The Pond

The whirligig-beetle spun its whirlpool on the pond's surface. Of course, when Red Dog reached out with his paw to touch the whirlpool, the whirlpool shattered and the whirligig-beetle skittered toward the pond's center.

When the water's surface was quiet again, it reflected the bright, silvery sky. Seeing this, I remembered last winter when the pond was bright and silvery because it was covered with ice. Oh, Red Dog and I remember what a hard winter that one was!

In fact, when March came and the pond thawed, we couldn't find a single live fish in it. They'd all frozen and died... !

Therefore, one morning in April, Red Dog and I went to Semiway Lake and caught a dozen pregnant, mother minnows. We carried them home in an old pickle jar and we let them go in this pond.

And then, before long, each minnow mother gave birth to dozens of minnow children, and soon those minnow children were grown, bearing their own children. Now hundreds of minnows played at the water's surface. Now the pond was alive with minnow-made ripples and all kinds of cheerful gurgles and splashes.

"Red Dog," I said, "the fish we turned loose here last April seemed lost and afraid. But now that summer is here they know that this is their home, and they are happy. In March, this pond was such a sad place, but now it is happy again... "

Below, reflected on the water's surface, Red Dog saw me drawing close to hug him.

"Before you came to me, Red Dog," I said, "I was like this pond in March. But, now I have you...