Sally The Cloud

There was once a cloud named Sally. Sally lived high up in the sky and floated around all day long. She had seen many different things in her life whilst filling many rivers with water aswell as covering many mountains with snow. This, however, was not the life Sally wanted and so she always felt quite sad to watch from above as the world down below went by and she could not join in. She told her friend Sun of her wish one day. 'I would love to live on the ground but the other clouds laugh at me and call me "Dream Cloud Sally." 'Sally,' said a smiling Sun, who brightened up the day whenever she smiled, 'in all the time you have been living in the sky, haven't you learned that you can do anything you put your mind to?' 'I guess it's difficult to believe in yourself when others tell you things are not possible' replied Sally. 'Anything is possible my dear Sally. Go now and live your dream.' said a setting Sun.

Sally floated around for awhile pondering about what Sun had said. Then a storm began to brew. Lightening was flashing out from the other clouds and a strong wind was blowing Sally around. 'That's it!' cried Sally. 'I can't take this anymore!' and she floated down through the storm past the other clouds whom were too busy creating this bad weather to notice. When she reached the ground, Sally came to an old shed in which she took shelter. She had been a cloud a long time and seen and helped create many storms but she never liked them as they frightened her terribly and particularly this storm as it was quite strong indeed. There was an empty spot in the corner of the shed where Sally rested for the night as strong winds and heavy rain battered the old wooden building.

The next morning, Sally awoke to calm. Birds were singing and sunlight was beaming through the windows and the crack between the planks of wood on the broken door. Deciding to explore, Sally floated outside to be greeted by a scene of pure beauty. A river flowed alongside the shed and was as blue as the sky it reflected. Flowers of every colour decorated the area with such a variety of colours it would make a rainbow jealous. Fly's and Bees buzzed past about their business not having much time to take in their surroundings. 'I like it here very much.' Sally said looking toward Sun and smiled then suddenly everywhere became brighter and sunnier as Sun smiled back.

Along the riverbank, Sally spotted two Hedgehogs. She floated over towards them to say hello but before she could do this, one of the Hedgehogs spotted Sally and shouted 'M...M...M...MONSTER!' and they both hurried off. Slowly of course, as they were Hedgehogs after all! Sally floated on and didn't try to follow them. She found a beautiful spot by the river and stayed there awhile. 'Oh I’m not so sure if my being here was such a good idea. Maybe clouds are just not meant to live on the ground.' Suddenly, she heard some noise behind her. It was an angry crowd of animals. 'Get out of here!' 'We don't want monsters living here.’ Sally was too frightened and upset to explain that she was not a monster and quickly floated on back to the shed where she hid. 'Oh dear, I think it's time to leave. I'm not welcome here.' A tear fell from her eye. It was very rare for a cloud to shed a tear.

As she prepared to leave, Sally got a very bad smell. 'What on earth is that dreadful smell?' she thought to herself. 'Hello' said a voice from outside. 'Who is it?' asked Sally. 'My name is Henry; I don't mean you any harm.' Peeping out the window, Sally saw a small skunk waiting outside to be greeted. 'Come on in then Henry.' 'I saw what happened back there by the river.' Henry told Sally. 'For years I have been the one they get angry at and tell to leave because of my smell. They say I have no right to be here.' 'Oh no!' replied Sally 'you poor creature.' 'I have lived here all my life. It's my home.' ‘Of course Henry.’ I understand.' 'What are you anyway? Henry asked. I have never seen anything like you before.' I'm Sally and I’m a cloud. I came from the sky as I no longer wanted to live up there. Although I think I must return as it was a mistake coming here.' 'Heavens no!' cried Henry. 'For so long I have waited for someone like you to come along and now you are here.' Sally smiled as she realised that she had just made a friend on the ground and she needn't go back to the sky. Sally and Henry talked all day and by the end of the night they felt like they had been friends all of their lives. Then, it occurred to Sally, she could not smell Henry anymore. She had gotten to know him and his kind heart far overshadowed his smell. They became good friends and Henry showed Sally around. They had such fun together and even though the other animals around didn't like them, they were happy, because they had each other.

One day as Henry was helping Sally fix up her shed with some old tools they had found there, they heard a loud bang and screaming nearby. 'My goodness, what could be wrong?' asked Henry as he made his way outside. 'Oh Sally come quickly!' Sally too hurried out and gasped at the sight in front of them both, as some of the other animal’s homes were on fire in the wood. 'We must do something Sally.' 'I know what to do. Quickly Henry, get the bucket in the corner of the shed and follow me to the river.' She noticed that there were dark clouds above the fire and lightening was flashing from it. Lightening must have struck a tree in the wood. She hurried over to the river and dipped herself into the water. This was something which she had never done before and was not sure would even work. She soaked up as much water as she could and asked Henry to fill the bucket with water too. 'Come on Henry!' They went towards the fires and when they got there, Sally floated above one fire and released the water as rain which put the fire out. Then she floated back down to the bucket of water Henry had brought, soaked that up too and put the second and final fire out. The animals looked on in amazement and cheered for the two heroes.

'We are so grateful to you both for saving our homes.' said a teary-eyed rabbit. 'Yes, please forgive us for being so unwelcoming to you both it was wrong of us.' said one little hedgehog as many others nodded their heads in agreement. 'Everybody wait!' shouted a fox sniffing the air. 'Notice, there is no longer a smell from Henry.' 'His kindness has far outshone any smell. He came to help us even after we had been so unkind to him and his friend.' 'Please accept our invitation for a celebratory dance tonight.’ ‘We understand if you didn't want to join us but you will be our special guests of course.' ‘We would love to.' replied Sally and Henry together. From then on, Sally lived very happily on the ground with her friend Henry and their many friends around and whenever Sally looked up to Sun, she would say 'I’m living my dream Sun.' and the day would brighten.

The Smiling Tree

Deep in a valley below mountains so tall,
lived a tree that was smiling to any and all.
 It smiled in the rain and smiled in the snow,
smiling at the weather the day would throw.
 The landscape around made this lovely tree smile,
for the beauty alone, living there was worthwhile.
 Pebbled streams and flowers of every array,
littered the valley whereon the butterflies lay.
 This smiling tree brightened  many dull days,
it brought a beacon of light in so many ways.
 Those who shed tears travelled far to see,
then left with a smile like the smiling tree.

 

A LEAF ABOVE THE REST

A leaf had fallen, as I passed one day,

turning my head, I saw where it lay.

Apon a small twig, it rested for now.

Not touching the ground, to the leaf pile it bow.

Balanced on it's perch, clinging to a height,

outwitting it's course, it stayed there so light.

All the other leaves around, fell in due time,

but this little leaf, none of them, did it mime.

The trees were bare now with the odd little nest,

but this little leaf, was still a leaf above the rest.

HEDGEMAN

There once was a man who lived in a hedge. Nobody knows how he came to live in a hedge but he liked his dwelling very much. He would eat wild berries in Summer which were ripe and big, and he would hunt animals in the Winter. The hedge sheltered him from harsh frost in the Winter and kept him shaded from the hot sun in the Summer months and when it rained, the leaves kept the water from coming in. It was an evergreen hedge too, so there was leaves and shelter all year round.
       One day Hedgeman was taking a nap, when he heard something outside of the hedge and woke. "What's out there?" he said to himself, rubbing his eyes. He went out for a look and couldn't see anything so went back inside to try get some more sleep. Again, he lay down but was disturbed by a noise outside. This time it was louder. Hedgeman was getting very cross with the noise and stumbled back out to see what was going on. "Who is making all that racket?" he shouted. He couldn't see anything but as he turned to go back inside he heard something ontop of the hedge. He peeped up and to his surprise, there was a Magpie's nest above with three little Magpie chicks in it. They seemed very hungry and Hedgeman waited awhile but there didn't seem to be any Magpie parents. He decided he could not let them starve, so he would have to take care of them.
        He had to feed the chicks scraps of meat he had left over and go out looking for worms and bugs and was very kind to them indeed. He climbed hills and dug holes and did whatever he could to get some food to feed them. As they grew, they began to fly down and go inside the hedge and keep him company.  They would follow him on walks and when he went looking for their food. They learned how to hunt on these walks and began to fend for themselves. This could not last forever though and when the time was right, they all flew away to start their own lives. Poor Hedgeman was very lonely after taking care of the baby Magpies for quite some time. He would long for them to come back and make the racket he had grown to love.
        The Magpies had not long gone, when one day a mouse scuttled into Hedgeman's hedge. "what are you doing in here?" he asked the mouse. He got no reply of course. The mouse cuddled into Hedgeman and fell fast asleep. This made him tired and he too lay down for a sleep. When he awoke, the mouse was ontop of him. He crawled up Hedgeman's arm and nibbled at his face which tickled him. He laughed so much the mouse fell off. With the Magpies gone, he was very glad of the company. Everyday, the little mouse would come in to see him and he was no longer lonely.
       Soon Spring turned to Summer which before long turned to Autumn and in no time, many years had passed. This particular year it was late October and the weather began to get very very cold. Frost was settling on the ground at nightime and Hedgeman kept warm with a small fire. Snow was coming which meant less food. Winter was fast approaching as the snow began to fall and heavily too. In fact so heavily, that food was scarce. The mouse now lived with him and he brought him everywhere on his shoulder but even the mouse wouldn't brave the cold outside with Hedgeman, who had never seen such a harsh, cold Winter.
      When he went hunting, he could not find anything to hunt. Everything was sheltering from the heavy snow. He was starving and had to go back to his hedge, hungry! "If i don't eat soon i wont survive this Winter" he thought to himself.  As he was sitting one evening trying to keep warm by the fire, he heard a noise outside as did the mouse, looking up from his cosy spot by the fire. He looked out and found three pieces of meat, which were left right outside the hedge. "Where on earth did this come from?" a shocked Hedgeman said to himself. Right away he brought it in and cooked it on the fire and ate it.
     The next day, Hedgeman went hunting again. He found no animals to hunt that day either, so he had to return to his hedge empty handed with an empty stomach. Later that night, he heard something again outside as he was warming by the fire and went outside for a look. It was three more pieces of meat! He could not understand where it was coming from. "Again? I cannot believe my eyes!" he said to himself.Every night this happened. So one night, Hedgeman wanted to figure out where it was coming from. So he sat outside the hedge and waited in the bitter cold night.
     Suddenly he heard lots of flapping and something touching down onto the snow, walking towards him. "Who's there?" he shouted. Just then out of the shadows stepped three Magpies. The very same three magpies he had taken care of many years ago when they were just chicks. They were coming with meat in their beaks. They looked at Hedgeman with kind faces and dropped the meat infront of him, before flying off again. "Thank you!, thank you so much my friends" shouted Hedgeman after them as they flew away. He could not believe they had returned after so many years with food for him. The next day, the snow began to thaw and Spring was returning. There were alot of animals to hunt for himself now. No Winter was ever so bad after that and Hedgeman never saw those Magpies again.

The Whispering Trees.

The leaves were browning on the Autumn trees. I sat beneath them and listened to the sound in the breeze. They whispered softly of the months gone by, the birds that had nested in the branches up high. I heard them talk of the torrent of showers, they had gotten in spring and had lasted for hours. Or the warm bright summer, which lit up the day soon the cold frosty mornings, will keep hustle at bay. Shedding their memories with the leaves that were falling. Sleep would come soon as the winter was calling.

Beauty At The Pond.

In between the rainkissed trees,
I walked along, beneath the ceiling of leaves.

I came to a clearing and noticed a pond,
and of the image there, my heart grew fond.

An angel sat, paddling her feet,
sitting on a log, she had made her seat.

She smiled at the water as she saw her reflection,
for the beauty around her, had drawn her affection.

Her wings were big, her gown was long,
all around, the birds sang a song.

Attracting many creatures with her glowing bright light,
until the sun went away and she flew off at night.

The Butterfly Song

There once was a butterfly with only one wing
though unable to fly, she knew she could sing.

She sang when happy, she sang when sad,
she sang through times when things seemed bad.

Everyone stopped to listen to the voice,
they could not walk on, the beauty gave them no choice.

She sang of the flowers and sang of the bees.
She sang of the leaves in the beautiful trees.

This breath taking song, rang out, through fields far and near
and all came to listen from Foxes to Deer.

 She never stopped singing for she felt she could fly
when she sang from her heart and looked to the sky.

                                                                                                by Paul Broughall

The Moonlight Dance.

The Moonlight Dance

The moon above, shone down brightly, Upon the animals arriving, who tread so lightly. This was a night where all would come out, to see something special which was rarely about. The stream trickled through the glowing trees, lighting the way for the animals with ease. The badger sat on the bank of the stream and the Angelic sight, he thought was a dream. A Silver Swan danced under the light, spreading her wings to twirl in delight. She danced by herself, yes she danced all alone. Happily dancing in a world of her own.The animals gazed and all kept so quiet not to startle the swan on this magical night.

                                                                                                                         by Paul Broughall.

The Fallen Tree

I walked along with the world on my shoulders.
Feeling this bad was like carrying boulders.
 To my left, I saw a tree, which had fallen
and crashed and i thought "just like me!"
I looked again, this tree wasn't dying. It's leaves were green
and in the breeze, the blossoms were flying.
 A squirrel peeped out of a hole it was dwelling
and a bird flew up from the place she was nesting.
 Though it had fallen this tree was not sad.
It seemed to me this tree must be glad.
I was shocked at the beauty of this fallen tree
and how it gave out a message which appealed to me,
Never let troubles make you feel small,
when a fallen tree can stand so tall.

                                                                                                                        by Paul Broughall.

Claudia The Robin without a Song!

Once apon a time, there was a bird named Claudia, Claudia was a little Robin and lived in a small nest among the woodland trees. She was an unusual Robin, as she, unlike the other birds of the wood, could not sing. Yes every morning she would awaken to the beautiful chorus of all the other bird's songs but she could not join in. Poor Claudia felt very lonely and without a song she couldn't communicate with other birds. Morning time was most sad for her as the dawn chorus, the most social time of the day for birds was all around her and she could not join in. She had no friends as other birds didn't understand that she was normal. She could not warn other birds of dangers and so she was of no use to them in that way.  They saw her as strange and laughed at her for having no song.
As lonely as she was she did not care what other birds thought of her as she was just a bird like any other, a bird who could not be heard but still existed and carried on with her life. During the day she would fly around and collect bugs for dinner and collect sticks and moss for her nest.. At night she would be the first to go to sleep as she had no goodnight song to sing. So indeed Claudia was not very happy until one day something very special happened.          
Claudia was flying around when she saw a small stick falling from a tree. She swooped down and picked it up and flew off with it to put it in her nest. As she flew back, she heard a beautiful sound. It surrounded her and echoed into the woodland. She didn't know what was happening until she noticed she was making the noise. When she breathed into a hole in the stick, it would create a beautiful song. The most beautiful song Claudia had ever heard. When she arrived back at her nest, Claudia placed the stick beside her. It was getting late and so she decided not to breath into it until the following day when all the other birds would be awakening. Night was falling and the evening singing was in full swing. The Blackbirds continued their melodious tunes and the Pigeons cooed loudly trying to out sing the Robins. This went on before the sound rested and disappeared completely until  the morning as all the birds including Claudia had slipped into a deep slumber for the night. Nothing could be heard now but a light breeze through the leaves in the trees.
The following morning, the Sun was rising and the singing of all the birds had begun when Claudia awakened. She stretched her wings and grew excited when she remembered her new stick. She stood up and took a deep breath and breathed deeply into the stick. The most beautiful song rang out across the woodland and stopped all of the birds from singing. The wood grew silent and this song could be heard from miles away. The other birds could not believe someone who had never sung before could now be singing such a breathtakingly beautiful song. They flocked from far and wide to hear her sing and surrounded her in admiration. Day after day birds came to hear her sing. She had many friends and even though she could not sing on her own or communicate in every other bird's naturally gifted way, Claudia had found a way of communicating and the other birds heard her loud and clear. She was telling a story, a story of the lonely bird who carried on and ignored what everyone thought of her. She was truly a bird to admire and from that day on, Claudia had indeed the most beautiful song in the wood and if you listen very carefully the next time you are in the woods, you just might hear her telling her story.

                                                                                                                           by Paul Broughall.

                                                     

The Woodland Dance.

                                                               The Woodland Dance

There once was a wood where animals did dance
and no one could see them, not even a chance.

They would dance all day and dance all night.
No other animals showed such delight.

There were hedgehogs and badgers and some little frogs too.
Some squirrels and foxes and the odd little shrew.

They danced so beautifully, they danced so long,
nothing could stop them from dancing along.

Dancing around flowers, mushrooms and trees
and over the river through the woodland breeze.

But, why were they dancing? well nobody knows,
they danced in a wood where nobody goes.

                                                                                                                   by Paul Broughall.

Mouse Without A House.

Once upon a time there was a mouse named Ben. Ben lived in a cosy little house beneath some trees in the middle of a wood. It was made of timber and mud. He was a lazy mouse and loved to sleep alot.

One night in bed, he noticed it was getting very windy and rainy outside. Becoming rather cold looking at this weather he decided to put some more logs on the fire which he kept lighting at the bottom of his bed. But, as he went to the fire he noticed the sticks and logs were low so he had to make a trip outside to gather some more. When he opened the front door the wind blew him back slightly "oh dear it's a terrible night out there" he said, returning to his feet. Nevertheless he stepped outside.
                     Wind and rain was making it difficult to gather the sticks. When he had enough of them he started making his way back towards his home. Suddenly "BANG!" Ben watched as a huge tree fell on his house and crushed it! "Oh no my house!" cried Ben "My lovely cosy house! Where will i live now?" he went to the house to see if any of his belongings had survived. Just about everything but a few items of clothing and his bed clothes had been destroyed. He picked up anything he could, rolled it up and carried it on his back as he set off in the storm in search of a new home. "I'm so cold and wet" said a miserable Ben "I'll never find a house as cosy as my old one"
                      Ben walked a long time in the wind and rain. It was morning and by now the storm was settling and becoming less windy. He came to a tree with a big hole at the bottom and went inside.
Inside the house, Ben looked around and thought "Maybe i could live here". There was a hole in the ceiling perfect to light a fire beneath. He was cold so gathered up some sticks outside and began to set up a fire. He lit it and put down his blanket to try and get some sleep but as he was getting into bed he heard much too loud crackling behind him and he turned to see what was going on. "Oh no! the tree has caught fire!" He threw some wet leaves on the flames to put it out, grabbed his things and left the tree. It was not for Ben.
                     Again he walked for a long time and sat for a rest on a log. Just then a bird flew down when she saw the sad mouse. She was a Wren. "Hello, what's the matter? why are you so sad?" she asked. "It's my house, it was crushed by a tree last night and now i have nowhere to live" he replied.
"Oh, you poor thing i think i know somewhere you could live. Follow me." said the little bird as she took flight. Ben jumped up and ran after the her. He followed her until he came to an old shoe. The little mouse climbed in and said "You know, it is very cosy. I think i shall be very happy here thank you. "You are most welcome" replied the bird and flew off without another word. Ben tried to settle into his new house and was a bit cold. He gathered some sticks and this time the shoe did not catch fire but all the heat went out the big opening at the top of the shoe. So Ben had no choice but to keep looking, for he was cold and miserable and could not live in a cold shoe.
                    On his journey, he again became tired and sat for another rest. Up high he heard movement. It was a squirrel she too had seen the sad little mouse. "Hello. What's wrong? Why do you look very sad?" asked the squirrel. "Well" replied Ben, "last night my house was destroyed in the storm when a tree fell on it" "Oh no! That's terrible" replied the squirrel "and you don't have anywhere else to go?" "No" said Ben sadly "I have been searching all night but cannot find the right place for me". "come with me". said the squirrel, "I think i know just the place". So he followed the squirrel until they came to a little birds nest high up in a tree. It was round like a ball and had a little hole in the front. "Are you sure nobody lives here?" Ben asked. "Yes i am certain. This nest has been empty for years". Ben climbed up and into the nest. "Wow this is the cosiest house yet thank you very much" "You're welcome" replied the squirrel as she climbed and jumped away from tree to tree. So Ben lay down his blanket and as the nest was warm didn't need to light a fire. He closed his eyes and was about to go to sleep when suddenly the nest began to move slightly. It brought Ben to his feet and before he knew it he was tumbling towards the ground as the nest came away from the tree. "Ah!"  cried Ben. He hit the ground and some moss broke his fall. He set off again.
                    Ben was very tired, cold and sad that he could not find a new house. He came to a river and sat down beside it. "I'm going to be cold and wet forever!" he said to himself with certainty. "If only i could live here and enjoy this lovely river view everyday." The river was surrounded by trees with flowers scattered all around the bottom of them. Although it was cold, the sky was blue and the sun began to shine. Everywhere looked very beautiful. Then something caught Bens eye. There was something shining over by a tree at the riverside. He went for a closer look and what was it only an old kettle.The kettle was surrounded by flowers of every colour there was a hole in the side and the lid remained intact. The spout would make a great chimney and the lid would keep the heat in. It was perfect! Ben lit a fire and set out his blanket and got into bed and lay down. He was the most snug, cosiest mouse that ever lived in that wood. Finally he had found a new home in the loveliest place imaginable. Ben slept well that night.

                                                                                                                     by Paul Broughall.