By Tim Porteus

Here is a wee tale I told my kids when they asked why they couldn’t go to a play park:

Once in a forest there was a squirrel enjoying a feast, eating the seeds from a pine cone.

Suddenly the squirrel smelt burning. She looked up and saw smoke, then noticed all the animals running from a fire that had broken out amidst the heather.

The squirrel rushed down the tree and also began to run.

But she did not run out the forest like the other animals, instead she stopped at a river. She dipped her bushy tail into the water then ran back.

She stood a safe distance from the flames and then shook her bushy tail, sprinkling the flames with droplets of water. The flames fizzed for a few moments, but it didn’t make any difference.

So the squirrel ran back to the river and once again dipped her bushy tail into the water and ran back to the fire.

Once again she stood a safe distance but shook her tail, and once again sprinkled the fire with small droplets of water. As before, the flames fizzed for a moment but it made no difference.

Just then a hare ran by and saw what the squirrel was doing.

“You foolish animal,” said the hare, “you can’t put the fire out by yourself”.

The squirrel looked at the hare and nodded.

“I know” she said, “but the forest is my home so I’m doing what I can do”.

Then she asked the hare, “Will you help me?”

The hare thought for a moment. He didn’t live in the forest like the squirrel, but it was important for him as he would use the forest often to eat bark and twigs when there was no grass to eat.

“I would if I could,” said the hare, “but the thing is I don’t have a bushy tail like you”.

“Hmm that’s true” said the squirrel, “but you do have long ears. You could use them”.

The hare stroked his ears.

“So I do” he said, “very well I will do what I can do”.

And so the squirrel and hare ran to the river.

The squirrel dipped her bushy tail into the river, and the hare dipped his ears, collecting as much water as possible.

They both returned to the fire, and stood a safe distance away. The squirrel shook her tail and the hare wiggled his ears.

They sprayed the fire with droplets of water, and as before the flames fizzed for a moment, but it made very little difference.

Just then a wild cat came by. She saw what the squirrel and hare were doing.

“You foolish animals,” said the wild cat, “you can’t put out the fire, just the two of you”.

The hare looked at the wild cat and nodded.

“We know” he said, “but the forest is our home and feeds us, so we are doing what we can do”.

Then the squirrel looked at the wild cat and asked her, “Will you help us?”

The wild cat looked at the squirrel and the hare, and licked her lips.

Normally they would be a good lunch option. But the wild cat lived in the forest too, and without it her habitat would be gone.

“I would if I could,” said the wild cat, “but the thing is, I am afraid of water”.

“Hmm that’s true” said the hare, “but we are also afraid of you, but we will be brave and work with you to save the forest”.

The wild cat thought for a moment. “Very well I will be brave too” she said, “I will do what I can do”.

So the squirrel, the hare and the wild cat all ran to the river.

The squirrel dipped her busy tail into the river, and the hare dipped his ears, while the wild cat took a deep breath and bravely jumped in and quickly out of the water soaking her coat.

They returned to the fire, and all three stood a safe distance away. The squirrel shook her tail and the hare wiggled his ears and the wild cat shook her whole body.

They sprayed the fire with droplets of water, and the flames fizzed for a moment, but it made little difference.

Just then, a golden eagle was flying above and saw the squirrel, hare and wild cat.

“Well that’s something I’ve never seen before,” said the golden eagle to herself, “a squirrel, a hare and a wild cat working together. I have to find out what’s going on”.

So the golden eagle flew down and watched what they were doing.

“You foolish animals,” said the golden eagle, “you can’t put out the fire, just the three of you”.

The wild cat looked at the golden eagle and nodded.

“We know” she said, “but the forest is our home and feeds us, so we are doing what we can do”.

Then the squirrel looked at the golden eagle and asked him, “Will you help us?”

The eagle had wide wings, and although he lived in the forest he could easily fly away and find another forest.

But this was his home too; no other forest had the memories this one had.

“I would like to help,” said the golden eagle, “but the thing is I have no bushy tail, no long ears nor a coat of fur”.

“Hmm, that’s true,” said the wild cat,” but you do have many feathers”.

The eagle thought for a moment.

“So I do,” he said, “very well I will do what I can do”.

And so this time the squirrel, the hare and the wild cat ran to the river, while the golden eagle flew above.

The squirrel dipped her bushy tail into the river, and the hare dipped his ears, while the wild cat took a deep breath and bravely jumped in and quickly out of the water soaking her coat.

Then the golden eagle swooped down and collected water in his feathers.

They returned to the fire, and all four stood a safe distance away.

The squirrel shook her tail and the hare wiggled his ears and the wild cat shook her whole body, while the golden eagle ruffled his feathers above the flames.

They all sprayed the fire with droplets of water at the same time, and the flames fizzed for a moment.

This time it made a little difference.

The other animals of the forest, who were running away from the fire, suddenly stopped and stared at the squirrel, at the hare, at the wild cat and at the golden eagle.

“You foolish animals,” they all said, “you can’t put out the fire, just the four of you.”

The golden eagle looked at the other animals and nodded.

“We know,” he said, “but the forest is our home and feeds us and has our memories, so we are doing what we can do”.

Then the squirrel looked at all the other animals, and asked them, “Will you help us?”

The fox looked at the deer, the deer looked at the pine marten, the pine marten looked at the capercaillie, the capercaillie looked at the buzzard; all the animals and birds of the forest looked at each other and had a think.

The forest was important to them all in different ways.

“Very well,” they all said “we will do what we can do”.

And so they did. Each animal did what they could do, no matter how little.

And when all the little was added up, it became a lot. And finally they put the fire out; and saved their forest.