“Billy the Squirrel” by Randy Long

[Once again, we have a guest author at The Primitive Entertainment Workshop. Join me in welcoming Randy Long to the ranks!]

Billy the squirrel comes down the big maple tree to find the food on the ground that the older woman in the house leaves next to the blue spruce tree for all to eat. There’s also a small evergreen next to the house that Billy can climb on to get onto the house and the fence that surrounds the house. Sometimes Squeekers comes out of the house to chase Billy and the other squirrels around the yard. Squeekers is a small dog owned by the older woman and her son.

Billy is a small squirrel who lives high in the maple tree. Where the branches come together, a large nest made of leaves and paper and anything him and his brothers and sisters and mother and father could collect. They made a large nest to keep dry and safe from big birds.

Billy comes down to play with the small dog, Squeekers. Billy runs across the yard, and Squeekers chases Billy, and they have the time of their lives. Billy will run while Squeekers chases, but never catches, Billy. As soon as Squeekers gets close, Billy runs up a tree.

Billy runs down the branches from the big maple tree, climbs across to the blue spruce tree, and jumps on to the wires coming from the older woman’s big white house that connect to a telephone pole. Billy will run down the wires, two stories high, like a high wire act. Billy runs down the wires looking for nuts to bring back to his nest. Next door, there’s a walnut tree, and Billy loves walnuts. Billy brings walnuts one at a time back to his nest or hides them away. There is a street in front of the older woman’s house and Billy knows it’s too busy to cross, so Billy crosses above the street on wires from the telephone pole.

Billy and all his squirrel friends have learned to walk the high wires to stay safe, and they always look both ways when crossing the road, just in case. Billy can stop on branches and the bottoms of trees, upside-down. The older woman’s house has a big porch, and Billy plays there sometimes. Billy runs on the fence, along the top, and stops. About that time, Squeekers comes out to play.

Billy jumps down, off the fence, and the chase is on, Squeekers hot after Billy. As they run around the base of the big maple tree, Billy runs up the tree, knowing that Squeekers can’t climb. When Billy gets 5 or 6 feet off the ground, Billy stops, turns upside-down, and laughs at Squeekers. Squeekers knows that the chasing game is over, for now, and looks at Billy. Squeekers walks around, sniffs the ground, and looks to see if Billy is still around. About then, Squeekers is called to come back in the house.

Billy walks across the branch of the big maple tree and jumps to the fence. Billy runs along the top of the fence and heads out back. Billy sees the big, black and grey dog, named Blue, but knows Blue can’t get him because the fence is very high, 8 feet high, and Billy can run along the top of the fence. Sometimes Billy stops to talk to Blue, the big dog, but Blue usually won’t talk to Billy. Sometimes Blue says, “Come closer,” but Billy knows better. Billy just laughs and says, “I’m on my way to gather nuts.”

Billy says goodbye to Blue and leaves to go exploring. All along the back fence there are cedar trees, about 10 feet tall, on the outside of the fence. Billy sometimes plays in the cedar trees.

Billy makes a nest out of leaves and cardboard and things he can pack. Billy has another nest, smaller than the big nest out front. Billy runs along the fence out back and over to the next house’s fence and three or four fences beyond.

Billy brings food back from four or five houses away, but there are no other animals to play with, except squirrels at the other houses, so when he gets back, Billy likes to play the chasing game with Squeekers.

When Squeekers sees Billy outside, he calls to Billy, The older woman and her son let Squeekers go out to play, and the chase is on. Around the yard and under the picnic table they run, through the bushes, and around the trees.

Billy stops, turns, and says goodbye to Squeekers, his friend, and scurries up the tree to have adventures another day.

—Randy Long

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[Originally posted 27 Mar. 2013 @ The Primitive Entertainment Workshop]