“Good morning, Pip!” Calls Mia the blue jay from her perch on a low branch.

“Good morning, Mia!” Pip the deer mouse replies, stretching after a good night’s sleep.

Pip lives in the hollow of a large, beautiful cypress tree on the edge of Stippling River in the Watercolor Woods. Her closest friend, Mia, roosts nightly on a nearby branch in the tree.

“The community garden is thriving,” Mia comments. “The vegetables will be ripe soon.”

“Let’s go check the garden today.” Pip is proud of the garden she and her friends in the Watercolor Woods created.

“Sounds like a great idea!” Mia takes off and Pip follows her.

At the garden, Pip begins walking, row by row, to inspect each plant, “These tomatoes, carrots, and cucumbers look great! They are almost ready to eat.”

Mia takes a gander at the tomatoes hanging on the vines. “They do look delicious. the garden is doing well because of everyone’s hard work.”

Pip nods, “I can’t wait for the harvest festival this fall!”

Mia stops and whispers, “I hear something in the bushes over there.”

Out of the bushes pops Boone, the raccoon, “Hi!”

“Boone!” Pip exclaims. “What are you doing?”

“Boone, you look upset,” Mia notices. “What’s wrong?”

Boone glances around to make sure no one else is listening. “I caught two crows in the garden last night. They were stealing some of the tomatoes. I think they may have taken corn too.”

Mia looks at Boone in disbelief, “Stealing? From our garden?”

Pip’s whiskers twitch with concern, “Did you recognize them, Boone? Were they from around here?”

Boone nods with a frown on his face, “It was Corvid and Moon. They have always been a bit mischievous, but I did not think they were thieves.”

Pip looks at Mia, “We need to talk with them. Maybe, there is a reason they took the vegetables.”

Mia agrees, “Yes. We should hear their side of the story before we jump to conclusions.”

“They hang out near the old oak tree at the edge of the glades.” Boone shares. The three friends set off to find the crows.

“Look who’s coming up the trail,” whispers Corvid to Moon.

“Hello, Corvid. Hello, Moon.” Pip calls to them.

“What brings you here?” Corvid asks.

Mia speaks up, "Well, we hear Boone caught you stealing and eating tomatoes in the garden last night. We want to hear your side.”

Moon, looking down at his feet, speaks up, “We… we didn’t mean any harm. We were hungry….and the vegetables looked good! It was tempting.”

Pip expresses, “If you were hungry, you should have asked. The garden is for everyone in the community, but we need to share fairly.”

Corvid responds, “We didn’t think anyone would notice. We’re sorry.”

Mia flutters her wings, “Apology accepted. But, you have to promise not to take anything without asking, again.”

The crows nod, “We promise.”

Pip suggests, “What do you think about helping us with the garden? There’s always work to be done, and we can use the extra help.”

Corvid and Moon agree, “Can we start now?”

“Sure. The garden needs weeding and watering today,” Boone shares.

“The crows proved to be very helpful and hardworking,”. Pip says with a sigh of contentment.

Mia nods, “Yes, they did. We have two new friends, also.”

Boone grins, “And…. The garden is looking better than ever.”

Finishing up for the day, Corvid and Moon caw, “Thank you! We love working in the garden.”

Pip smiles and tosses them each a tomato, “That’s what community is all about.”