frowned. Something was missing—decorations.
Knock knock!
Mary Anne froze. The party! She had run out of time, and her tree was not finished. Mary Anne opened the door, and gasped.
Her friends stood on her doorstep, each holding something special.
“We’ve come to help you,” Mama Redbird announced.
“Since you’re always helping everyone else,” Mr. Squirrel added.
“Do you still need a hand?” Snow Bunny asked.
Mary Anne smiled. “I sure do!”
Mama Redbird strung the berried on the tree. Mr. and Mrs. Squirrel hung nuts from the branches. Snow Bunny placed a large pinecone on the top of the perfect pine tree.
Together the friends admired the Christmas tree. “This is the most delightful gift of all!” Mary Anne said. “Thank you for helping me make my Christmas.”
the end.
Question Time
1. Why was Mary Anne walking alone through the snow?
2. Why do you think Mary Anne stopped to help everyone who needed it?
3. How did the animals thank Mary Anne for her help?
