The Emerald Berries

Forest Friends
In the heart of Silverlake Forest, a mouse, a frog, and a snake talked and played by a stream. It was just another after-school playdate for Sophie Mouse and her good friends, Hattie Frog and Owen Snake.

Owen was lazily draped over a low-hanging tree branch. He watched as Sophie, sitting on a rock below, drew in her sketchbook. She was adding a bee to her garden scene.



“That reminds me of our field trip to see the honeybee hives!” Owen said. “It was my favorite part of school this week.”

Mrs. Wise, their teacher at Silverlake Elementary, had taken them to see how honey was made by the worker bees.



“Want to know my favorite thing from this week?” called Hattie. She was hopping from lily pad to lily pad. “It was the visit from Mr. Wallace, the flying frog!”

Mr. Wallace, an old friend of Mrs. Wise, had come to speak to the students about his flying adventures. He had extra webbing on his large feet. He could make gliding flights from tree to tree!



Spotting a fish in the clear water, Hattie raced to see if she could beat it to the big rock Sophie was on. “Look at me!” Hattie shouted. “I’m a flying frog!”