Zvieratká z Malej lúky, časť 8: Listový koberec

The Animals of Little Meadow, part 8: The Leaf Carpet

The Story Begins

On Little Meadow, it was an autumn morning. Yellow, brown, and red leaves lay between the grass. The wind brought them slowly from the trees and placed them on the ground.

The most leaves had fallen on a small path that went past the bushes to the old tree. Almost no one could see the path anymore.

Timo the Bunny stopped there. His soft paws sank into the leaves up to his ankles.

"Oh," he said and fixed his little vest. "This path is covered. We should clean it nicely."

Liza the Squirrel jumped from a low branch right into the leaves. The leaves flew apart in every direction.

"I like them!" she laughed. "They rustle like little papers."

Bobo the Hedgehog rolled slowly along the path. One big maple leaf landed on his spines like a hat.

"There are really many of them," said Bobo. "Maybe I can carry some on my back."

From above came a soft hoo-hoo. On an old branch sat Uma the Little Owl, with tiny glasses on her beak. She looked at the meadow, the leaves, and Timo, who was already bringing a small broom.

"First, let us look well," she suggested calmly.

Timo nodded, but he held the broom tightly. He liked clean paths. When the path was straight and clear, everyone knew where to go.

Liza was digging near the tree root. Suddenly, she stopped bouncing.

"Do you hear that?" she whispered.

Everyone became still.

From under a dry pile of leaves came a quiet: shush-shush.

Bobo bent his head carefully. "Maybe it is the wind?"

"The wind is blowing high in the branches now," said Uma. "This sound is very low."

Very gently, the squirrel lifted one leaf. Under it moved a tiny brown beetle. Next to it were two more little beetles, curled up by a thin dry twig.

"Oh!" breathed Liza. "They live there."

Under another leaf, a small centipede was hiding. Not far away was a soft little place made of grass, moss, and leaves. It was quiet, warm, and nicely dark.

Bobo sat down beside the pile so he would not prick anything by accident. "Under the leaves it is like under a blanket," he said softly.

Timo looked at the beetles. Then he looked at the broom. After that, he looked at the whole path, where leaves were piled in big little heaps.

"If we leave them there," he thought aloud, "the path will still be full of leaves. If we carry them away, it will be clean again."

He was just about to sweep a big pile toward the bushes. At that very moment, another tiny rustle came from under it.

Timo froze.

"Maybe there are more beetles under the leaves," said Liza.

"And maybe someone is resting there," Bobo added.

Uma flew down to a lower branch. "Leaves are not only things to take away," she said gently. "For small creatures, they can be a warm home."

The bunny lowered his ears. He did not want to take away anyone's home. At the same time, he did not want his friends to trip in the leaves.

"But how will we walk on the path?" he asked.

For a while, everyone thought. Liza looked to the right, Bobo looked to the left, and Uma blinked calmly.

Then the squirrel jumped high into the air. "I know! We do not need to take away everything. We will make one small path in the middle!"

Bobo pointed with his paw to the edges of the meadow. "And the leaves by the bushes and under the tree can stay. There will be a soft carpet for the beetles."

When Things Start to Change

Timo looked at his broom again. This time he smiled.

"Then we will clean carefully," he said. "Only as much as we need."

First, they chose a narrow path. Timo used the broom to gently push the leaves only to the sides. He moved slowly with every sweep so that no one under the leaves would be frightened.

Meanwhile, Liza picked up the leaves one by one. The ones on the path she carried to the bushes. Her fluffy tail swayed like a tiny broom.

Bobo found three big oak leaves. Very slowly, he loaded them onto his spines and carried them under the tree. On the way, one leaf slid down over his eyes.

"I can't see the path!" he laughed.

"The path is right in front of you," Timo called. "Just step by step!"

After a while, a narrow strip of earth could be seen between the leaves. It was not big, but it was enough for little paws, spines, and quiet owl claws.

By the bushes, however, there stayed a wide brown-and-gold carpet. On its edge lay round leaves, small twigs, and soft moss. Uma watched carefully so that no one would take away the leaves from the quiet hiding places.

Suddenly, a tiny beetle peeked out from under one leaf. It walked along the edge of the carpet, stopped, and hid under another leaf.

"Did you see that?" said Bobo happily. "It found a place."

Timo sat down beside the path. It no longer looked buried. It was clean and safe to walk on. Right next to it, the leaves softly rustled and protected the small creatures.

"It is nice," said the bunny. "The path is open, and the leaves stayed where someone needs them."

Liza lay down at the edge of the leaf carpet. "And they rustle beautifully too!"

Warm autumn light fell on the meadow. Between the leaves, a tiny beetle wing flashed, and soft little sounds came from the grass.

Uma smiled with peace. "On Little Meadow, a small leaf blanket stayed for other little helpers too."

Timo put the broom beside the path and stayed with his friends a little longer to look at the soft leaf carpet.

Today, Little Meadow was helped by a soft leaf carpet and a small path that left a home for little helpers.