Booker-T and the Wagon

   “Hi Jake,” said Midge as she climbed the steps to the front porch where Jake was sitting in the lounge chair.
   “Hi Midge,” said Jake.  “Where is Booker-T?  I thought he was coming with you this morning.”
   “I thought so too,” said Midge.  “I went over to the house looking for him and when I walked up the sidewalk to the house, I saw him going down the street with a little girl.”
   “He was going for a walk with her?” asked Jake.

Sharing is Good.

   "Good morning Jake," said Midge as she climbed the steps to the front porch where Jake was sitting in the lounge chair. 
   "Hi Midge," said Jake.  "You are early today.  I haven't even eaten breakfast this morning."
   "My mistress had to go somewhere with her aunt this morning so she gave me my breakfast early," said Midge.  "So after I ate it, I decided to come see if you were up yet."
   "I'm always up early, but I don't eat til my mistress gets up and feeds me before she leaves for work," said Jake.  "She should be putting out my food in a few minutes."

Booker-T's New Friend

  "Hey Snappy!  Where are you?" called Jake as he and Midge approached the pond in the middle of the park.    "Hello Snappy."
  "I don't see him," said Midge.  "He never goes too far from here."
  "Hey Snappy!  Are you here somewhere?" called Jake again.
  "Hi Jake," said Snappy as he came swimming to the shore from the other side of the pond.  "Hi Midge."
  "Where were you?" asked Jake.

Midge and her new Friend.

   "Hey Midge!" called Jake and he came through the gate of the front yard.  "Hello Midge.  I'm here now."
   Jake hurried up the porch steps but Midge was not there.  He looked around the front yard, but Midge wasn't there either.   "Midge!"  called Jake.  "Hello Midge.  Are you up yet?"
   "Hi Jake," said Midge as she came around the corner from the back yard.  "I'm in the back yard Jake." 
   "What are you doing back there?" asked Jake.  "I thought we were going to the park with Booker-T this morning.  I waited for you to come over to the house, but you never showed up.  So here I am."

Midge and the Beach

   "Hello Jake!" sang Midge as she strolled through the gate to the front yard.  "Hello Jake!  What are you doing.  Howdy howdy.  I'm here."
   "Hi Midge," said Jake as he sat up.  "What are you up to this morning that has you all cheery and singing?"
   "I am feeling good this morning Jake," sang Midge.  "It's a wonderful day today. The sun is shining, the wind is blowing and I am happy, happy, happy."
   "I'm glad you are happy," said Jake.  "Why are you so happy this morning?"

Gabby and the Drought

  "Hey Midge!"  called Gabby.  "What are you doing?"
  "Hi Gabby," said Midge.  "I'm just laying here enjoying the rain falling.  Doesn't it look great Gabby?"
  "Yes," said Gabby.  "We sure have needed the rain.  The bird bath at the park has been dried up for long time."
   "I know," said Midge. "I heard my mistress telling someone that things were really getting bad and we were sure needing rain."
   "Yes we did," said Gabby.  "We have been in a drought and that isn't good."
   "A drought?" asked Midge.  "What is a drought?  I never heard that word before."

Midge and the Circus

   "Jake!  Jake!" called Midge as she strolled around the corner and into the yard.  "Hey Jake! Where are you?"
   Jake lifted his head, "Hi Midge.  I'm here," said Jake.  "What are you all excited about this morning?"
   "What is a circus?" asked Midge. 
   "Why do you want to know what a circus is?" asked Jake.  " Are you going to join them?"
   "Very funny Jake," said Midge.  "Why would I want to join the circus?  I don't even know what a circus is."

Midge is Late

   "Midge!  Midge!" called Jake as he turned into the front yard at Midge's house.  He hurried up the sidewalk and leaped onto the porch. 
   Midge wasn't there so he turned and ran down the steps and hurried to the back yard to find Midge.  "Hey Midge," called Jake.  "Are you back here?"
   "Hey Jake," greeted Midge as he came into the back yard where he found Midge sitting near the back door.  "What are you doing this morning?"
   "I came to find you," said Jake.  "We are supposed to meet Booker-T at the park today.  Did you forget?"

Midge and Romance

   "Hello Jake," said Midge as she came skipping up the sidewalk to the front porch.  "Hello Jake.  Where are you Jake?"
   She leaped up the porch steps and found that Jake was no where.  She looked around the front yard and didn't see him anywhere.   She sat in front of the door and called to him again. "Jake, where are you?"
   "I'm right here," said Jake as he walked around the corner of the house.  "You are early this morning Midge."
   "I know," said Midge. "My mistress left to take her aunt to the airport, so I came down here to see you after she left."

Midge Gets New Dog Food

   “Hey Midge!” called Jake as he walked up the sidewalk to the front porch, but Midge wasn’t on the porch enjoying the sunshine.  He went to the back yard to look for Midge back there,” Hey Midge!  Where are you?  Hello Midge!”
   “Hi Jake,” said Midge. "How are you this morning Jake?" 
   “What are you doing this morning?” asked Jake.  “Why are you laying back here?  You are usually on the front porch soaking up the sun.  Are you okay today?”
   “My mistress just fed me so I was back here to eat my breakfast,” signed Midge.  “But I don’t like what she gave me this morning.”
   “Why?” asked Jake.  “She usually gives you good stuff.  What is wrong with that food?”
   “Taste this stuff,” said Midge.  “The flavor is awful.”
   Jake went to the bowl and tasted the food in it.  “Oh! What is it?” asked Jake.  “I’ve never tasted that flavor either.”
   “It’s terrible Jake,” said Midge.  “I like the other flavor she gave me, but this one is really bad.  I can't eat it.  I tired soaking it in my water and eating it, but that doesn't help it.”
   “Will she know you don’t like it if you don’t eat it?” asked Jake.
   “Yes,” said Midge.  “When she tries new stuff, she knows I don’t like it when I don’t eat it, but she bought a big bag of it and she usually don't buy something different until it is gone.”
   “That’s not good if she won't get something else til the bag is gone,” said Jake. “But if you don’t eat it, she won’t give it to you again.”
   “But I’m hungry Jake,” said Midge.  “What do I do?  I want something to eat.  Will you help me get rid of this stuff so she will buy something better?”
   "But if you just get rid of it, she will think you are eating it and buy some more," said Jake.  "That won't work.  She has to know that you don't like the food."
   "Oh Jake," said Midge. "You are right. I didn't think of that.  Oh dear, what am I going to do?  I'm so hungry and that food is too hard to even choke down."
   “I still have food in my bowl from this morning,” said Jake. “I will share it with you if you want some.  Maybe you can share my food until she gets something better and just leave your food in the bowl for her to throw away.”
   “Thank you Jake,” said Midge as she got up to go with Jake to  his house.  "You are such a good friend.  "Won't you get hungry if you don't eat all your food every day?"
   "It's okay Midge," said Jake.  "I will share with you.  I don't think your mistress will let you go very long without food." 
   The two walked to Jake's house where Midge shared his food,  "I'm so glad to have a good friend like you Jake."
   "I am glad we are friends, Midge," said Jake. 

After the Rain

   Buffy  was a small white Persian cat who lived up the street from Midge.  She was on her front porch curled up on a soft cushion of the lawn chair as she watched the rain tapping on the porch railing.  She wanted to play with Pokey, the black and white cat who roamed the neighborhood not really belonging to anyone.  He was "the cat about town,"  as he called himself.  Buffy wsas intriqued by his carefree manner. She hadn't seen Pokey this morning and thought that he was probably sleeping somewhere out of the rain, but she missed him just the same.

Midge and the Fireworks

  “Jake! Jake!”  screamed Midge as she ran up the sidewalk to the porch.  “Jake!  Where are you?”
   “Hey Midge,” called Jake from the back yard. “Why all the excitement?  What happened?
   “Do you know what fireworks are?” asked Midge. 
   “Yeah,” said Jake.  “I went to see some last year with my mistress. They are pretty when then go up in the air and have all the pretty colors.”
   “My mistress said they are going to have fireworks in the park,” said Midge.  “Are you going to be there?”
   “I don’t know,” said Jake.  “My mistress hasn’t said anything about it to her friend.  She usually takes her little niece and nephew.  I hope she is going. I like the pretty fireworks.”

Susie and the Stars

   Susie was a small black poodle puppy. 'She was no bigger than a minute,' her mother would say.  She was fiesty and always up to something as she ran around the big back yard.  She loved to chase the butterflies and the squirrels as they came down from the trees to find something to eat.  Her mother would sit on the porch watching her pups as they ran and played.   Susie had two little brothers and a sister who liked to chase squirrels also.  Susie ran to her mother, "Momma!" said Susie.

Susie's Discovery

    Susie loved to romp around the lush green grass chasing the butterflies who were brave enogh to land within her reach.  She would crotch low and with one leg at a time, she would slowly and steadily inch her way toward the unsuspecting butterfly.  Every step she took, she would pause for a moment and stare at the tiny creature and never once link an eye.  She never took her eye off her little prey as she moved closer to the little butterfly.  Then suddenly she would leap forward and pounce upon the butterfly with all fours.  Carefully she would lift her paw to view her catch, only to discover once again, she had only caught the air. 

Out of the Shadows

   Billy was a tiny black and white goat who like to run and jump on things he could find around the field near the barn.  Whe he wasn't running and jumping, he was trying to butt head with the baby pigs.  At times he would try to jump onto the back of one of the pigs, but the pig was too small to hold his weight and he would slide off.
   "Billy, you are so mean," said Dixie, the little pink pig.
   "I'm just having fun with you," said Billy laughing at Dixie.
   "But you are so mean when you jump on my back," said Dixie. "You are bigger than I am."
   "You don't like me to play with you?" asked Billy. 
   "No, not that way," said Dixie.
   Billy lowered his head and sadly walked away to the other side of the barn.  He felt so bad that his friend Dixie thought he was mean.  He didn't want Dixie to be mad at him. He liked her.  She was the only one would play with him. All the other little pigs would poke him with their noses and get mad at him.  He lay down  in the corner and took a nap for a while.  He flet alone without his friend Dixie to play with. 
    After a couple of hours, he awoke to find he was all alone in the field by the barn.  He looked around the aream but saw no one. "Boy, they must really be mad at me today," thought Billy.
   "Hello, everyone!"  Where are you?" called Billy as he walked around the field. 
   There wasn't a sound from anywhere.  Billy felt so bad and so alone. 
  "Hello!  Where is everyone?" called Billy again.  "I promise if you will come back, I won't be mean any more.  Please come back everyone."
   But still he heard no one.  he slowly crossed the field to the water trough to get a drink of water. Suddenly from out of the shadows of the barn, jumped the little pigs.  They leaped on Billy and rolled him to the ground.  Dixie jumped on top of Billy's back.  He was shaking when he finally pulled himself to his feet. 
   "Why did you do that?" asked Billy.
   "How did it feel, Billy?" asked Dixie.
   "I didn't like it," said Billy.  "You all scared me and and it hurt when you landed on my back."
   "Now you know how we feel when you jump on our backs," said Dixie. 
   "Gee, I didn't realize.  I am sorry Dixie," said Billy.  "I promise I won't do that again.  Will you please forgive me?"
  "I will, but you have to be nicer when we play," said Dixie.
  Billy made a promise to Dixie and from then on he was more considerate of his playmates.

Midge’s Excitement

   “Jake! Jake!” screamed Midge as she ran up the sidewalk to the porch steps.  “Jake!”
   “Hey Midge, I’m right here so you don’t need to shout,” said Jake. “What is all the excitement about?”
   “Have you seen Gabby today?” asked Midge.
   “Not today, no,” said Jake. “What has Gabby done now?”
   “Why do you want to know if he did anything?” asked Midge.
   “It’s because every time you get all excited and looking for Gabby, he has usually done something wrong,” said Jake.

Laughter Can Hurt

   Gypsy was a cute little gray kitten with bright yellow eyes that were crossed. She would always run into things when she tried to go around them.  She would proudly pick herself up and continue on her way.  She didn’t understand why she kept running into everything.  She felt as if she were terribly clumsy.
   One bright sunny morning, the birds were singing high above and the smell of roses filled the warm air.  Gypsy was sitting on the porch soaking up the morning sun.  Across the yard, she saw her friends, Midge and Jake, enter the yard.  Midge lived up the street from Gypsy and would come over to see her on the way to the park a couple mornings during the week. 

Chachi is sad

     “Jake! Jake!” called Chachi as he slowly walked up the walkway to the porch.  “What are you doing today?”
      “Hi there Chachi,” greeted Jake.  “Why are you looking so sad this morning?  Are you okay?”
      “Not really,” answered Chachi.  “Can I sit here for a while with you?”
      “Sure Chachi,”  said Jake.  “You know you are always welcomed to come sit a while or come play with Midge and I.”
      “Thanks Jake,” said Chachi.
      “So, are you going to tell me what is bothering you?” asked Jake.  You look like you lost your best friend this morning.”