Priscilla Simms of Beach Village

By Nonie Creaghan (mother of sandbunting)

Table of Contents

Intro

Chapter One A Friend in the House

Chapter Two The Perfect Leaf

Chapter Three Halloween Games

Chapter Four Helping a Friend

Chapter Five Bird Magic

Chapter Six Cooking Up A Storm

Chapter Seven Preparation For A Big Day

Chapter Eight Too Much Play

Chapter Nine Little Warrior

Chapter Ten Collecting Maple Syrup

Chapter Eleven Lost in the Woods

Chapter Twelve The Easter Bunny's Secret

Chapter Thirteen New Home for a Sea Creature

Chapter Fourteen Under Water

Chapter Fifteen Baby Birds



Intro:

Besides the First Nation People and the Acadians, the people of the Miramichi were mainly composed of English, Irish and Scots besides other nationalities. Priscilla Simms could represent any one of these English speaking peoples.



-1-


A Friend In The House


Beach Village looked lonelier than ever. There wasn't a sign of life to

be seen or heard. The only indication that someone might be there was

grey smoke coming out of the white house beyond the road. The other

houses along the beach were boarded up.


In the white house beyond the road, a lonely little girl played "make

believe". Her name was Priscilla Simms. She pretended that she was a

mommy and dressed in grown-up clothes and high heels. She couldn't go

out to play because she was getting over a fever and a cold. Her daddy

worked at the lumber camps in the woods at this time of year. He only

came home during the weekends. Priscilla missed him, though she

understood why he had to be away. He needed money to keep his family

and the Miramichi mills needed him to cut trees. Lumber was needed

everywhere for building.


Priscilla often went to the edge of the woods and watched lumber

being hauled out on sleds and then loaded on trucks for delivery. She felt

proud to think that her daddy had a part of such an important operation.

The best part of her daddy's being away was his coming home. Each week

he brought stories of life and happenings in the lumber camp.


Priscilla took off her dress-up clothes. She wished that she could go

out. She had been sick and now her mother was down with a fever too.


Priscilla went to the window and spotted her friend the Canadian

Goose. He was being very playful, flying up and gliding down. She went to

the door and called him. He glided down and landed beside her. The little

girl gave him a big hug.


"I'm going to bring you into the house."


She pulled and the goose objected. He squawked.


"Don't you like houses?" she asked.


The goose seemed frightened. Priscilla got a hold on his leg . He

flapped his big wings, hitting the little girl so hard that she fell into the

doorway. The goose fell in after her. The little girl got up quickly and

closed the door.


"Honk!"


"Sh, Shhhh! " she warned. The goose walked around. He became very timid and quiet.

He had never been in a house before. The little girl took out her dress-up clothes

and dressed the goose.


He didn't squawk. At first, he tried to wiggle out of the clothes. Then he

just waddled around, cute in a little dress, shawl and hat. They played

and Priscilla was having so much fun that she forgot the time. She now

began to feel hungry and her hunger made her think of the time. It was

supper time and Mrs. Simms was still in bed.


Priscilla went upstairs. Her mother looked very sick and her head

was very hot. Priscilla left very quietly and went back downstairs. She

found crackers, peanut butter and milk. She put a dish on the floor for the

goose and was just about to eat when she heard a noise in the hall. She ran

out and found her mother on the floor.


Priscilla tried to get her mother to speak but there was no response.

She tried using the telephone but there was no answer so she put on her

warm clothes and went out, taking the goose with her. She climbed on his

back and they flew a mile to the nearest house for help. The lady of the

house, Mrs. Ready, drove Priscilla back home. Mrs. Ready was strong and

lifted Mrs. Simms up and put her on the couch. Mrs. Simms came to. She

was very weak but she was going to be alright.


Mrs. Ready made a pot of hot soup for them. It was delicious.

Priscilla heard a noise at the back door. She opened it and in walked the

Canadian goose. They both laughed.


-2-


The Perfect Leaf


The forest beyond Beach Village was aglow with colour. They were

such lovely warm colours that Priscilla Simms decided to tell her Mommy

to use them indoors the next time a room needed to be painted.


The colours were so bright and so beautiful from where she stood!

The leaves themselves couldn't be seen in the distance, only the outline of

the trees. Priscilla went into the house for her mother's scissors and then

headed towards the woods. As she came closer she could see the branches.

She ran and grabbed the point of a branch which hung down near the

trunk of the tree. Looking at the leaves very closely, they didn't look as

bright or as perfect as they did from a distance. She ran from tree to tree

until she found a perfect branch. She tried cutting but the scissors were

either too dull or the branches too thick and she finally used her hands to

break one off.


Under the broken branch, on another little branch a little

squirrel swung up and over, up and over and even smiled, like squirrels do

that is. Up and over he went again. He was acting more like a monkey

than a squirrel. He stopped, bowed and went up and over again. A

chattering, scolding noise came from another branch of the tree. That was

probably the mother squirrel as Priscilla could see her bushy tail.

The little one ignored the scolding and continued his game of going up and

over. He was so playful.



The little girl then heard a squeal. The playful squirrel had lost its balance and

fallen. He rested on the ground very quietly. Priscilla looked for the mother but

she was out of sight. She picked him up so he wouldn't be prey for larger animals

and walked deeply in the forest poking her head into tree trunk openings as she went

along, only to be scolded away by the squirrel families living there.


She was just about to give up when she found a free place in a tree.

She made a bed of leaves and soft moss and a coverlet of fern and

placed him in the tree. Knowing how much squirrels liked nuts, she went

back to her house and picked a handful of soft green nuts from the linden

tree in the front yard. Running back to the forest, she placed them in with

the squirrel. He ate a few and she left for home.


The following day she started out for the woods to visit the squirrel

but before she reached the woods, she noticed a family of squirrels near the

linden tree. They had come to make a home there. What a lovely home it

was for them with the soft green shell nuts and the lovely bushy branches

to hide in. The squirrels hid when they heard her coming, all except the

little playful one. She suspected that he had given up his silly ways. He just

smiled, the way squirrels do that is. Then he scampered away to join his

family.


-3-


Halloween Games


The children in Beach Village on the Miramichi celebrated

Halloween night, not unlike the way children do in other places. The only

difference was that in Beach Village one had to work to get treats by

dunking for apples placed in a tub of water.


Priscilla Simms practised so much that her hair was wet most of the

time and she felt a cold coming on. Though she had almost become an expert at

dunking and bringing up an apple between her teeth, she felt herself

becoming sick. She just had to go out! If not, it would be her very first Halloween

night on her own.


She tried coughing quietly into her pillow at night. But it was of no

use as it became so bad that she coughed in her sleep. Her mother heard

which meant that Halloween would be spent in bed.


She felt sad. She could hear the doorbell ring continuously and the sound of the

children's' excitement. Her own costume hung on the back of her bedroom door, a

witch's dress made by her mother for the occasion. She felt sleepy and, as her eyes

fought sleep, the little costume seemed to take on a form and come alive. Priscilla

felt she couldn't stay awake a moment longer. Suddenly, the costume fell off the

door and a little witch appeared. She was cute and friendly. She smiled and was not

the way Priscilla imagined witches to be.


"How many houses would you have visited tonight?" she asked.


"At least five," Priscilla replied.


"Then, you'll get five treats," said the witch.


The witch swirled and spoke magic words, swooped down and then

up with a jewelled crown. This was the first treat. Priscilla put it on her

head. It was beautiful.


The witch swirled and spoke again and this time, a golden bucket full

of candy appeared. This was followed by a bracelet, a white bunny coat

and a party dress. They were lovely, not at all like treats given on

Halloween.


Her head felt hot. She could hear her mother's voice. She was coming into the room

carrying an armful of treats the village children had brought when they learned

Priscilla was sick. The witches treats were gone, nowhere to be found. It didn't

matter.


She had candy apples, peanuts and sweets. It was much more than she

would have had if she had gone trick-or treating-herself. Priscilla felt that it

was the best Halloween night she had ever known.


-4-


Helping a Friend


The November frosts had cooled Miramichi Bay to an icy temperature.

The salmon swam to and fro for their late Autumn swim to the

ocean. Soon the cold would cause ice to form on the bay. If they didn't

leave, they'd be trapped for the winter. None of the fish wanted to be

caught or left behind.


Priscilla Simms gathered stones on the beach, little flat stones

used to make neck pendants. Making the jewellery kept her busy during

the long winter on the bay. The water felt icy, so much so that she had to

withdraw her hands quickly. She rubbed them together and hearing a

splash, she looked up. She saw the silver wonder fish jump out of the

water. She ran along the shore until she reached the wharf and she sat on

the wharf slip. The water was calm and she could see the salmon swim by

in rows, the silver wonder fish directing them on their way.


The leader led pool after pool of fish out to the sea. Priscilla watched

fascinated by their energy. She stayed until the sun went down

and walked home. As she reached the steps leading from the beach up to

the road, she heard strange noises. She looked but there was nothing to be

seen. The noise grew louder and she followed it to the nearest little

wave. Looking down, the head of a fish popped out of the wave. It was a

salmon and real tears rolled out of his blinking eyes. His tail fin was

wounded. Priscilla understood. The fish couldn't keep up with the rest and

he'd be left behind. Once trapped, he'd lose his colours and his plump pink

flesh. He's turn a dull black on the outside and no one would want him.

He'd be left to die.


Priscilla tried to think of a way to fix his tail fin. Remembering what a

doctor had done when she broke a finger. She wrapped the wounded fin in

seaweed, placed two sticks around it and wrapped it again. She instructed

the fish to stay put in the nearest wave.


When Priscilla returned the next day, the fish felt livelier and once

out of his bandage was able to swim. Though he remained in the little

wave until he grew strong enough to make the journey to the sea. Priscilla

breathed a sigh of relief, knowing he'd make it to the winter feeding

grounds.


-5-

Bird Magic


There were only a few days left before Christmas. The song of a bird

woke Priscilla out of a deep sleep. She got up and followed the sound to

her window and pulling back the curtain, could see only darkness.

There was no sign of a bird. The song was unlike any she had ever heard

before. The bird, or whatever creature had sung, was making a habit of

coming around, as this was the third night it happened.


The next morning she decided to make a search of Beach Village.

Even if it meant walking the full length of the shore, through the field or

deep into the woods, she'd find it! She spent the day listening and looking.

There were no unusual sounds, or for that matter any animals or birds in

sight. It was all very discouraging.


That night Priscilla found herself waiting for the song. She felt

restless and sleep wouldn't come. She decided to open her window. Maybe

whatever it was would enter. The thought of something scary coming

through the window made her shiver.


She sat propped by pillows waiting but nothing happened.


Suddenly, the song returned. It was livelier and lovelier than ever. Her

eyes opened and there stood a glowing bird. The feathers were a brilliant

soft gold with a touch of white at the edges and a fan of delicate ones on its

head.


The bird sang in the most melodious way. Priscilla giggled with

delight. The song took on words. Not that birds speak like humans, but

listening carefully, the notes formed words. Priscilla understood.


"I'm a sparkling bird of gold,

I've come to top your Christmas tree

And set it all aglow".


"Who sent you?" the little girl questioned.


"I'm a gift from a Canadian Goose.

I was caught and he set me loose.

I am here to top your tree.

And then I'll be free."


Priscilla laughed. How thoughtful of her goose friend to send such a

beautiful gift! She knew the goose was in hiding, as was his custom during

special days of the year. The magical bird topped Priscilla Simms'

Christmas tree and sometimes he broke into song, making him very, very

special.


On Christmas Eve everything was very quiet in Beach Village.

Priscilla Simms was in bed when she heard chatter followed by a hearty

laugh. She crept out of bed and down the stairs. There before the tree was

Santa himself. The magical bird was telling Santa how he'd come to be a

gift from the Canadian goose who was in hiding as was his custom over

Christmas and New Year's. Priscilla watched Santa's tummy as it shook

up and down and around when he laughed. He reached in his big sack and

out came a beautiful doll and as if by magic, a toboggan, books and a

game.


She watched the old man depart through the grate into the

fireplace. He was a short little man, but very round, so round that Priscilla

wondered if he'd ever make it up through the chimney to the roof. As if by

magic again, she could hear the sounds of Santa and his reindeer as they

left for the homes of boys and girls in other places.


Priscilla spent Christmas week playing indoors with the toys that

were left beneath her tree. On New Year's day she decided to try her new

toboggan. She opened the door and the magic bird squawked and sang...



"You must now set me free


For southern warmth I now shall crack


Besides, Canada Goose is back."


Priscilla put out her finger for the magic bird. She took him outside

and it flew away. She watched as it disappeared into the distance. Then

she searched for a sliding place.


It wasn't until she reached the snow-covered beach near the wharf that she found a

suitable place. The toboggan had just started down the slope when Canadian Goose

glided over and landed before her on the curled up side of the toboggan. Priscilla

couldn't see to steer. She landed on something and whatever it was, it scratched and

hurt. It was a piece of driftwood sticking up from the snow. The little girl was

very annoyed.


"Look what you made me do," she complained to the goose.


The goose, ashamed, stood with his head hung low. Priscilla,

realising that his feelings were hurt, flung her arms around him. He'd

given her the best Christmas present of all, the magic bird.


-6-

Attack


January was the best month of the winter season in Beach village on

the Miramichi. When Priscilla Simms pulled the blinds up in the morning, a

scarlet sun greeted her. The sun was lovelier than at any other time of

year. It was a new year and it seemed to bring with it a new sun,

fresh but not blinding like the sun of summer. It blazed until it reached its

proper height in the sky. Priscilla hurried until she was out in the open.


Then she stopped for a long breath of cool fresh air.


"Yonk..Yonk..," she called.


The Canadian Goose, who was hiding and waiting, honked back. He was

playing games. His colours were grey, brown and black so when he stood

near a bush, he could hardly be seen. Priscilla looked at all the little bushes

until she noticed what looked like little black button specks.


"There you are," she said.


The Goose, still in a playful mood, honked again. Then, he crept up and

gave her a push from behind. The little girl jumped on his back and they

took off.


They flew over the village to the forest. Beneath in the woods she could see

a herd of deer. As they rode on, she noticed bobcats jumping from tree to

tree in search of food. One cat had his eye on a partridge.


"We had better warn it," she whispered.


The Goose honked and the bird heeded and flew away.


The bobcat noticed what happened and snarled at Priscilla and the

flying Goose. Suddenly, other cats joined him until there were about

twelve in all. They followed below as the goose flew above.


"Let's turn back," Priscilla begged.


The goose, still in a playful mood, enjoyed the chase and flew further into

the woods. He swooped down and then up. Priscilla squealed and scolded.


The big bird slowed down and turned. The cats followed on below.

Priscilla sensed that the goose was growing tired. It was no longer a game.

If only she had minded her own business and had not warned the

partridge, this would never have happened.


Priscilla closed her eyes and did not dare open them again, that is

until she felt the goose descend. Her eyes opened and there was only a

clear stretch of snow below. They were safe and almost at home.

Watching the late afternoon sun it seemed almost golden as it set.

Somehow it promised even a better tomorrow.


-7-


Cooking up a Storm


Sunbeams danced on the snow-covered bay giving a look of glitter

to Beach Village on the Miramichi. Everything seemed to sparkle. Priscilla

Simms walked out to the open cut in the ice to jiggle her line for smelts.

Canadian goose joined her. His flock would be flying North soon and he

was getting anxious, almost as anxious as Priscilla was herself waiting

for Spring and Summer, seasons that brought playmates of her own

size to the village. The goose squatted quietly on the ice next to the little

girl. Neither the girl nor the bird made a sound.


The line started to pull and Priscilla jumped to her feet quickly.

Something had been hooked. Priscilla pulled but whatever it was, couldn't

or wouldn't budge. The goose, trying to assist, flapped his wings until

Priscilla loosened the line. The bird looked down into the water and made

a dive.


The little girl became frantic as she looked into the water and saw

the goose and another creature struggling. It seemed to be too

big for a fish They seemed caught up with each other until a little white

face appeared above water. It had soft of brown eyes reflecting

honesty and sadness. Priscilla loved it on sight. But before she had time to

help it up, it had jumped and landed on the ice. It was a little seal.

As it landed, its beautiful coat slipped down exposing slimy flesh. Poor little

creature. He had been almost skinned alive by seal hunters. He looked

pathetic with his big eyes growing watery as if tears were about to

explode. He needed mending. Priscilla fumbled through her clothes until

she found a pin. She pulled up his fur coat and put it together until he was

restored.


An angry honk brought their attention to the smelt hole. The goose

struggled out of the ice water and scolded them in a furious way. Priscilla

was just about to be sympathetic when a strong odour reached her nostrils.

The smell must have reached the goose as his bill turned up to a sharp

point. They were all sniffing upwards into the air. Then, as if the sense of

smell was not enough to unravel the mystery, they looked around.


Ahead and behind, they looked. Sideways, they looked.They looked

behind again and spotted a little man brewing goodness knows what.

Priscilla, followed by the goose and the seal, walked over to investigate the

funny little man and his strange brew.


"What are you doing?" she demanded.


"It's obvious. I'm cooking," came the reply.


"What are you cooking?" Priscilla asked.


"I'm brewing up a storm for St. Patrick's day."


It's always the last snow storm of the year here," he replied.


"We don't want a storm this year," she protested.


The little leprechaun explained that it had to be. He was sent yearly to

check up on Canadians of Irish ancestry. If things didn't measure up to par,

a storm it would be.


The leprechaun stirred his terrible brew.


"You're a nasty little creature," Priscilla scolded.


"Could ye tell me if ye are an Irish cailín?" he asked.


"I've some Irish blood on my mother's side," she replied. "Besides, look,"

she stammered and pulled the little seal over to show how he had been

mended.


"This is to show you that the creature is recuperating. Please, we don't

really rate a storm on the Miramichi this year."


Priscilla, the goose and the seal watched the little man quietly until

he laughed. They all laughed, and like the true Irish spirit, the anger

dissolved as quickly as it had come. The leprechaun turned his brew over

on the ice. It back-fired with a loud bang and went straight up in a narrow

line, so high that it touched and turned a white cloud pink. That was the

end of a bad brew and the St Patrick's storm that year on the Miramichi.



-8-

Preparation for a Birthday


Music roared through Priscilla Simms' house in Beach Village on the

Miramichi. She was alone and turned the radio on full in hopes of

drowning out the frosty noises and the groans of an empty house. Her

parents had gone out and the weather, so on and off all winter, had

changed again to a real winter's night. Like the music, the weather was in

a real lively mood. The wind was at the height of its fury. It blew drifts so

high that Priscilla feared her parents wouldn't make it back before

morning.


The house took on a stillness at night. The sounds were weird and

frightening, not like the sounds heard during the day. The lights flickered

and Priscilla hoped they wouldn't go out. Just to be prepared, she took the

candles stored in the bookcase and set them into holders.


The music stopped and was replaced by a man's voice. He spoke

about the Centennial. Priscilla wasn't sure what that meant, but the voice

went on to explain that it was Canada's birthday in 1967 and that cities,

towns and villages were all planning something special. Priscilla had

heard of no preparations at Beach Village. There were so few people that

it would be almost impossible to collect for a worthwhile project. Priscilla

thought there must be something they could do. But it was hard for a little

girl to plan such a big thing by herself.


It was, however, better than thinking of scary things. She turned the

radio down. The voice had been replaced by music. There wasn't much to

see except the snow that covered the verandah. Beyond that, only the

darkness of the night could be viewed.


Suddenly, a ghost-like creature appeared. Priscilla ran back and

flung herself on the couch. She heard a honk. It was none other than

Canadian Goose. She opened the door and in he came looking very

strange with snow piled in a heap over his back.


Priscilla greeted him with a friendly pat. As she did, he spread his wings

and the snow fell to the ground. The goose quietened down and the girl sat

beside him and repeated the man's story of the birthday. She wondered if

he might, along with his flock, get together with the seagulls for an air

show over Beach Village at that time. She was sure they could perform

even better than the planes. After all, planes were man-made and only

copied birds who were naturals. As if the goose really understood, she

went on to say that the machines were taking all the flying glory these days

and it was high time that birds showed their skill.


Those were the last words she remembered saying before she awoke

to find her head resting on the goose's feathers. It was daylight. The bird

became restless and Priscilla opened the door to let him out. Though it had

stopped snowing, it was still blustery out. As it was still early, Priscilla fell

asleep again and didn't wake up until her parents arrived. With their

return, the house became alive again.


Soon a cheerful fire blazed and the odour of food was tantalising. It

was so cozy that she had forgotten the angry storm that had been outside,

that is, until a bright light caught her eye through the window. It was the

sun. She looked out and all was calm and when she went out, there was

warmth in the air. The deep snow prevented her from going anywhere in

particular. She just rolled over the snow swells.


Hearing a honk brought her attention to the sky where a flock of

geese and seagulls flew in formation over the house. They did all kinds of

acrobatics, tricks that even the sky machines had never yet attempted. The

Canadian Goose had understood after all. He joined in to wish Canada a

Happy Birthday in 1967.


-9-


Too much play

Priscilla Simms' father had his salmon nets hung out on racks in the

yard in Beach Village. He hauled his white boat down to the shore and

launched it in the bay. It was anchored close to the shore.


Priscilla decided to wade out, climb aboard and ride the waves. She took off her

shoes and waded into the water in her bare feet. It was icy cold, almost unbearable.

The water was up to her thighs before she reached the boat. She tried

climbing in but it was higher than expected. She jumped and reached the

edge but couldn't pull herself over. Her fingers slipped and she was in the

water again all wet. Her feet felt numb and stiff from the cold and it was

an effort walking ashore.


Priscilla sat on the beach, shivering in her wet clothes. She was tired.

It was cold and she moved closer to the breakwater out of the wind.

Suddenly she saw a huge rock jut out of the water. It moved and splashed!

She was fascinated until its head bobbed out of the water. "It must be a

whale," she murmured. She was about to move but before she could, the

fish caught sight of her. He was at the edge of the water now, smiling. At

least his wide mouth was open in what looked like a smile. Priscilla hoped

he was smiling, but then again, it was difficult to tell how fish smiled.


"Please don't eat me, Mr. Whale," she begged.


"I'm a porpoise," he replied.


"Well, whoever you are, don't eat me," she begged again.


The porpoise's expression became serious then changed back to being

cheerful again. He rolled over and acted silly and playful for a fish. Then

he rested again on his tummy, just smiling (or what might be a smile).


You don't look very tasty," the porpoise stated.


"I'm not really, not tasty at all," she stuttered.


Just then the most remarkable thing happened. Crabs, oysters, lobsters and

fish crept out of the bay to the beach beyond.


"Now look what you've done. You've frightened them," Priscilla

scolded.


The porpoise yawned. Priscilla looked very angry. She forgot

about her own fear and became very brave.


"You nasty fish. You've frightened all the life out of Miramichi Bay".


Little fish, oysters, crabs and lobsters on the beach beyond joined in applause. It

was like a chant. The porpoise looked bored.

"If you don't leave, they'll all die on the shore." The porpoise laughed. He

swam out to the white boat and back. He seemed to want to play.


Priscilla remembered that she had brought her ball with her. It was in

her pocket. She took it out and bounced it on a big rock. The porpoise

watched. He made a funny noise. Priscilla threw him the ball. The porpoise

caught it and flipped it back with his nose. They played catch until the

little girl could hardly stand. She decided to stop but the porpoise wanted

to play on. He didn't tire of the game.


The little girl threw the ball to him, said he could keep it but he would have to

find a more playful friend. She was too tired. The porpoise, delighted with the toy,

flipped it with his nose, caught it and swam playfully away. The sea creatures

returned to the bay and Priscilla ran home.


-
10-

Collecting Maple Syrup


It was "in-between" weather. It was too late to slide and too early to

skip. There didn't seem to be anything a little girl or boy could do outdoors.

Priscilla Simms started to plant seeds in one of the flower pots her

mother had given her. At least there would be roots ready for the garden

when the frost left the ground. She was just getting the soil ready when

she heard voices in the yard. She ran to the window and there was old Mr.

Bloom from Back Village standing with his eight grandchildren. Priscilla

put up the window and the children called out and asked her to join them

in a hunt for maples. They were going to get syrup.


Priscilla called out to her mother, telling her where she was going,

but she was so excited that she didn't wait for a reply. She dressed quickly

to join the group and was on her way.They walked until they came to

the maple 'orchard' as it was named. Mr. Bloom stopped and eyed the trees

carefully. Then he hammered what looked like a large nail or spike into a

tree, took it out and screwed a little tap in where the nail had been. He did

this to ten trees, one for everyone in the group.


The children could not choose their own tree. They had to win their tree.

Numbers were placed in a basket on the ground. The children joined

hands, forming a circle and danced around. After the song and dance, they

went one by one to the basket and picked a number. Priscilla

picked number three. Then it occurred to her that she had forgotten to

bring a can to catch the running sap. Mr. Bloom seemed to notice, or know

what she was thinking, as he passed a container to her. He had brought an

extra supply.


Priscilla turned on the tap and while the sap dripped slowly, she

joined the others. They were tearing strips of bark off the nearby birch

trees. Mr. Bloom made a fire and when the cans were full, the sap was put

in a large pot to boil. While the sap cooked, Mr. Bloom made birch bark

boxes for everyone. Some of the boiled sap was poured on the snow to

harden. Once hard, it was broken into pieces and put into the bark boxes.

There was take-home candy for everyone.


Priscilla's cheeks were rosy from her outing. It was dusk and Mrs.

Simms was happy to see them. Priscilla had her dinner and put a piece of

maple taffy in her mouth, feeling that "in-between" weather was fun after

all.


-11-

Lost in the Woods


Priscilla Simms decided that it was no time to tramp through the

woods. The walking was so poor that her feet were buried in slush. She

wished that she hadn't talked herself into leaving Beach Village at all. It

was just that it was so sunny outside that it seemed like a good day to do

something.


Priscilla hadn't been to the Miramichi woods for awhile so she had headed off

quickly for the trees. The further Priscilla walked, the deeper the slush became.

She was soon up to her knees in wet snow. The wet made her cold and uncomfortable as

the trees prevented the sun from shining through.


She was about to turn back when she heard voices. She stood listening,

and not being able to make out the conversation, she followed the sound to

discover three little girls. They were wet, frightened and lost. One girl had

fallen full-length into the slush. Her teeth chattered and her body shivered.

Her leg was twisted and she couldn't walk without pain.


Priscilla said she knew a short cut to her house in beach village. She left

one girl to stay with the one with the hurt leg and the other followed her to

a clearing and then into thick woods again. There they saw a broken down

tree house. Boards of grey weathered wood lay on the ground sticking out

of the snow. Priscilla brushed snow off an old door and called to the girl

to help her drag it back to the others.


Priscilla told the hurt girl to lie on the door and they would all pull her. The

girl didn't want to and stood shivering.


"Then you'll have to stay here all night," Priscilla warned.


The hurt one looked around at the thick forest and let the girls guide her to the

board. It wasn't easy but with scarves tied through holes in the door, the

girls were able to pull the door like a sled. Working together they were

soon in Beach village.


When they reached Priscilla's home, Mrs. Simms made hot cocoa and

sat them in front of the fireplace to dry out their clothes. Under their coats,

the girls had on Girl Guide uniforms. They had taken a hike in the woods

without telling their leader, or for that matter their families. Though

the day was full of excitement, they decided never to go on their own

again.


Mrs. Simms phoned their parents. After the girls left for home by

bus, Priscilla felt lonelier than ever. A few weeks later she was just getting

used to being alone again when a group of Guides arrived. They called for

Priscilla and took her down to the bay ice. They lit a campfire, played

games and sang songs. Priscilla had more fun than she could ever

remember! Somehow, someday, she too would become a Girl Guide.


-12-

The Easter Bunny's Secret

The week had been a dull one. The sky was dull. The land and even

the bay were as well. Priscilla Simms felt bored. Even the Canadian

Goose kept away. Maybe the geese had returned from their flight south

and her wildlife friend had joined them. Restless playing indoors,

she pulled on her rubber boots and decided to search for some form of life

outdoors. The slushy snow made walking unpleasant. She followed

footprints in the snow down the lane, not knowing or caring exactly

where they led. The fishermen had nets spread out over the rafters and

some had already prepared their lobster traps.


Sighting a forestry lookout, Priscilla decided to go there and take a

closer look. The further she walked, the further the tower seemed to be.

Finally though, she arrived, taking the time to sit rather than look over the

tall ladder-like tower. While not looking or watching for anything in

particular, she noticed a group of white bunnies approach. They stopped

briefly, then ran quickly away.


This aroused Priscilla's curiosity, so much that before she could even

consider, she climbed up the steel structure until she reached a platform to

try to catch sight of them. They were nowhere in sight. Probably the

bunnies were too tiny to spot from such a high place. She glanced around

and was amazed to see down into a clearing in the forest.


Little squirrels were coming out of their winter's hideaway. They yawned, stretched

and giggled. Then out of a nearby den lumbered two big bears. They also

yawned. The bears and squirrels were still yawning when a herd of deer

joined them. From then on it was like one big party, the friendliest time in

the animal kingdom, a time before the fight for existence would begin for

another year.


She looked over and down towards the village. On the nearest farm and just outside

of the fence on a dark patch of land, she noticed the group of white bunnies. The

sun broke through. A big rooster approached. He walked with his head held high and

was most dignified indeed. It was almost Easter, the one time of the year when hens

laid only for bunnies.


Priscilla, anxious to see what would happen next, decided to climb

down. This was a much more difficult task than climbing up.

Taking very careful steps, she made it to the ground.


Making sure she was very quiet, she walked over to the farm. The

rooster strutted back to the hen house and was followed by the tiny

anxious rabbits who collected eggs from all the hens. The dignified rooster

picked at a bundle of straw in the corner until it uncovered a golden wagon

loaded with eggs. Then the magic of the rooster coloured the

eggs every colour of the rainbow, even adding sparkles to some of them.

Then with the same magic, he turned some of them into chocolate. the

bunnies, wagon and eggs then disappeared.


The farmer arrived and went into the hen house. He counted and

shook his head. The dignified rooster crowed. Priscilla Simms went home

feeling better. She knew the secret of the Easter Bunny.




-13-

New Home for a Sea Creature


The fog lifted. It was the first of May and the weather was so cold

that icicles hung down from the roof at Priscilla Simms' home in Beach

Village on the Miramichi. Priscilla climbed on the verandah rail and

reached up and broke one off. She took a bite and found it tasty enough to

go on eating.


The Canadian Goose swooped down and then flew up again.

Priscilla didn't pay too much attention to it. She had to check on the little

seal who had been left to live at the edge of the bay. He was nowhere in

sight when she reached the beach. Priscilla felt panicky. Though the animal

slept under the great swells of the bay, he always appeared on shore in the

mornings. Priscilla walked up and down calling "Pinup", the name she had given

the little seal. The Canadian goose landed and joined her in the search.

Finally the goose honked and took off. He circled in one particular

area.


Flying upward, he then made a nose dive down and as he did, Pinup

the seal, jumped out of a swell and raced onto the shore. The seal clung to

the little girl. He shivered and his usually lovable eyes looked frightened.

Priscilla had never seen her playful little friend in such a state before.

He blurped and pointed out to the bay. His blurpy talk was so mixed

up that Priscilla couldn't make out what he was trying to say. The bird

joined them on the shore and listened.


"He says there are great sea monster ghosts in the water," the goose explained.

Priscilla laughed.


"You've just had bad dreams," Priscilla said trying to comfort the little seal. He

just shook his head.


Priscilla threw a rubber ball and Pinup bounced it back on his nose in

a matter of fact way. He just wasn't his cheerful, happy self and there was

no use trying to make him so. Then the goose had a plan to reassure Pinup

that the sea monsters were just a part of his dream. He volunteered to

make a search of the Bay with his keen eyes. He spread his big wings

and took off into the sky over the water.


Pinup and Priscilla watched as the bird skilfully scanned the Bay.

Shortly afterwards something was sighted as they could see the goose circle

around one area in particular in preparation for his famous dive. He flew

up and glided down and as he hit the water, a big sea monster emerged. It

was horrid and larger than anything ever imagined to be sea life on the

Miramichi.


The monster with what seemed to be one great swoop, reached the

shore. Priscilla trembled. The goose honked his loudest honk. Pinup

was so weak he could not balance himself and had to lean on the little girl

for support.


Priscilla opened her mouth to speak but she couldn't.


"I've come to gather and take all little lost seals," the monster announced.


The goose landed in front of Priscilla and Pinup and spread his great

wings to hide and protect his friends from the fierce looking monster.

However, the Bay was suddenly full of the creatures and there was no

escape.


The Canada goose was no longer brave. He trembled and took

refuge beside Priscilla. She felt the fear from her animal friends and

somehow this brought out her courage.


"You bullies! You Sea monsters! You're not going to take Pinup

away. I won't allow it," she scolded in her loudest voice.


"We're hooded seals. We've come to offer a home, not harm," the big

one replied.


Pinup, wriggling himself free, dove through the swells until he

reached the monster. The goose honked a warning from the shore. Pinup

slid over the big one's back and became his old self again. He sat at the top

of a wave and it rolled him back onto the shore. He blurbled a "thank-you"

and took off, as he joined the hooded seals of the bay.


-14-


Under Water


Beach Village looked and felt beautiful, the way a village should on

the first day of summer. Priscilla Simms took a deep breath filling her lungs

with fresh air. She had spent the morning untangling nets for her father

and decided to wander down to the beach. She felt a bit tired. She sat

down and as she did, she noticed a sea sponge. She fingered it and lay back

yawning.


The sound of "click, click, click" startled her. She sat up and there

was a giant lobster walking towards her on the beach flat stones. The

lobster walked slowly. He looked ugly, his colour was greenish black. He

lifted a claw and it snapped open and it snapped closed. This frightened

Priscilla.


"Why, just one snap and he could slice off a finger," she muttered.


She got up and tried to run but her legs wouldn't move. They were

frozen with fear. Finally, they got started but it was too late. The lobster

had hold of her long hair. She was trapped.


"Please let go," she cried.


She tried wriggling away but this only made matters worse.


" What do you want?" she asked.


"I want to show you Lobster City," he replied.


Priscilla thought for a moment and decided to do what he asked and told

him so in a meek voice. The Lobster let go of her hair and commanded her

to climb on his back.


The little girl felt uncomfortable on the lobster's back. He was cold,

hard and slippery. When he started walking, Priscilla had to take hold of

his two feelers, holding them like reins. They reached the sea and the little

girl took a deep breath as she felt herself go down into the water. They

went down, down, and down until they reached the floor of the bay. The

lobster crept along. Priscilla noted that they were in a desert land, so to

speak. This was not for long as they began to pass strange sea farmlands.

Eventually they arrived at the most fascinating place Priscilla had ever

seen.


The buildings were made of sponge. The streets were narrow, lined

with gardens of green colourful growth and stones. The colours were

unlike anything she had seen on the land. The lobster stopped crawling

and the little girl hopped off to inspect the mysterious city. Fish swam by,

fish that were unfamiliar in colour and shape. They were fish that reflected

light. Shells lay near the sponge buildings, shells of all shapes and colours.

They looked as if they'd make good seats. She sat down on one. That was a

mistake because suddenly she was popping up and she was popping down.

She looked down and an angry head popped out. It was alive.

Back on her own two feet again, she noticed that the lobster had

disappeared.


"He has to be found", she thought,"or I will never find my way home

again."


She called but instead of sound, bubbles sprang from

her mouth. She walked through the narrow streets brushing against the

buildings as she went. She arrived at a wide street and suddenly,

hundreds of lobsters appeared from behind the sponge house. They seemed

friendly.


Priscilla stood quietly waiting for something to happen. The lobsters

turned and bowed.


"You are to be our Queen," the biggest lobster announced.


Priscilla objected and tried to talk but only bubbles came out. The lobsters

marched her over to a large sponge house. She entered. It was furnished in

shiny stones. Water sprouted in and water sprouted out. It was

fascinating.


"It's lovely but I can't stay," she tried to say.


Only bubbles came out. The lobsters' claws opened and closed in protest as

if they had understood. Priscilla ran back into her sponge house.

The lights went out in the fish city and Priscilla felt alone and

trapped. She heard a sharp noise and when she awoke, she found herself

on the beach, clutching a sponge in her hand.



-15-


Baby Birds


The evenings are like daylight in June on the Miramichi. Darkness

doesn't fall until sometime after children's bedtime. Priscilla Simms of

Beach Village hated going to bed then. She couldn't sleep until Nature drew its

blinds across the sky.


One evening she looked out only to see the big tree near her house

covered with an army of blackbirds. The sight of the beautiful tree became

rather ugly. There was something weird and frightening about the birds

being there. Priscilla felt sure that something important was going on in

the bird world. She thought that maybe the blackbirds had declared war on

the little birds. She watched and suddenly the birds grew restless. They

scolded and flew around every way, not like birds usually do at all. Priscilla

knew they were excited about something.


"But about what?" she wondered.


There were no other birds in the surrounding trees. In fact, there were no

other birds in sight.


She leaned further out of the window and as she did she noticed a

long-haired cat, and on the ground, barely visible was a wee bird, either

maimed or too young to fly. The blackbirds swooped down on the

animal but the cat marched on. Priscilla ran down the stairs, grabbed a

mop and chased the cat from the yard. Sure enough, a young blackbird

struggled on the grass. Priscilla tried to pick him up but she couldn't get

hold of him at all. She didn't want to get bitten so she ran back into the

house and put her mother's gardening gloves on. They were so big that

they would be awkward for picking up anything, let alone a wee bird. She

tried and the bird snapped at the empty fingers of the gloves. She was

timid and couldn't get a firm grip. The little bird spread his wings and

hopped ever so quickly into the bush.


Priscilla followed and with courage, grabbed the bird quickly and

placed him in the crevice of the big tree. She returned to the house and the

window. There was not a blackbird in sight.


Priscilla wondered why they were not around to help, and then she

felt something strange on her pyjama leg. No wonder, it was covered in

burdocks. She was plucking them off when she looked up and noticed the

wee bird climb higher into the trees. She held her breath, thinking he might

fall again. A nother bird, probably the mother, flew cautiously behind from

branch to branch until it reached the baby and Priscilla knew all was well.



10-

Little Warrior


The trees were beginning to dress for summer in Beach Village.

Priscilla Simms decided to go to the woods and watch the buds on the

branches burst into their leaves. She was very excited at the thought of the

fresh, new, green leaves. She planned to spend the day just watching but after

an hour or so she decided that the buds were not yet ready. Maybe they

wouldn't come out at all if they felt they were being watched.


She left and started collecting pine twigs for the pretty jug she had

found on the beach last summer. She pulled back a branch and there was a

small animal looking at her in the face. He wasn't very pretty as he had a

rather small, sharp face framed by brownish and whitish hair that stood

up on end. It was a porcupine.


Priscilla didn't dare move as she thought maybe the porcupine might

start shooting his quills. She stayed quiet. Finally, the porcupine

scampered off to feed on another tree. Priscilla watched him. He didn't

look like a very lovable animal and he certainly didn't look cuddly.

Priscilla decided it would be safer if she took off. She started to walk , but still

being interested in budding trees, she didn't watch where she was going and

tripped over a fallen branch. She couldn't get up and thought her leg must

be broken. She lay on the ground for quite awhile and all the time she lay

there, the porcupine kept watching as he chewed on a pine tree trunk.


Priscilla was happy when she heard a little dog bark. He appeared

and went right over to sniff at Priscilla. He was very friendly. The

porcupine thought the little dog was going to hurt her and ran out,

shooting his quills as he did so. The poor little dog squealed. He was full of

porcupine needles! He ran away and Priscilla could hear his squeals for

some time. In the meantime, the warrior moved closer to Priscilla , sat

down and shot everything in sight.


Priscilla was beginning to feel uncomfortable. Her legs were hurting

and she was worried how she would be rescued. The warrior just wouldn't

allow anyone to come close enough to pick her up. She scolded but he only

looked at her. His face was almost cute and kind of funny. Priscilla

laughed. She reached out to stroke his back. It was lovely and soft and not

sharp at all.


Suddenly, he became needle-like again! The little dog, along

with a group of people arrived. The warrior shot his small spears every

way. The people scattered and hid behind the trees and the dog did

likewise. He didn't want to get shot again! Although he was hiding, he

barked furiously. Priscilla reached out and stroked the needles. She calmed

the warrior down and as soon as he was nice and fluffy again, she grabbed

him and held him tight. The people came out of hiding and went over to

Priscilla. She let go of the porcupine and he scampered further into the

woods. One of the men picked up the little girl and carried her home.



Copyright Nonie Creaghan