Saturday, February 9, 2013

Louie (Part 1)


The little red car with yellow hood stood parked beneath the deck.  Tufts of grass had become mangled in the steering wheel.  The black wheels had bits of grass and dirt plastered to them.  The door and seat of the car were now filthy with the muck of years’ worth of sitting and storms.  It had been so long since the blue key had been turned, so long since the little red car had come to life.

In the back of the little red car with yellow hood was a compartment.  The compartment was now covered with a soft, strong mesh of silky string built slowly day by day.  This soft mesh of string was actually the web of a spider named Louie.  And in this web, housed in the compartment of the little red car is where our story begins.

Louie had now been by himself [SB1] for several years, which is not sad since it is in the nature of spiders to live a solitary life.  One day, on his journey to find a home, he crawled into the little red car with yellow hood to rest.  However, he liked it so well in the compartment of the car that he decided to stay to make his home there.  Each day he would build a little more of his web: crossing from one side to the other, from the top to the bottom, from one corner to the other.

No one ever bothered Louie in his task.  Louie lived fat off the flies and insects that happened upon his compartment.  Three years later, Louie was content in his magnificent web that lay in the compartment of the little red car with yellow hood.

He was relaxing there in his web one evening before the sun had set when he heard the People discussing something.  The People lived in the house where the little red car slept.  Louie saw the People pointing at the flowerbed nestled against the house, saw them pointing to the old bird bath in the yard, then heard, “We’ll take that red car and throw it away too.  It’s been years since it’s been played with.  Then we’ll spray around the house with poison.  Get rid of all the insects and pests.”

Oh no, thought Louie.  They’re going to throw away my home and kill all my food.  I have to leave, but I can’t.  I can’t leave my home.  I love my home!

And why wouldn’t Louie love his home?  There was plenty of food, not to mention the care and pride he had taken in spinning his immaculate[SB2]  web day by day.
 
Louie decided: I have to find somewhere else to go, but I’m taking my home with me.

 [SB1]Why is this grammatically better than “Louie had been on his own”?
 [SB2]Too big of a word for kids?  Age appropriate?

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