KATE in LYMELAND
Dedicated to all LLMDs
Having Lyme disease is much like the children’s story I was always fascinated with as a child – and so the story begins…
Kate was growing tired of the hearing about the rate race of this world. What with the war for oil, the increase in taxes and the decrease in services, and the same old research coming out of the same old establishments, vaccines causing more harm than good, and companies caring more about profit than making a good product, Kate was overwhelmed and soon became numb in her brain as she heard her mother and the neighbor talk about the way the world was. As she sat on the park bench, she contemplated -- what would the world be like when she was an adult? Could it get any worse? Just then, she saw a tick.
For some reason, it wasn’t remarkable to hear the tick say that he was late, late for a very important date as the tick looked at the watches on his many legs and then scampered off. Kate was up on her feet after him. She wondered why a tick would have watches and even more, where he was going in such a hurry.
Nevertheless, Kate ran after the tick and saw him slip into a log. Without thinking, Kate slipped into the log and before she knew it, she was tumbling end over end as if the log were rolling down a hillside. She wondered if the rolling and spinning would ever stop. Where could the log be heading, anyway? She hadn’t seen any hills from the park bench.
Bouncing on the not so smooth sides of the log was no fun at all. And Kate went from one end of the log to the other and was no sooner back before she was thrown to the other end. All this tumbling was no good at all – she was getting all jumbled up. Where would she end up, she thought, perhaps another country? If so, she certainly hoped they spoke English – otherwise she would not very likely be able to find her way back home.
If she ended up very far away from home, she hoped that someone would remember to feed her bird, Ollie. That bird could get rather cranky when the dish was empty. She was recalling the last time she had been late feeding Ollie. The bird went off into a corner of the cage and…
Whoosh! Thump!Bump!
Just as suddenly as the roll began, it ended. Kate shook her head and ventured out of the log. Kate jumped to her feet, checking her arms and legs for any sign of a bruise. Nothing, she looked perfectly fine!
Remembering what started this ordeal, Kate looked for the tick. He was off on a path through the woods. A woods that she had never seen before – and Kate had been most everywhere around these parts. But where were these parts?
Kate ran after the tick and saw him go through a door in the side of a Maple tree. Without thinking, Kate opened the door to a room filled with white coats hanging on pegs, but the tick was nowhere in sight. When Kate turned toward the way she came in, but discovered the entrance gone and another peg with a white coat in its place.
Oh my! Kate gasped. There’s no way out!
Just then, Kate noticed a piece of paper on the floor. She was a good citizen and not wanting to leave trash about, Kate bent down to pick the paper up. She would stick it inside her pocket and dispose of it later at home…if she ever got back home. But the paper had writing on it and perhaps if she could see a name written, she could return it to its rightful owner.
The key is in the coat!
How odd. She thought for a moment and soon began checking the pockets of the white coats for the key. In the first coat, on another piece of paper there was but a single word – Internist. The next coat revealed that it must belong to a Rheumatologist. She found in the next six coats, Cardiologist, Dermatologist, Ophthalmologist, Psychiatrist, Geriatric, and Surgeon. Kate did not know what this all meant and she certainly didn’t find a key. She continued to search pockets for the key…ER Physician, Family Medical Practitioner, Gynecologist, Plastic Surgeon, and Anesthesiologist.
My goodness! There are a lot of papers here but no key! Kate thought.
More pockets and more papers…Diagnostic Radiologist, Disaster Medical Practitioner, Immunologist, Endocrinologist, Gastroenertologist, and G.P.… there were a lot of white coats hanging here! Kate continued to look for the key…Onocologist, Pediatrician, Otolaryngologist, Urologist, and Podiatrist. Coming to the end of her search, she was sure the key would be in one of the pockets…Neurologist, Perminatologist, Pathologist, Hematologist, Infectious Disease Specialist, Psychologist…and LLMD. Kate was out of coats to search and she didn’t find a key.
Kate looked around the room and noticed a smaller than small door behind the white coat where she had found the paper with LLMD written on it. Kate pushed the white coat aside and opened the smaller-than-small door. The view was magnificent. She could see a red and white checked blanket on the ground in a field of yellow and blue flowers. On the blanket sat a picnic basket…and the tick, dancing around a tall green bottle next to the basket.
What a strange thing to do, Kate thought. But then everything has been strange since first seeing the tick.
Kate could barely make it out, but she believes the tick is singing don’t worry, be happy.
She climbed through the door and made her way to the checkered blanket. The tick scurried off out of sight, dropping one of his watches.
Kate forgot about everything as she opened the basket. Inside, she found an apple, a bag of walnuts, and an organic salad. She noticed that her belly was growling and the food looked scrumptious. Kate tasted the salad – it was good. She crunched a walnut – it was delicious. She nibbled the apple – it was juicy. Kate finished the spread. Now, she was thirsty. The green bottle looked inviting. She removed the lid and sniffed the contents. It smells like water, she thought. She sampled the liquid. It tastes like water. Kate sipped her thirst away. She spotted the tick’s watch and picked up the tiny watch, slipping it into her pocket. She would return it as soon as she met up with the tick again.
Kate sat quietly as she surveyed the surroundings. The flowers were more beautiful than she had ever seen. Wouldn’t they look lovely on Mama’s table? Mama. How Kate missed her mother already. Would she ever see her again?
It was just this morning that Mama had been upset with Kate for not being able to get her tired self out of bed for school. Mama had been upset with her a lot lately. One minute your elbow hurts and the next, it’s your head. Girl, you’re sick one minute and fine the next. I don’t know what to think anymore, she remembered Mama saying.
Kate didn’t want to be sick – she just was. She could not help it if she was too tired to get out of bed and she could help it even less that she could not concentrate on her schoolwork. She found that she could not play jacks anymore because her fingers tingled and sometimes felt numb. There was no more kickball and no more tea parties with her favorite doll, Molly. Kate was just too tired and her little body ached.
Splash!
Kate felt another drop. It was sprinkling water from the one and only cloud in the bright blue sky. Where could she go to get out of the weather?
You can come with me, said a small voice.
Who is speaking to me? Kate asked
Why, it’s me, the red-breasted robin answered.
Now where did you come from?
Why, an egg, silly child.
I am not silly! Kate replied.
Oh! But you are, you see, the robin tapped his chest with his dark brown feather.
Why would you think I am silly? Kate’s voice was serious.
You are here. And doesn’t it strike you as silly that you are talking with a robin?
I see. I suppose I am rather silly in that light.
Don’t worry. Be happy, the robin sang in his most bird-like voice.
That’s what the tick was singing earlier, Kate’s eyes sparkled.
The raindrops were coming down faster now.
Hurry! The robin said while fluttering his wings.
Kate got to her feet to meet the robin eye to beak. The robin flew to his left and then to his right.
Do you know where you’re going? Kate giggled.
Why, of course. And off he flew.
Kate ran after the robin. She ran through flowers as high as her waist and grass that tickled her ankles. All the while she kept the robin in view.
I am getting tired, Kate thought. I will have to rest when we get to where we’re going. I hope we are close.
Just then the robin flew around a tree and out of sight. Kate stopped and looked right and left, but she didn’t see the robin. Kate heard the familiar tweeting voice singing don’t worry, be happy. Kate looked in the direction of where she thought the robin was and, sure enough, there he was, perched on a twig outside of a hole in a large oak tree.
Kate climbed up the side of the tree and the robin disappeared inside. She peered inside, but could see nothing because of the darkness. Kate crawled inside the hole and immediately went into a free fall.
My, this is worse than the log! Where might I end up next…the center of the earth?
Down, down, down she went. It seemed an eternity, but Kate was somehow not afraid. She thought about her doll, Molly. If something happened to her, she hoped that Molly would be given to a sweet child where they could have tea parties daily. The same with Ollie...her little bird should go to an old woman who had nothing better to do than tend to Ollie’s needs. And what about Mama? Would Mama find another child that wasn’t too sickly – or at least looked as sick as she was? Perhaps a child that went to school with no complaints and excelled in her schoolwork? Maybe that would make Mama stop yelling and start smiling more. Mama had such a beautiful smile. Kate remembered her mother’s smile and how often Mama smiled before she felt the pain and fatigue. If I am to be lost forever, I hope all will remember me the way I was before.
Further down and down Kate fell. She could not figure out how fast she was going or far she had fallen -- she was only in first grade and they hadn’t covered that much math yet. But she knew that if she were walking or running this distance, she would have been exhausted. And then her teacher, Miss Crawly, would have gotten upset again, as she was last week when Kate missed recess because she had fallen asleep at the lunch table.
It was hard enough being a child without being so tired. What with the all the stuff one had to learn and the new responsibilities associated with each birthday. It’s all so very tiresome, but other children didn’t fall asleep at the lunch table and she certainly didn’t see them being assigned extra homework because they forgotten the previous assignment. Alas! Kate felt different. And was this different really a good thing to be?
Thud!
The sudden stop halted Kate’s line of thought. She shook her head from side to side. She didn’t feel injured. She rubbed her arms and legs – they felt fine in the dark.
How in the world will I ever climb up in the dark all the way to the opening? And where did the robin go?
Kate felt around in the dark as she whistled don’t worry, be happy. She didn’t feel any feathers, but she did feel something cold and metal-like. Upon further investigation, Kate pressed down on the object and she heard a click.
There was a sliver of light, bidding Kate to push on what appeared to be yet another door. The door creaked open and before her was a small room with a very small table and even smaller chair. The shelves on the wall held bottles of thick red liquid. Kate noticed there were no windows or doors. Now where could that robin have gone?
Kate crawled through the small opening and found that she was too big to stand up.
Oh! My! This is quite another mess I am in.
Kate crawled over to the table and found a small book. As she knelt beside the doll-sized table, she opened the book with her forefinger (which, by the way, was several times larger than the book itself).
You have come so far and yet have steps to go,
You have seen the way and yet met the foe.
May the key you have help with your plight,
Now wish and learn with all your might.
A book of poetry! Was this something the robin or the tick was reading? Or, was this only wording in the book meant for her? Most odd how things happen here – wherever here was.
Kate repeated the first line in a whisper.
I have come a long way – I think. But what steps can I take in this small room? Is this telling me I have to go back in that dark tree and climb back up to the top?
What ‘way’ have I seen? I remember the log, pretty flowers, a picnic, and the tree. Is this the way back home? And who is the foe? The tick? The robin? I think neither.
Everyone keeps talking about a key, yet I have not found a key anywhere. And what unfortunate situation could I have? Is being lost the same as a plight?
I certainly know how to wish. I do that every time I take a test or when I blow out candles on my birthday cake. But those wishes hardly ever come true. Learn?! What am I supposed to learn here? There are no schoolbooks lying about. There is no teacher and this is not a classroom. Besides, I am so awfully tired. Maybe a nap will help me think.
Kate curled up on the floor, folded her hands under her head, and soon drifted off to sleep. She dreamt of the before times – when things were normal. She was skipping down the path to meet her friend Susie. They were going to go swimming and then have ice-cream on this warm summer day. Next, Kate was skipping rope to a catchy tune in her dream – Oh little friend come and play with me; Oh little friend, come bring your dollies three. Oh little friend I cannot come this time; Oh little friend, my dollies do have Lyme.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
The noise was just loud enough to awaken Kate. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and stretched her arms above her head. It was when her hands hit the ceiling that she remembered where she was.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Kate looked around the tiny room.
Now I don’t remember that door being there when I fell asleep, Kate thought.
She made her way to the door and opened it. On the other side of the door was a wooded area. The trees and undergrowth looked so small. Kate inched her way through the door and stood. It was very nice to stand again. Her legs had grown tingly and her hands numb. She stretched and pretended to be reaching for the sun.
Something was strange – as if anything could be as strange as hearing a tick and robin talk. The trees were now gigantic and the undergrowth looked as thick as the threads that had made her jacket.
Oh! My! I must have shrunk while I was asleep or I am in the land of the giants.
She took in her surroundings and noticed an ant on a sprig of grass. The ant appeared to be cleaning his head as long tentacles swished back and forth.
The ant sensed Kate.
Who are you? asked the ant.
Why, I am sure I was Kate this morning.
Who are you now?
Why, I believe I am still Kate.
And why would you believe you are still the same person as you were before?
Why, I don’t know. I can say that I look like the same person I was before…although I know I have changed since…
Enough jibberish! One thing I can’t stand is jibberish!
Oh! My! I do apologize. I know I have a tendency to run on and…
Do be quiet. You have interrupted my daily grooming with your jibberish.
Kate could see the ant, who was a good deal larger than she, was in no mood to be kind. Kate could stand it no longer. She would leave and hopefully find another creature that could be more patient. Kate turned to leave.
Come back here!
Sir, if I may be so bold…
I am not a ‘Sir’ but a madam. And you are so bold.
I apologize. Madam, if you will, please…
I have something to tell you. They said there would be a target coming my way and I suppose you are what they were talking about.
They?
They wanted me to tell you something.
What might that be?
Are you content with your plight?
There’s that word again.
What word?
Plight.
Are you disagreeing that there is a plight?
No, I dare not disagree.
Then, are you?
Am I what?
Content, silly child.
Why does everyone think of me as a silly child? That hurts my feelings.
Are you disagreeing then?
I dare say that I am.
Then, what are you?
I am a little girl who is in a strange place, with strange creatures, and even stranger questions.
I am strange, aren’t I?
Yes, I dare say that you are.
And how is it you find me strange…yet, do not find yourself silly?
You are gigantic for an ant and you have very little patience. And I find myself sensible – as sensible as any first grader can be.
You’re not a cat, but you sleep as much as one. You are not old, but you can’t remember most things. You are not injured or a cripple, yet you have muscle and joint pain. You are not a bad child, yet you do not do your schoolwork. Therefore, you must be silly.
Well, I say that is some sound reasoning, but I am afraid that I find your conclusion wrong.
Wrong? Me? Wrong? Never! I am as strong as any pack mule, as beautiful as any butterfly and wiser than any owl. Wrong? Never!
Please forgive me for tarnishing your reputation, but you are wrong in this instance.
How so?
I am not a cat, but I am very tired most of the time. And you’re right… I am not old, injured, a cripple or a bad girl. However, my arms and legs hurt like the dickens and I feel as though I live in a fog. Altogether, this makes it so I cannot do my schoolwork or play anymore. It is not as though I chose this way to be.
That is troubling, my dear. I dare say then, I am wrong.
You said that you had something to tell me.
Yes. Yes. There was something I was told to relay to you. The ant scratched her head with her right tentacle, as if this would help her remember the message.
I try to remember that way, too, Katie whispered. But I find that it doesn’t help all that much.
There’s nothing wrong with my memory. It’s a steel trap!
Then you must have lost the key? Maybe we both should be looking for a key.
Never! What an impertinent child you are.
I don’t know what that big word means, but I am sure it’s something like honest.
Posh! It means nothing of the sort. But I shall tell you what they asked me to pass on and then, be on your way.
Who are they?
Never mind who they are. Just listen carefully and then be gone with yourself.
Yes, ma’am.
Now, that’s much better.
Thank you.
You’re very welcome.
The pause grew into a long silence. What message was there for Kate? Should she wait patiently or run the risk of irritating the ant further by asking again for the message? Kate chose to fold her hands in front of herself and stand quietly.
You’re still here!
Yes, ma’am. I am waiting for the message you have for me.
Yes. Yes. The words, now where are those words that I am supposed to say? The ant checked her secret pocket on the left of her trunk and then the right. She found them to be empty. The ant used her right leg to check the most back portion of her metasoma. Oops! I should never put anything there. The ant checked her underbelly and there it was, the words she had been searching for.
Ay! Says the Captain of the ship,
I have for you a pill.
Ay! Says the Captain at a clip,
For you are seriously ill.
Tweet! Says the blue jay on the nest,
No time now for you to rest.
Tweet! Says the blue jay in the sky,
Don’t listen to the lie!
Honk! Says the gigantic truck,
Without the pill you will be stuck.
Honk! Says the little red nose,
Use the key to end your woes.
I don’t understand what all that means. Who gave you those words for me?
I dare say I barely knew where to find the words, much less who asked me to repeat them. Be off with yourself. You must have brought me this malady of forgetfulness.
I did not bring you anything of the sort. For surely my mother would have been as forgetful as the day is long if whatever I have I could give away.
The ant spun her body around and promptly disappeared into the woods.
Well, I never!
You never what? said a familiar voice.
Robin, where did you come from?
Why an egg, you silly child.
Oh! Let’s not do that again, Kate laughed.
Do what again?
Never mind. Please, are you any good a riddles?
I dare say I am not. But, the frog is very good at figuring things out.
Would you take me to see the frog?
I will, but this time, you must keep up.
I kept up last time and then you flew into a hole in a tree, and when I went in after you, and then I fell to the bottom, and here I am.
Now, that’s silly. I never flew into a hole in a tree.
But you did. I saw you and followed you there.
Be that as it may, we need to begin our journey to see the frog.
Is the frog far from here?
Only by the way of the crows, and we certainly don’t want to take their route. What a hateful lot they are. They can never agree on anything and one is always looking to be the leader one minute and another one the next. They don’t care about working together in a friendly fashion. Oh! No! They would rather have everyone think they know more than others and use whatever means to take as much as they can from everyone else. And no one understands their logic – if there is any logic with regards to the crows.
That doesn’t seem very nice.
Oh! It isn’t. But they have convinced everyone that they are supreme and most everyone cowers in front of them. This tends to make their chests puff out more and their heads swell.
If you know they do all of this, why can’t you set them straight?
Me? I’m just a small robin. What ever could I do?
Perhaps if you were to get the other robins together and confront the crows with the evidence of their misdeeds, they would stop misbehaving.
Everyone is so scattered about. By the time we all got together, the crows will have learned of any plan and that would be that.
They sound like a dreadful bunch. I wish I could help.
That is a very nice gesture. Maybe after you see the frog and figure out your riddle, we can think about this more. For now, we need to be on our way.
Then which way shall we go?
By the way of the wind.
I don’t feel any…
Just then a gust of air swooped Kate and the robin into the air. Higher and higher they flew until Kate was afraid she would bump into the clouds. The pair drifted for some time, looking at the lush greenery below and spotting an occasional rabbit or turtle making its way to an appointment. Kate was neither frightened nor puzzled by this experience and, of course, the robin was used to the ground being so far below.
Kate was wondering how she would survive the landing. Would she tumble and roll as she did in the log that began this adventure? Perhaps she would free fall as she had in the tree not so long ago. Either was fine since neither had left her hurt.
Ollie would absolutely love this. Free from her cage and the dependency on others. She could go wherever her little wings could carry her. Of course she would have to steer clear of the nasty crows, but she could stay close to the robin. He could show her everything there was to see and maybe they would become friends. Kate missed her little bird. She missed Molly and Mama, too. And, come to think of it, she was getting hungry, and thirsty again, too. The picnic was wonderful, but the contents were in smaller-than-small portions and didn’t really fill her up. She found that if she ate too much at one time, she developed a terrible stomachache. Something else Mama fussed about. She put food on the table and Kate was expected to eat everything.
Bump!
The big orange kite took Kate by surprise. She had been so engrossed in her thoughts that she hadn’t really seen the brightly colored paper kites flying wildly about. There were kites of every shape, color, and size, but when she looked down, she could barely make out anyone on the ground holding the guidelines.
Take hold of the string! The robin ordered.
Kate grabbed the orange kite’s string and felt herself being jerked toward the ground.
No! Not that one…the black and white one!
But the orange one is so much prettier, Kate argued.
You’ll find a crow holding that guideline. That’s how he attracts the unsuspecting – with the bright colors and dazzling show of display. If you grab that guideline, you’ll surely not fare well.
Kate thought for a moment and decided to do as she was instructed. She let go of the colorful kite, even though she thought it more beautiful, and grabbed the guideline to the black and white kite. She knew she had made the right decision because she was no longer being tugged but gently lowered to the ground below.
Once safely on the ground, the crows began to squawk.
You’re in trouble now, little girl!
You’ll be sorry!
We will make your young life miserable!
Everyone likes our colorful kites and always chooses our guidelines!
The crows pecked at Kate’s arms and legs. They surrounded the robin and pecked at his head. Kate started to sing, don’t worry, be happy. The little robin joined in. Soon there were toads, rabbits, squirrels, raccoons, parrots, and even a mouse or two all singing at the top of their lungs. This took the crows attention away from their bullying long enough for Kate and the robin to make their escape.
When the pair was safely far enough away, they stopped long enough to catch their breaths.
Whew! That was close! the robin exclaimed.
They are just as you said, a dreadful lot. How rude they were to threaten me and peck us as if we were a meal.
That’s the crows! They are a cunning and conniving group of birds who think they are better and smarter and who think they are kings among peasants.
How dare them think of me as a peasant! I am a little girl with blood and a heart – just like them.
Oh! No! You’re nothing like them. You have one thing they do not have.
What might that be?
Feelings of the purest nature. And with this, you behave in the most admirable way – taking into consideration all things good and righteous.
Why thank you, robin. And you are nothing like them either. You are kind and generous. You have no hidden motives or agenda that I can see.
Kate and the robin got up at the same time and started off in the direction of the frog.
Not me. I would never be like them. They are greedy and self-centered. And, here’s a little secret – they don’t care about anything except lining their nests with shiny coins. They think no one knows, but we all do. They take the coins from anywhere they can, call them their own, and lay in their nests protecting the stash. It all somehow makes them feel special and worldly.
But they are no more special than you and I. And what good will the coins do them when they need a friend? Furthermore, what good are coins if you have to stay in your nest to protect them?
Oh, they come out of their nest – to get more coins, boast, and harass.
That’s not much of a life for the crows. Don’t they see that if they were nice, others would be nice to them? Mama always says that you get what you give.
They aren’t thinking along that line. They want to have all the gold coins, be the big birds in the sky, and tell the rest of us what to do.
There are bigger birds where I come from and I have lots of coins in a jar under my bed. And mama tells me what to do, but I know she tells me only what is best for me. That doesn’t make me any better than someone else.
But they have convinced themselves that they are better and they don’t tell anyone what is best for them. It’s their way or the dirt nap.
Dirt nap?
You don’t want to know. Besides, we are only a few lily pads away from help with your riddle.
Kate thought about naps. She had napped in her bed, with her head on the lunch table, and in the hammock in the back yard. She had snoozed in the wagon when she was supposed to be picking berries and even at a friend’s home in the middle of playing house. But, as far as she could remember (and recall was not Kate’s strongest attribute), she had never taken a nap in the dirt. Now that would make her a silly girl. And silly she was not.
They found the frog relaxing on a lily pad at the edge of a small pond. His tongue would flip out every once in a while to catch lunch, but that was the extent of his activity.
Frog, I have someone here with a riddle, called the robin.
Ribbett~ribbett. Bring the subject closer.
Kate moved closer to the water’s edge.
Closer!
If I get any closer I shall be in the water.
And what’s wrong with that? the frog wanted to know.
Well, nothing if you’re a frog, I guess. But I am not a frog.
Well then, what are you?
A little girl.
Do little girls usually have riddles?
No, Sir. Not this little girl, anyway.
Then how did you come by this riddle?
An ant was told to give me the riddle.
Well then, tell me the riddle. No guarantees now.
Kate repeated the riddle as it had been told to her:
Ay! Says the Captain of the ship,
I have for you a pill.
Ay! Says the Captain at a clip,
For you are seriously ill.
Tweet! Says the blue jay on the nest,
No time now for you to rest.
Tweet! Says the blue jay in the sky,
Don’t listen to the lie!
Honk! Says the gigantic truck,
Without the pill you will be stuck.
Honk! Says the little red nose,
Use the key to end your woes.
The frog pondered the riddle. His eyes rolled up and down and all around. His right hind leg stretched out and his toes dipped into the water. His left upper leg scratched his green head.
Hummmm. That is quite a riddle, if I do say so myself.
You just did say so yourself, the robin chirped.
So I did. So I did.
Can you solve the riddle for the child?
I dare say that I think I can. But I have a question or three to ask first.
Please, I will answer truthfully any question you may have for me.
Are you looking for something?
Well, I can’t say that I am, Kate frowned.
Are you content with yourself?
Well, I can’t say that I am, she replied.
Well, well, well. I think I have the answer to your riddle.
But you have only asked two questions!
So I have. The last question is, will you and robin be on your way after I solve your riddle? The robin is eating me out of house and lily pad while I am concentrating on your riddle!
Kate chuckled to see that what the frog said was true. The robin was bouncing around, catching flies and mosquitoes as quickly as any frog.
The frog said:
The riddle is solved with a pill,
From someone in a captain’s frock.
Because you are seriously ill,
Look for the person at the dock.
You are to search and do fly,
Your time is drawing near.
And don’t stop for any lie,
Please draw closer to hear.
Your riddle is very easy, you see
For it is not a riddle at all.
It is a matter of a person, the key,
To solve your problem once and for all.
The frog fell back on the lily pad as if totally exhausted. Even the fly buzzing around his head did not cause him to stir.
We must be on our way. I know where there is a dock.
This made no sense at all, Kate spoke to no one in particular.
The frog said that your answer is at the dock. Where, I dare say, it will be difficult to find a captain in a frock with a key and a pill.
Frog, can you explain it better for me?
I dare say that I can’t. You see, the crows were here earlier and told me that if I gave any advice or an in-depth explanation, they would take my lily pad, chase off the flies and mosquitoes, and ban me to the bottom of the pond! Child, I can’t risk losing my home and meals for anyone. I just can’t.
But I have lost everything already, you see. My home is gone, my doll is gone, I will probably never see my beloved Ollie again or my mama. I have very little more to lose.
And you should want me in the same predicament?
Oh! No! I would not wish this situation on anyone, Sir. It’s just that I need your help and I dare say, you seem to have information that will see me closer to the end of my plight.
And when you are no longer suffering, that will leave me to suffer -- to suffer at the bottom of this scummy pond with no food or lily pad. I can help you no further. In fact, I have said too much already. You know those crows have eyes and ears everywhere. Be gone with you! Let me get back to my life and from this day forth, I will solve no more riddles. There’s just too much at stake.
With that, the frog hopped off his lily pad and dove into the pond. Kate and the robin exchanged looks of bewilderment.
The robin shrugged and said, Let’s be off.
Is the dock far away?
No. It’s just over that little hill and across a small valley. Should not take us long to get there.
Maybe not for you, but I can’t fly. Walking makes trips longer. And long trips make me tired.
Let me see what we can do about that. And with that said, the robin flew off.
Kate sat down in the grass. She drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, resting her head on top of her arms. She felt so sad. She was growing tired of this adventure and wished she could just go back home. Ollie and Molly would surely be wondering where she had gone. And mama would certainly be angry that she had missed breakfast and lunch and now it looked like she would miss dinner. Kate’s tummy was making funny noises again and her head began to ache. She wondered if the robin would be gone long enough for her to take a nap. No matter, he could wake her when he returned.
Kate lay back in the sweet smelling grass and closed her eyes. Inside, her head was spinning and she felt tingling in her toes. It didn’t concern her – it had happened many times before. Kate soon drifted off to sleep.
The frog jumped out of the pond and sat beside Kate as she slept. The poor child, she was ill, that was as plain as the warts on his back. Although she looked perfectly well and tried, as she might, to kept up the search for the before, she was exhausted. Little did she know that the road would be long and treacherous …unless she found the key early. It would be a long journey…what with the bends and turns in the path and those crows. She had her work cut out for her and he didn’t envy her. Luckily, he wasn’t bound to get her illness.
He hoped the robin would return soon. He had flies to catch.
Kate was back home in her dreams. She and mama were hanging laundry on the clotheslines in the side yard. The towels smelled so fresh and lemony. She could hear Ollie chirping inside the kitchen and Molly was happy to be propped up in the old rocker. The sun was shining brightly, the air was cool, and Mama was smiling. This is how Kate remembered the good times.
The robin landed with a friend, the cheetah. The frog shushed the pair.
The child is sooo tired. Perhaps we could let her rest?
She must get to the dock before dark, the robin fretted.
Well, I don’t want to say good-bye to the child so I will make myself scarce at the bottom of the pond. And off the frog went.
Child…it’s time. The robin patted Kate’s cheek with his soft wing.
Kate stirred. She was teetering between before and the now. She didn’t want to leave Mama and Ollie and Molly. The day in her dream made her feel warm and happy. Why would anyone want to leave that for this? The pain, fatigue, and fog were no place to be.
The robin noticed a tear on Kate’s cheek. The poor child, he wished she could wake and hurry to the dock. If the frog was right, and he was very seldom wrong, she would find help – the answer to her riddle. He didn’t like to see the child this way. No one should have a riddle that made them suffer and cry.
Child…wake up.
Kate sat up and rubbed the last of before from her eyes. The tear remained, followed by more. They streamed down her rosy cheeks.
Dear one, the cheetah purred. There is no need to cry, my child. Tears do no good to bring an end to suffering…they only add to it.
I miss my mama. And Ollie and Molly, too, Kate sobbed.
We will take you to the dock. The robin explained everything and I can get you there in no time.
You?
Yes, child. I can run very fast and leap high into the air. Now dry those tears and hop onto my back. Robin, climb on.
I dare say I shall fly along side.
You will not be able to keep up and you must guide me to the dock, small one.
Agreed.
The cheetah lay on the ground so Kate and the robin could take their seats.
Now, point me in the right direction and hang on tight.
The robin pointed with his wing. The threesome took off like a pebble fired from a slingshot. The cheetah ran faster than Mama’s car and leaped higher than Kate on her trampoline. The robin guided them over fields and around woods; through valleys and finally, to a large body of water.
This is it! The robin yelled.
The cheetah slowed to a slower pace and then to a walk.
There’s not much here, Kate observed.
The dock is up further. It’s past that stand of trees and around the bend. I assure you it’s there, the robin replied.
The three went a little further, passed the thick stand of palm trees, and made their way around the bend. Sure enough, there stood an old dock – nothing more.
There’s no ship and certainly no captain. Now what are we to do? Kate frowned.
The frog is very seldom wrong. The answer is here. We just have to look.
I will stick around just in case you need to go back to the pond, the cheetah offered.
The three walked around in circles, seeing nothing that even looked like a captain. Kate decided to walk to the end of the dock. Since nothing is ever as it seems, there could very well be a captain at the end.
Kate sat on the end of the dock, swinging her legs back and forth. The cheetah sat next to her, eyeing the small fish swimming below the surface of the water. The robin stretched his wings flying to and fro. There was no ship. There was no captain. There was only a dock.
There may be a ship with a captain along any moment, the cheetah smiled.
Do you really think so? Kate asked.
Not really, but they were the only words of encouragement I could think of.
That’s awfully nice of you, but I think there’s no ship, no captain and the frog was wrong.
The robin swears by the frog’s ability to figure out riddles.
Yes, I know. However, everyone makes mistakes and this certainly must be one.
Kate repeated the frog’s unscrambling of the riddle:
The riddle is solved with a pill,
From someone in a captain’s frock.
Because you are seriously ill,
Look for the person at the dock.
You are to search and do fly,
Your time is drawing near.
And don’t stop for any lie,
Please draw closer to hear.
Your riddle is very easy, you see
For it is not a riddle at all.
It is a matter of a person, the key,
To solve your problem once and for all.
That’s strange, the cheetah said.
Yes, it is a strange way to solve a riddle…with another riddle.
Have you a key, my child?
No, I was looking for one in the white coats, but all I found were these pieces of paper, Kate pulled them out for the cheetah to see.
The cheetah looked at every one and noticed something. It truly stood out.
There is only one that is very different. Perhaps that is your key.
How can a piece of paper be a key? It would bend and stick in the lock.
But you don’t have a lock; you have a riddle. Maybe your key is not metal or brass, but paper and ink.
I never thought of that. How would that work?
Maybe we are not looking for a ship at all, but a man in a frock near the dock.
But there is no man here, Kate glanced around.
Then we shall look for a man when the robin returns from his play.
The robin soon returned and the cheetah explained the plan. They would all spread out and look for a man in a frock. Since the dock was mentioned, it shouldn’t be far they would have to look.
The three split up and ventured off in different directions.
The cheetah took the right; the robin took the left; and Kate went straight up the middle. If one found anything, they were to sing out.
The robin flew over every inch of his part. He saw no human or beast, just the trees and shrubs gently swaying below. He thought no man could get through such growth anyway. But there was something that caught his attention, three fat and juicy worms. He was hungry and it wouldn’t take but a few minutes. What harm could it possibly do?
The cheetah ran up and down well-worn paths, but saw not even a footprint. No man had been this way recently and who would want to come to this lonely stretch anyway? There was something of interest, the fish that were swimming back at the dock. The cheetah was hungry with all that running and leaping. Who would it hurt if she went back for a snack?
Kate was busy looking high and low for any signs of life. The snake startled her when half his thick body fell from a branch overhead.
Don’t be afraid of me, the snake hissed.
You did take me by surprise, but I am not afraid of snakes, Kate replied.
I hear that you are looking for something.
Why yes, I am. I am looking for a man…the key to my riddle.
My! And you think you’ll find the key here?
Yes, the frog is very seldom wrong, you see.
The frog, the snake’s tongue slithered around his lips.
Do you know the frog?
Yes, intimately.
Then he told you about the riddle?
He mentioned something about it only a short time ago, the snake burped. Excuse me. My dinner is just now digesting.
I wished you hadn’t mentioned food. I am so very hungry. I have not eaten since the picnic when I first began this adventure.
Oh! I know where you can get some wonderful fresh fruit and lovely spring water. Would that do?
Yes, it would. Are there apples?
I believe there are apples – yellow, green and red ones. Do you like apples?
They are my favorite.
Well then, come with me. You may have 21 apples if you like, but no more. For if you eat 28 apples, and you think you’re still hungry, it most likely isn’t hunger anymore but something else causing those hunger signs. It isn’t far, just over that small mound of brush.
That’s an odd number – 21. Have you ever known anyone who ate 21 apples before – and still be hungry?
Well, yes. However, it was decided that they were not hungry anymore, but had a toothache. Makes sense, huh? And, you know what they say…an apple a day keeps the doctor away.
Sounds like the jibberish that the ant could not tolerate, Kate thought.
Kate was hungry and it couldn’t take that long to eat an apple and drink some water. And if the robin or the cheetah found a man, they would sing out and she would surely hear them. So Kate allowed the snake to lead her to the promised feast.
After the robin ate his worms, he found himself very sleepy and was soon sound asleep.
After the cheetah caught and ate a few of the fish at the end of the dock, she grew sleepy and curled up in a ball to catch a catnap.
Kate saw a basket on a wooden table under an apple tree. She could almost taste the sweetness of the apples in her dry mouth and rushed closer to have a look. Just then, a net dropped down from the apple tree and the crows gathered her up in it.
This was the first time during this adventure that Kate was afraid. She hung onto the sides of the net as it was raised higher into the air. Perhaps she would be high enough to catch sight of the robin or cheetah. If so, they would surely come to her rescue. But they were probably deep into their search for a man and they may never see her hanging precariously in the net. Then what shall happen to her?
The crows danced around on the ground and squawked loudly as if they were actually celebrating Kate’s capture. They flitted and jerked and bounced so much that they looked like clowns at the circus as they continuously bumped into each other. There must have been over 3,000 crows jumping around below Kate. Even in the cornfields, she had never seen so many birds gathered together at one time. And she couldn’t understand a single word, if that’s what you could call them, they were saying.
Kate was fascinated, yet disturbed, with the ruckus below. Some of the crows were jumping on each other’s backs and vying for top position, while others were grouping together as if it were a strategy-planning meeting. Kate wanted to sing out for the robin and cheetah, but they surely would not hear her with all the commotion below. She stood as best she could and scanned the area for signs of the two, but did not spot either of them. Oh! What would she do?
Two crows flew up to the net and perched on the side. They were offering her an apple, as had been promised. Kate looked into the black eyes of the crows and saw something that resembled compassion. How silly, a crow with feelings? Against her instinct, she took the apple from the birds and they left her.
I am rather hungry, but what if the apple has been poisoned? Would the crows stoop to such depths as to intentionally do her great harm? The frog had warned her about a lie and the snake had lied to her. Would she ever be able to find the man in the frock? Was this the end? Kate began to sob.
The same two crows that had given her the apple reappeared at the side of the net.
Child, do not cry. The others want to see your weakness and that will only give them more strength, the smaller of the crows whispered.
What makes you think I would believe anything you said?
Because we are not like them you see below, the larger crow squawked.
You are all crows, Kate replied.
That is true, but we are nothing like our brothers and sisters there, the large crow assured her.
The frog gave you instructions, did he not? the small crow asked.
He did.
We know because he summoned us to help you.
Why would the frog, who spoke awful things about crows, call you to help me?
He only knows about the crows down there because we told him about them, the large crow explained.
The snake knew about the riddle, Kate said.
Yes, he did. The frog was on his way to find us when he met up with the snake. He was forced to divulge the riddle and then the snake ate him.
Oh! My!
Yes, but we were near and heard the whole thing. We were no match for the snake, so we could not help our friend. But we knew it wouldn’t be long before the others learned of the riddle and tried to interfere with you finding the key.
You know about this key?
We do.
Tell me, where is the key?
The ant relayed the words and got it wrong. That’s how the frog made the mistake when he tried to solve the riddle, the large crow explained.
Do tell, the small crow chirped.
Do you know the answer to the riddle?
I dare say that we do. And, we will bring the key to you.
You are dears, but won’t the others know what you are doing and stop you?
They may try, but the key has more power than all the crows below. We’ll be off now, but stop your sobbing and sit there quietly until we return.
Is it okay to eat this apple? Kate was seriously hungry.
It is fine. It didn’t come from the basket below. And you’ll need more than just 21 apples to satisfy your hunger. But, the key will see to that.
The two crows flew off and left Kate to quietly eat her apple.
The ruckus below seemed to be escalating – wave after wave of squawks restarted the commotion. Each time, the crowd grew louder and more ferocious. They were starting to push, shove and backbite each other. It was so gruesome that Kate had to look the other way.
It wasn’t long before the friendly crows returned. They stopped briefly on the side of the net and winked before they joined the group below.
Kate did not understand. Where was the key? Had they gone only to get more reinforcements? Had they gone to hurt the robin and cheetah? And she had eaten the apple, would it only be a matter of time before she was dead…like the frog? Would they then pick her brains to see what they could find? Her heart might be displayed on the table below, along with her other major organs. She shuddered at the mental picture. Would they take her body and experiment on it? Perhaps finding a poison stronger for the next victim so it didn’t take as long for them to die?
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Kate wasn’t for sure what she was hearing, but the sound scattered the crows. More bangs rang out, thirty or more, she thought. The crows were taking to the skies as quickly as their black wings could flap.
And I have more of where that came from should you return! said a man in a white frock.
The key! Kate exclaimed.
The man below looked up and smiled at Kate. He loosened the net and gently lowered it to the ground. Kate was free at last.
Who are you, Sir? Are you the captain in the frock? And why aren’t you at the dock?
I don’t understand what you are asking.
