One day Chippy the squirrel decided he would leave his Lake Forest Park home and find out what was on the other side of the road. He was a curious squirrel and wanted to see new things. That morning he went to the edge of the road and looked both ways before starting across. Suddenly a big bus appeared. Chippy had to run fast to make it all the way across safely. Wow, that was close, Chippy thought, those cars go so fast!
Chippy looked at the trees in front of him. Oh boy, he thought, my favorite kind of tree. He looked all around and saw some Oak trees. And what comes from oak trees? Acorns! That was Chippy’s favorite food, and he was so excited. He hopped and ran to the first tree he saw. He climbed up a little way and looked around the forest. Gosh, they were all Oak trees. He was a happy squirrel.
Chippy wandered around the woods until he found an old dead pine tree with a big hole in it. He climbed up and saw that it would be a perfect home for him. He spent time building a nice soft nest. He was so tired, so he climbed into his new home and went to sleep. What a wonderful day, he thought.
Chippy awoke the next morning and the sun was brightly shining. He was hungry so started wandering around to find something to eat. He found some berries, some mushrooms, a couple of fat green worms that did not taste too good, then saw a backyard where the humans had a bird feeder. That was one of Chippy’s favorite things. He hopped toward the yard, then scrambled up the fence. The feeder was easy to climb. He ate until his gray belly was full.
Chippy was running back into the woods when he saw a deer. He walked up behind it.
“Hello.” Chippy said.
The little deer jumped into the air and ran away. Chippy chased after the deer.
“Hey, I didn’t mean to scare you. I just wanted to meet you so I could be your friend.” Chippy chirped.
The deer looked down on the little gray squirrel.
“Sorry, I get frightened very easily. My mother taught me to run away from anything that frightens me. We deer seem to get chased a lot, Momma said. We are always looking for danger.” the little dear offered.
“That must explain why you have such big eyes and ears. You can see and hear really well.” Chippy said.
“My name is Sammy. Momma says I am a fawn. That means young deer I guess.” said Chippy’s new friend.
“Hi, I’m Chippy the Squirrel and I just moved into the area. When I get scared, I just climb a tree.” Chippy explained.
“I don’t think I can climb a tree, but I can run really fast.” Sammy said with some excitement.
Sammy looked back at his mother and three other deer partially hidden behind some trees.
“Momma said we are going over to the hillside and eat some delicious grass. I will be back tomorrow; will you be here?” Sammy asked.
“Yep, Chippy said, I’ll be right in this very spot.”
Chippy spent the rest of the afternoon climbing trees and exploring the woods. What a wonderful place to live, Chippy thought.
“I hope Sammy comes back tomorrow. He was a nice deer.” Chippy said as he squeaked and barked at nothing in particular.
Sammy and Chippy became good friends. The little squirrel even met Sammy’s mother and cousins. They had a fun time all summer chasing each other and running through the woods. One day Sammy stopped and looked out through the trees.
“Oh no, “Sammy said, “the loud barking animals are coming to get me.”
Chippy looked in the direction of the noise.
“Oh, I don’t know what kind of animals those are because humans call them by different names. They never go off the path because the humans have a rope connected to them. Just stand here and I will prove it.” Chippy announced.
The two friends stood very still, and the humans and the dogs walked right by.
“See, I told you. Now let’s see what we can see,” came a chirp from a happy squirrel.
“Hey, did you know you don’t have spots on your back anymore?” Chippy said as he followed Sammy through the woods.
“Yep, Momma said as I got older, they would disappear and never come back.” Sammy explained.
“Do I have spots on my back?” Chippy asked Sammy.
“Nope, not one.” Was the answer.
Chippy felt disappointed but decided it was because he was old too.
The leaves in the beautiful woods started to change colors and Chippy knew what that meant. Acorns! He started filling his mouth with as many of those tasty nuts and bringing them up to his nest. He worked hard to collect them.
“Do you collect acorns for the winter, too?” Chippy asked Sammy one day.
“I don’t think we eat those things.” Sammy said.
“Try one, you might like them.” Chippy suggested.
Sammy bent down and found an acorn on the ground. He started to chew it. He spit it out at once and shook his head.
“I don’t think I’ll have anymore of those.” Sammy exclaimed as Chippy laughed at him.
One day Sammy found Chippy running away from a bird feeder. A human was yelling at him, and he was laughing as he ran.
“Chippy, Momma said we have to leave the woods for the winter. We are going to stay somewhere else for a while. So, I won’t see you until next year.” Sammy said sadly.
“That is all right, I will be here when you get back. Thank you for being my friend.” Chippy said.
Sammy bent down and touched his nose to Chippy, then ran off.
The next few days were lonely ones for Chippy. He did not have his friend to play with. He was sad.
One afternoon he thought he heard another squirrel, so we went to investigate. He moved slowly through the brush and caught a glimpse of another gray squirrel just like him. He bounced over to make a new friend.
The new squirrel just stood and watched Chippy approach. It was a girl!
Hi, I am Chippy. I live in these woods. What’s your name?”
The girl stared at Chippy for a long time. She walked up very close to the curious squirrel.
“My name is Sally. I got lost and ended up here. I do not know where my home is now. I’m a little scared.” The little squirrel chirped.
“Don’t worry about that, you can stay with me if you like. I have a nice nest and it is full of acorns for the winter. There are even some bird feeders nearby. Do you want to do that?” Chippy asked hopefully.
Sally agreed. Chippy showed her around the woods, including where he and his friend Sammy played, then finally up to his nest. They had much fun together and explored the entire woods.
One day they woke up to see a white blanket of snow covering the ground. They sat side by side looking out from their home. It was nice and warm, and they were two happy squirrels.
Sally and Chippy stayed in the Oaktree woods for many years. They started a family and were happy. Chippy and Sammy visited every summer. One year Sammy introduced a beautiful doe named Shika to Chippy and Sally. Standing behind her were two little fawns, with white spots on their back.
Chippy looked behind him then barked. “Tippy, why don’t you introduce yourself to our new little friends.”
A young gray squirrel, Chippy’s boy, jumped and bound out from behind a bush and ran to the little deer. Soon they were jumping and running in circles.
Chippy and Sammy just looked at each other and smiled.
What a wonderful place to live they both thought.
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