“Mia…, Mia,” Pip whispers from her hollow.

Pip is a curious and spirited deer mouse living in the hollow of a majestic bald cypress tree in the Watercolor Woods.  She spends her days with her close friend Mia, exploring the woodland wonders surrounding her home.

“What is it, Pip?”  Mia answers.

Mia, the blue jay, lives near Pip’s hollow in the tree.  Her iridescent blue feathers are complemented by a personality just as vibrant.

“Something seems different,” Pip says peeking her head from the hollow.

“It does seem so.” Mia agrees. “We should investigate.”

“Let’s go!” They each exclaimed, ready for a new adventure.

“Mia, listen! Do you hear that?  The birds have stopped chirping, and the woods are quiet.” Pip points out.  She wonders why the silence, and moves closer to Mia for comfort.

“The animals seem to sense something too,” Mia observes.  “What is going on Pip?”

“I’m not sure Mia,” Pip replies.  “I wish I knew, but I have a feeling it is something big!”

Pip and Mia explore deeper into the woods, hoping to discover the answer.

“Is that Henry, the groundhog, hiding over there?”  Mia tilts her head to the side looking into a patch of clover.  “I think it is one of the entrances to his burrow.”

“What’s wrong, Henry?”  Pip pokes her head into the borrow and asks.

“It’s the eclipse!”  Henry stammers.  “The sky will darken soon….. and…. I’m scared.”

Mia glances at Pip, “I have heard of an eclipse, but I have never experienced one.”

“Don’t worry, Henry,” Pip reassures him.  “We will stay here with you and watch it together.”

“Look at the shadows disappearing.  The sky is getting darker in the middle of the day!”  Henry says shrinking back a little further into the burrow.

Scanning the trees, Mia notices, “The birds are huddled together on the tree branches in silence.”

“And, look at the animals scurrying home, as if it is bedtime,” Pip observes.

Pip, Mia, and Henry watch from the burrow entrance as the sun slowly disappears behind the moon.

“It’s beautiful!” Mia whispers in awe.

Pip nods, “How exciting and scary at the same time!”

“The stars!  I can see the stars, and it’s the middle of the day!” Says Henry now with a smile on his face.  His fear is beginning to leave.

“Oh!  And, look!  A comet streaking through the dark sky!”  Mia gasps.

Pip feels a sense of peace wash over her, and remarks, “This is truly magnificent!”

“What’s that?”  Henry says shrinking back into his burrow, hearing a rustling in the bushes.

Mia giggles, “It’s our friend Juniper, the chipmunk.”

“Oops.  Sorry.  I did not mean to scare you, Henry.”  Juniper apologizes.

“Hello, Juniper.” Henry greets her, still peeking his head slightly out of his burrow.  “That’s okay.  We are all a little jumpy today.”

“It’s okay, Juniper,” Pip reassures her.  “The eclipse is beautiful, but new experiences like this are a little scary too.”

With courage, Pip, Mia, Henry, and Juniper watch the eclipse reach its peak.

“The moon is moving, I can see the sun,”  Henry says excitedly.

With the first rays of sun peeking from behind the moon, Mia’s eyes light up, “The birds are singing again!”

“And, look, the animals are coming out of their dens, burrows, and nests,” Pip exclaims.

Henry realizes the eclipse is ending as fast as it began. “Thank you!  Thank you, my friends, for staying here with me during the eclipse.”

“You’re welcome,” they each respond.  As the day finishes, Pip and Mia stay to visit with Henry and Juniper for a while, telling stories and bonding over past adventures in the Watercolor Woods.