Story: Harmony In The Watercolor Woods

“Let’s play hide and seek.” Pip grins at Mia and runs.

Pip, the deer mouse, and Mia, the blue jay, are close friends and neighbors in the Watercolor Woods.  They love to spend their days exploring together.

Mia pops up from a wildflower patch, “I’ll count and you hide.  1–2–3–4…”

“Wait.  Did you hear that?”  Pip stops and asks.

Mia quits counting, tilts her head, and smiles.  “Let’s go see what it is!”

“Okay, but tiptoe quietly!  We don’t want to scare it away.”  Pip whispers.  Her ears perk up, “There it is again.”

“The melody is traveling further away.  Follow it!” Mia urges Pip.

Still tiptoeing through the underbrush of the woodland floor, the sounds and songs lead the way.

“Now I hear crickets chirping,” Pip says confused.

“How could that be?”  Mia remarks puzzled.

“I don’t know.  It’s the wrong time of day for cricket chirping.”  Pip responds, her whiskers anxiously twitching.

“Now, I hear spring peepers.  They only call at dusk and dawn.  Oh!  Now, it’s sort of a robin’s call,” Mia cackles in wonder.

“What’s happening Mia?”  Pip asks.

Mia shrugs her shoulders, “I’m not sure, but it’s moving that way.  Let’s go.”

Suddenly, a mockingbird lands in front of them.

“Oh, my!” Squeals Pip.

“It’s just me silly, Harmony.”  The mockingbird giggles.  “Do you like my game?”

Pip and Mia stare for a minute, in shock. “But,… How,… Why,…?” They stammer.

Harmony hops back a step.  “I’m sorry.  Did I scare you? I only want to take you on an adventure.”

Mia is curious, “What kind of adventure?”

Fluffing out her feathers, Harmony explains, “I challenge you to follow me through the woods and name the sounds you hear me mimicking.”

Pip and Mia glance at each other and nod in approval, “Sounds like fun.”

Harmony hollers as she flies to the treetops, “Let the game begin!”

“An Owl.”  Pip and Mia call out following Harmony’s hoots.

“How about this one, peter-peter-peter?” Harmony sings.

Giggling, Pip says, “That is an easy one, a tufted titmouse.”

Harmony calls out, “caw-caw-caw”.

Mia jumps in with the answer, “A crow!”

“This one will be a little more difficult, witchety-witchety-witchety-witchety”, Harmony sings in a slow and bouncy tone.

Pip and Mia look at each other in wonder.  Then, it dawns on them, “Common Yellowthroat.”

“This is fun!” Pip exclaims as Harmony chatters like a squirrel.  “But, the sun is below the horizon.  It’s getting late.”

Mia agrees, “We should head home.”

Harmony flutters over and nods, “It is getting late.  Can we do this again soon?”

“Absolutely!”  Both Pip and Mia reply as they wave bye to Harmony.

Walking home, they cannot contain their excitement from the day’s activities.  It was a wonderful adventure, a new game, and a new friend.