The Mouse and the Cheese

Maggie was brushing her teeth before bed.  She looked into the mirror and watched the swirling of the electric toothbrush as she scrubbed it back and forth over her teeth in the mirror.  The bathroom was small and well used by the 3 kids in the house.   

As she was brushing Maggie noticed in the mirror a small mouse walk from the hallway and into the bathroom standing on its hind legs.  She pause and turned off her tooth brush, looking at it with surprise and paste still in her mouth.  The mouse looked back and said "Engard, I will take your cheese."  And pulled out a toothpick sized sword.   

Maggie was not afraid – she spit out the toothpaste, held out her electric toothbrush and responded in kind.  "No you will not, I am Maggie and I will defend this house."  And with that the battle ensued.  Maggie and the mouse jabbed and parried.  First in the hallway, and then down the stairs.  They took their fight onto the front lawn.  Back and forth, back and forth.  The toothpick sized sword and tooth brush clicking furiously.  They rolled and dodged until eventually the mouse exhausted, laid on the ground and said "I give, I give, you win."  

Maggie stood over the mouse, toothbrush pointing down, tapped the power and let it spin on and off briefly and said, "That's right, this is my house.  If you want cheese you must ask nicely."  Then she walked back inside and shut the door. 

Maddie Goes to the Grocery

Once upon a time there was an elf named Maddie.  Maddie was bored and asked her Mom if she could go outside.  Maddie’s mom said Maddie could run to the market and pick up supplies for fly soup for dinner.  Maddie was excited. She got some money from her mom and walked down the street to the market. Maddie went inside the grocery store and saw all the mom’s and dad’s getting their groceries.  Maddie felt like a big girl shopping all by herself. She strolled through the fresh fruit smelling the oranges and lemons, plucking a grape and enjoying the sweetness as it popped in her mouth.  She picked 3 bright red apples and put them in her basket. Next Maddie walked around to the bakery. The smell of warm bread filled her nose. Shelves of cakes, and pretzels, cookies and baguette lined the wall.  Maddie pick up a loaf of bread and added it to her basket. Next Maddie walked around to the fresh meat isle. Dark red venison and ground sausages made her mouth water. There were packages of eel, fresh fish, and even containers of worms and toads.  Maddie added a package of flies to her basket. When she walked next into the frozen foods she was greeted with colorful containers of ice cream, frozen fruit ice pops, and custard pies. Maddie though a chocolate pie would go nicely with the fly soup.  She put it in her basket. Finally Maddie wound her way down the beverage aisle. The shelves held bottles of sweet nectar, juice, and exotic animal milks. Maddie picked up a bright yellow jug of lemonade. Maddie took her groceries to the cashiers counter and emptied them onto a long conveyor belt.  The cashier held the items over a machine that beeped as each item passed. At the end a boy put the apples, bread, flies, pie, and lemonade into a brown paper bag. Maddie pulled the money her mom had given her out of her purse and gave it to the cashier. Maddie felt like a big girl. She carried the bag home and put the groceries onto the counter proudly for her mom.  Maddie’s mom smiled as she pulled the items out and put them into the pantry. "Yes, a chocolate pie will go nicely with our fly soup for dinner."

The End

Journey's End

Bitter cold and windy, the Inn looked warm and friendly.
We ambled up looking for sweet respite.
And light bathed the oaken floor, as I open up the door,
to wrap my weary hands around a cold and frosty pint.