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Episode 3
- A Surprise Treat
- “Let’s see now, on such a warm day, I’ll bet everyone would like an ice cream soda. We just happen to have coupons for free desserts at the local ice cream shop for all of you. We keep them on hand for lost children who are brought into the station.”
- “That’s very nice of you, sergeant. Thank you very much.” Mort’s cell phone rang in the middle of his thanks. Agnes was happy to have reached Mount Baldy’s summit...finally. It had been quite a strenuous climb for Mel and they were both ready to make their way down the slope.
- “Hi Ag. We’re in town and will be coming back to meet you and Mel at the bottom. You must both be tired, and hot too. Why don’t we go out for ice cream sodas? Special treat. Just be careful. Don’t fall on your way down.”
- “How is Mal? Is he ok now? How about Rufus? Did he drink a lot of water? He must have been really thirsty with the sun beating down on his black fur.”
- “They’re both fine.” Mort realized that he and Mal totally forgot about poor Rufus. They’d better ask the sergeant right away where they could get some water for the dog.
- Fortunately, Rufus was a tough dog, as Labradors tend to be. And exuberant. His large head completely out of the partially open window, Rufus barked loudly at anyone (and no one) within a city block of the car. Mort and Mal were relieved to hear his vigorous barking, more a welcome greeting to the big container of water they carried than to themselves.
- Mort felt bad for being so preoccupied with Mal’s discovery of the bank robbery sack of money that he forgot all about Rufus. Mal felt bad too, although he didn’t bear nearly the responsibility that his father did. Father and son agreed that it was a good thing that dogs can’t talk, and they both came to the (unspoken) conclusion that burdening “the ladies” with their neglect wouldn’t be necessary.
- Agnes and Mel drank all their water on the way up the dune, so they were really hot and thirsty when they reached the car, where Mort and Mal greeted them with big smiles.
- “Easy for you guys to smile,” Mel scowled. “You didn’t go all the way up the hill like Mom and I did. Can we go back to the camp now? I’m really tired. And thirsty!”
- “Me too. And my calves are aching. I guess I overdid my run this morning. It’s been a long time since my legs got this much of a workout.” Agnes’ hair was wet with perspiration and she looked almost as tired as her young daughter.
- “We’ve got something that will perk you up.” Mal held out the four coupons for free ice cream desserts. “And something to tell you, too!”
- “Oh, for a big ol’ root beer float. Mmm. Where did you get the coupons?” Agnes did indeed perk up.
- Mel perked up too. “I want a strawberry sundae. Maybe with fudge sauce.”
- “We’ll tell you later, once we’re back at the campsite. For now, let’s all enjoy a well-earned treat.” Mort didn’t want to talk where someone might overhear the retelling of their discovery.
- When they got back to the campsite, everyone agreed that supper should be later than usual since their taste buds were happily saturated with sweetness.
- “Ok. Who’s going to tell us what you were up to when Mel and I were working hard, battling the sand.” Agnes leaned back in the folding chair, looking first at Mort, then Mal, then Rufus.
- Mal couldn’t resist the temptation. “Go ahead, Rufus. Tell Mom everything that happened.”
- Enjoying their shared secret joke, Mort nudged Mal, saying “Maybe I should start. Rufus can remind us if we forget something.”
- So Mort and Mal explained all that had happened (well, almost all, if you don’t count the part about making Rufus wait so long for a needed drink of water). Agnes agreed with Mort’s decision to keep their names out of any news story that should be released to the media.
- The police sergeant promised to contact them on the bank’s decision next week. Not that they were expecting anything, but if there were to be any kind of reward, Agnes and Mort wanted it to be placed in a trust fund. They’d use part of it to get nice present for Mike, as these weekend trips were his gift to their family.
- Aches and Pains
- Agnes and Mel were both sore the next morning. Mel said her legs felt like sandbags. “Ha. They look like sandbags, too,” Mal teased.
- “Now where do you suppose the idea of SANDbag came from?” Agnes asked no one in particular. “Right on target, though.”
- Agnes decided that Mel’s and her legs needed time to recover, so the day would have no taxing activity.
- “Good idea. You’ve got to let all that lactic acid buildup dissipate,” Mort advised.
- “Actually, lactic acid was originally believed to be the culprit. One newer theory is that the muscle soreness comes from tiny rips in the muscle fibers or cells. Another theory is that the soreness comes from muscles that grow because of the exercise, and that puts pressure on nerves that are close by.” As a physical therapist, Agnes needed to keep up with new research in this area.
- Taking it Easy
- “Whichever it is, it’s a good idea to take it easy today.” Mort hoped to have some time to try listening for the “singing sands” that the dunes are famous for, explore the wide variety of plants in the area and maybe even get a chance to write down the poems that started forming yesterday in his mind. Then he remembered that he and Agnes promised before they left that they would take the twins swimming. All this before four o’clock in the afternoon when they’d need to break camp and leave for home.
- Not possible, he realized. Each place they visited held a vast amount of potential experiences for the twins, far too many for them (or adults, for that matter) to absorb. I wonder what Dad would suggest if he were here. What are the most important lessons he’d like the twins to learn?
- “What’s on your mind, Mort?” Agnes could see that her husband was thinking deeply about something, perhaps worried. She hoped her talking about muscle damage didn’t disturb him. Activity, even strenuous activity, is a normal part of a healthy life, she believed. Of course, she would never push herself and certainly not her children to the point of harm.
- “I was just thinking about the phrase ‘so much to do, so little time’ and I wondered, when does ‘so much’ becomes ‘too much’ for Mel and Mal when it comes to these mini-trips.”
- “Me too. Except in SOME cases, ‘so much’ might be ‘not enough.’”
- Mort was confused. “Huh? Run that by me again, would you?”
- Agnes was glad that Mort was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the wealth of experiences these monthly mini-trips offered rather than worried about the state of two pairs of legs.
- “You know. “Mens sana in corpore sano.’ A healthy mind in a health body. The more active you are, the better the flow of oxygen to your brain, the better your brain can absorb learning.”
- Agnes felt that her husband’s love of intellectual pursuits, both professionally and in daily life, needed to be better balanced with physical activity. Although she and Mort were now in their mid-30s and healthy, Agnes worried that Mort’s fairly sedentary lifestyle would lead to health problems later.
- “Say, Dad,” Mal said. “We’re always doing things together as a family. Yesterday was kind of neat. Mom and Mel climbed up Mount Baldy and we found a buried treasure. That bag of money would still be there if we went with them. So today, let’s let Mom and Mel do whatever they want to do and we could go exploring. I’ll bet we can find more of those fly-eating plants!”
- Now it was Agnes’ time for reflection as she recalled the verse, “a child shall lead them.”
- “Perfect,” Agnes responded.
- And so mother, daughter and dog went to the beach, while father and son went exploring. They agreed to meet at the beach about an before heading back to clean up the campsite so Mal could play in the water, at least for a little while.
- Mort took a note pad for Mal to draw pictures of the interesting plants they might see. Mal wasn't particularly interested in drawing, but the notepad did come in handy to capture the silly little poem about the dunes that was bouncing around in Mort’s head. Here it is.
- The singing dunes, they sing their tunes
Even if no one is listening.
The sands still sing and awe they bring;
Listen! And watch the lake glistening.
- Quaking bogs and croaking frogs.
Are a few of nature’s wonders.
The songs of bird, and more, we heard;
But not a hint of rolling thunders.
- Please click HERE to continue reading.
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SOME LINKS TO MORE INFORMATION
Muscle soreness
Singing Dunes
- LINKS: BOOK 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION TO THE BIOFABLES SERIES
BioFables 1 Teaching Brief
BioFables 1 & 2: Word Counts, Reading Levels
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