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Storidoodles

Storidoodle #3

Wishes.

At some point in our lives, we all make them. 

Murdock heard about wishes. He had first heard about them one night when he sat within an ice canyon and watched the night stars singing through colors. As he watched the purples and greens sparkle in song, he heard a little sound building momentum as it neared him. It was a voice echoing down the canyon walls. Now echoes were not new to Murdock. He thought they were the most unusual yet beautiful thing.

He listened intently as he usually did, collecting new words and wondering in thought about who spoke them, where they came from, and where they would end up. Suddenly, more words came whistling through the canyon. Wish. Wish. Make a little wish.

“What is this thing called a wish?”

His fluffy ears perked toward the echo as he closed his eyes to concentrate so that he might hear better. But he did not learn of what this unfamiliar thing was, or how to make one. 

Wish. Wish. Wish. He said over and over to himself. 

It was lucky for him that another, more experienced, polar bear overheard him.

“Wish?” said the wiser polar bear.

“You know what a wish is?” asked Murdock.

“Of course,” the wise one replied. “A wish is something you desire with all your heart.”

“Oh! Do you know how to make one?”

The other polar bear contemplated this, looking as if he was searching for an answer somewhere deep within his memory.

Murdock waited patiently until the other bear found an answer. 

“Yes, from what I have learned, Murdock,” said the bear. “You wait until you see a traveling star.”

“And…” encouraged Murdock.

“And, then, you make your wish. You share your desire with the universe.” And after giving Murdock this answer, the other polar bear left and went on about his business. 

“A traveling star!” said Murdock aloud. “I can do that.”

So, he returned to his favorite spot, night after night. And he waited, and he watched. And he waited some more, watching some more.

He kept his eyes loyal to the skies, which wasn’t hard for him to do. He loved stargazing. 

Now, reader, you may be thinking how in the grand universe could someone who loves to stargaze not have seen a traveling star before. Well, it’s quite simple. There is a multitude of wondrous new things to realize around you at all times, most of us don’t see them because we simply don’t think to look for them. And Murdock didn’t think to look for such a thing before. But with a little inspiration, he fixed his eyes on the sky with a very specific intention.

And then, in the night sky, he saw something unlike everything else. He saw something moving among the stationary stars. 

It zigged and zagged. It went up and it went down. It circled and did a few loop-de-loops before racing off, out of Murdock’s sight. 

“There it is!” he called. “A traveling star!” 

Astonished by the star, he nearly forgot to make a wish. But, he remembered just in time. 

And do you know what he wished for?

Well, dear reader, your guess is as good as mine. He never told. But, I will tell you that every night thereafter, it seemed he was never gazing upon a sky without seeing another traveling star… for the rest of his days. 

Wishing you much wonder and fixing your eyes to see new things,

Autumn


Categories
Storidoodles

Sunday Storidoodle #2

Mustard and His Grand Plan!

“But I’m just a little mouse,” Mustard said to his reflection in the shiny toaster. “What significant act could I do?”

Mustard had a lot of doubt from years of others transferring their doubts onto him. But despite carrying the weight of the doubting thoughts, he was equally optimistic and, thankfully, a little stubborn. “There has to be something!”

Mustard always wanted to be someone who did a big act despite his size and his species. He tried picking up the drums (acorn shells and other bits & bobs for a kit) so that he could be a big-time rockstar, but it just allowed the house cat to know exactly where he was at all times. And for a mouse, that really isn’t a great idea. 

He let that idea go.

As he nibbled on the page of a tasty poetry book, he thought that maybe his big act could be writing. So, he found some spilled ketchup missed by the human of the house and dipped his tail into it. At worst, he could always lick away the ketchup and delight in its tangy flavor. But his optimism inspired him to use the red sauce to write his first word.

“Wait a minute!” said Mustard, with his tail a centimeter from the blank page. “I don’t know how to write!”

While licking his tail clean, he decided to add ‘learning to write’ to the mental list of future studies.

You see, Mustard wasn’t a very patient creature and, although he loved to learn, he didn’t want to take the time to learn something in order to do some big act or some grand gesture to make his name known. His list of things to learn was actually a rather long list, indeed.

But, dear reader, if you just make a list of things you want to learn or do and never start one, well, you end up with nothing but a condiment on your tail or maybe not even that.

To continue…

While on another hike around the house, he found a cozy basket of laundry. And it was in that pile of cloth he came up with his greatest idea yet. 

He chewed and tore and tied until he made the perfect cape and mask for himself. 

“I will be a Super Mouse Hero!” Mustard declared. “The first one of its kind.” (Shhh! Don’t tell him about Mighty Mouse, yet! Let him have his moment.)

And as he tightened his mask and smoothed out his cape, he struck a confident superhero pose in the beam of sunlight that filtered through the window. 

A note to the reader:

At present, Mustard is so caught up in wearing the mask and the cape that he has momentarily forgotten about the importance of wanting to do some big act. As of right now, wearing a cool cape and mask seems to be quite satisfying for him. Therefore, the Storidoodle ends here for now.

I will be sure to let you know if the newness of a cape and mask wears off for Mustard and he gets back to chasing his big dream. However, maybe he has actually found his dream, after all. 

-Autumn the Storidoodler

Categories
Storidoodles

Introducing Sunday Storidoodles!

Each Sunday I will be posting a little Storidoodle!

What is a Storidoodle?

Well, it’s a little doodle from my sketchbook paired with a little story/anecdote to go with it. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoy creating them. Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss one!

Here is the first one!

Mortimer and his Big Dream!

Mortimer was waiting for the day that he would hear from the agency. He must have taken thousands of selfies in order to settle on the perfect headshot to submit to the modeling agency. Each day he hopped to the mailbox, eagerly checking to see if his ears would be chosen as the model for next year’s chocolate bunnies. He is still waiting as I write this.