Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend

SPEAKER_1 (0:01)

This is Believe, One Network, Every Topic, Everywhere.

Lisa Bueno (0:07)

Okay, our friends, so today we are reading through all those spooky, scary, shocking fall stories. And today we are going to revisit a character that we met, I think it was a year or two ago, and it was a squirrel who was scared of everything. In fact, he was so scared of things, it was part of his name, he was Scaredy Squirrel, yeah? Well, this is the next book, I think, in the series, and it is called Scaredy Squirrel Meets a Friend. And that is one of the most scariest and terrifying things you can do, is make a new friend. And why is it scary? Because it means you have to talk to people that you don't know. And it means that you have to go places that you typically have never been before, in order for you to meet a new friend, because that's what new is, right? Yeah. So, let us tackle some newness. Are you ready? Today's story, Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend, was written by Melanie Watt, and it's read today by Mommy, and that's right. Here we go. Scaredy Squirrel doesn't have a friend. He'd rather be alone than risk encountering someone dangerous. A squirrel could get bitten.

A few individuals, a scaredy squirrel is afraid to be bitten by. Number one, walruses. Well rightly so, they've got those two great big teeth, right? Bunnies. Oh, they have those great big teeth too, right? Beavers. Also, great big teeth. Piranhas.

Oh, they bite too, don't they? Chompy fish.

Godzilla.

I would be scared of being bitten by Godzilla too, were I a squirrel, right?

So, Scaredy Squirrel finds interesting ways to pass the time all by himself.

He reads, and in the picture, we can see what he's reading. It's the phone book. Now, you may not know what that is, but I can tell you, a long time ago, people used to have their phone numbers written in a great big book that would be published for anybody in the city to look through. And you could see all the different people's names and all their different phone numbers and call them if you needed to.

He whistles. He crafts. Oh, it looks like he's making something with scissors. He yawns. Oh, to be a professional yawner, now that would be hard, wouldn't it? He knits. Incredible. He chats. But who is he talking to? A sock puppet because he doesn't have any real people in his life. He counts. I wonder how high he can count to.

Until one day, he spots someone perfectly safe. And he has his binoculars and he's looking and he sees out the window, there is a beautiful fountain. And in that beautiful fountain, a goldfish.

The perfect friend, according to Scaredy Squirrel, bubbly personality, quiet, no teeth, squeaky clean, doesn't do much, but is 100 percent safe because he's germ free. That's what Scaredy Squirrel thinks. So here we can see a few items that Scaredy Squirrel needs to make the perfect friend. Okay. And I'm not sure why he needs these things. There's a lemon, a name tag. Well, now that makes sense. Mittens, a comb, a mirror, air freshener, a toothbrush and a chew toy that's shaped like a hot dog. Well, I guess we're gonna figure out what it is that he's gonna do. Okay. How to make the perfect first impression. Prepare freshly squeezed lemonade. See, that's kind. Make sure name tag is visible. Oh, we can see his name. Hello, my name is Scaredy. Tame bad hair. Oh, that's what he needs the comb for, right? Because if your hair is sticking up all funny, which his is in the picture, that's not good. Brush teeth thoroughly and practice smile. Check for nutty breath and food cut between teeth, which in the picture we can see he does have some there.

Wear mittens to hide sweaty paws. What? And use pine scent to smell delightful. Follow the perfect plan. Okay, well, I don't know, it's a little strange, but it might work, right?

Philip (5:55)

I would say it's kind of weird.

Lisa Bueno (5:58)

Well, let's see what he does here. We can see that he has the perfect plan. There are six steps to the perfect plan, and he's drawn it out in a map. The map has a legend on it, with nut trees and a fountain, and the other trees and rocks and bushes and pine trees and ponds and things that bite.

Yikes. Okay, so step one, toss down chew toy to distract the biters.

Smart. Step two, use mirror to check hair and teeth. Check. Step three, run to fountain. Step four, point to name tag and smile. Step five, offer lemonade. Step six, make the perfect friend. So we can see he has to stay away from piranha infested ponds. Don't talk to suspicious bunnies. Beware of walruses, they're fast on their flippers. Avoid beavers, should they, they could snap at any moment. Watch out for Godzilla, for obvious reasons. And there's the goldfish's bowl and away we go, right? Well, but let's say, just for example, that scaredy squirrel did come face to face with a potential biter. He knows exactly what not to do.