By Niggy Binkles
Skippy was a squirrel lad who lived with his parents in Nutty Grove, a forest full of fruit and nut trees. For his parents, Skippy was a very special child, because when he was born, they discovered that, unlike other squirrels, his tail was not long and bushy. Rather, it was a little, hairless stump and really quite odd to look at. Skippy’s parents loved their child even more for this and hoped that he would be able to lead a good life despite the way his tail was. But the other squirrels in the forest were not kind towards Skippy. They made fun of him, causing the poor boy to cry.
“Skippy, a bushy tail is the pride of we squirrels, and you have nothing to be proud of. Without a proper squirrel tail, how will you balance while leaping from tree to tree, like any good squirrel would?” mocked Snappy, a fat, middle-aged squirrel as he shook his bushy tail in front of Skippy to show off.
“Skippy, it’s going to be winter soon. How will you keep yourself warm without a good tail? Unlike you, I can wrap myself with my silky tail, like a cuddly blanket,” giggled Silly, a young squirrel who had recently set up her own beauty parlour especially for squirrels high up in a tree.
“Skippy, what if Creamy, the cat, chases you some day? How will you signal to your parents for help and run for safety then? For that, you need a long tail to shake this way and that,” squeaked Secret, a grim squirrel who had his own squirrel detective agency.
As if this were not enough to make Skippy feel lost and sad there was Krazy the Kite, who would spend hours every now and then circling high up in the sky while gazing down at Skippy, dreaming of catching him some day, thinking that because he didn’t have a normal squirrel’s tail that would help him run fast, he couldn’t escape her sharp claws, as the other squirrels might.
In the whole of Nutty Grove, it was only Skippy’s parents who loved Skippy a lot. They hoped that one day, the other Nutty Grove squirrels would learn his value.
*
One early winter morning, Sammy, a gossipy old squirrel, began scampering around Nutty Grove, squeaking loud enough for everyone to hear: “Hey friends, there’s awful news, I’m afraid! The Brush Tribe is marching towards our forest, armed with scissors to cut off our bushy tails and then sell them to city folks, who’ll make paint paintbrushes out of them for a few pennies each. They might arrive in just a few days. Oh, whatever shall we do!”
At this, the squirrels of Nutty Grove began to tremble in fear. They had no idea at all what they should now do.
A short while later, breaking the silence, Skippy poked his head out of his nest and hesitatingly asked, “Could I say something?”
The other squirrels nodded their heads and wagged their tails, giving Skippy permission to speak.
“Friends,” Skippy began. “I’ve got a clever idea. Can you fellow squirrels fold your tails in half or a quarter so that they look like mine—like an ‘ugly stump’, as you used to call it? If you do this, then when the Brush Tribe people come here, they will think all of us squirrels here have good-for-nothing tails and then will go back without cutting your tails or otherwise harming you.”
Skippy’s idea struck the other squirrels as a very smart proposal. They immediately gave it their wholehearted consent.
Skippy then held a quick training session for the squirrels in Nutty Grove, teaching them to fold their tails up so that they looked exactly like his own tail, which they so used to mock.
Two days later, the dreaded Brush Tribe marched into Nutty Grove. Oh, what a dreadful sight it was, each of them holding up big scissors in their hands and raising loud slogans! The inhabitants of Nutty Grove fell silent, watching with fear what the men of the Brush Tribe might set about doing. As trained by Skippy, the squirrels perched themselves on treetops with their tails folded into what seemed like stumps, making sure that these were clearly visible to the Brush Tribe folks below!
“What odd squirrels live here,” growled Tumba, head of the Brush Tribe when he spotted them and observed their tails. “Their tails are very tiny, and very ugly, too—they definitely won’t make good paintbrushes. We’d lose all our valued customers if we tried to sell these tails in the market.” Saying that, he ordered his men, “Let’s not waste even a moment more of our precious time here. Come, let’s get away from here at once.”
The Brush tribe did as their chief ordered, and very soon, they vanished from Nutty Grove!
You can’t imagine how greatly relieved all the squirrels of the forest were at this dramatic turn of events. They rushed down the trees, squeaking with delight and raced towards Skippy, giving him a giant hug for having saved them with his clever plan. “Oh we are so, so sorry, Skippy, for mocking you and making fun of your tail! It was because of your clever idea—which you actually got from your tail—that our tails are now safe. You are our real hero Skippy!” they cheered, lifting him high up in the air and catching him in their arms as he came down.
Skippy blushed like a red cherry—you should really have seen him then, so sweet did he look.
The next evening, a party was held at Nutty Grove to honour Skippy and his parents. Silly made a nut cake, big enough for everyone, while Snappy tied a blue ribbon around Skippy’s tail to honour it. All those who were present came forward, one by and one, and said a few good words in praise of Skippy—and, yes, believe it or not, of his tail, too. At the end of the party, Skippy was honored with “The Bravest Squirrel Ever of Nutty Grove” award, which he rather shyly received.
Stepping up on the stage to receive the award, Skippy waved out to the cheering squirrels and said, “You thought my tail was silly, but see how it’s helped us all! God does not make mistakes, we should know, and, truly, as it is said, everything happens for the good!”
“That’s very true!” chimed the other squirrels in unison.
That night, the denizens of Nutty Grove had a delightful dinner, and later, when their tummies were a little settled, they danced far into the night until around dawn, when they all fell asleep, holding each other’s paws!
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