Muskrat
Copyright 2007 - Murphy
Once upon a time, there was a muskrat who owned a pond. He was not very smart, but was lucky because his pond was the only water for several miles. Because he was an animal, he did not have a proper name, so everyone called him Muskrat.
Muskrat was very slow witted and did not talk too much. That was because he rarely knew what to say. Sadly, when he did speak, Muskrat usually did not make much sense. He was not as bright or articulate as the others, but it never made any difference.
As the sunny, summer days passed, more and more animals of the forest came to the pond to play. Mr. Rabbit, Mr. and Mrs. Duck, the Beaver twins and many others would lie in the sun on the shore or splash around in the water, enjoying the summer days with their friends.
Although Muskrat was intellectually challenged, a few of the animals appreciated his pond and would speak to him whenever they passed by.
"Hello Muskrat." said Mr. Groundhog.
"Hello Muskrat." said Miss Swan.
"Hello Muskrat." said Mr. Rabbit. "It certainly is a lovely day today!"
"Yep." said Muskrat. He noticed that not everyone stopped and said hello. And some of the animals were rude!
Muskrat might have wanted to speak up but was uncomfortable talking to the others. Despite having poor communications skills, it still wasn't long before his pond was jam packed with animals from all over the greenwood.
Everything was wonderful for the first half of the summer. As August approached however, so many animals came to Muskrat's pond that the water began to smell. No one could take a drink and the air was heavy with a sour, musty smell. Garbage littered the shoreline. The trouble was that many of the animals that Muskrat allowed in the water weren't very clean. Mr. and Mrs. Skunk, the Possums, all the members of the Coyote family and many of the Bears would swim in the water. Often they would go to the washroom in it too, rather than get out and use the bushes.
One day Muskrat had enough. He started yelling and screaming and shouting at all the animals at the pond. "Get out! Get out!" he cried. "You all stink!"
Some animals just left. Some animals argued to stay. Most simply ignored him. After all, he wasn't very smart and was not a good manager of the pond. Muskrat was easy to ignore.
What was once a wonderful place to visit with friends had quickly spoiled. No one respected the pond. No one respected Muskrat. And sadly, Muskrat did not respect the pond either. He could not properly care for it or stop others from ruining things. The whole place had become uninhabitable and the water became stagnant. Everything smelled and slimy, green algae floated on top of the once clear blue water.
One morning, Marten, one of the animals that used to frequent the pond, found Muskrat floating face down in the muck, dead. Marten just shook his head and pondered the irony.
