Chick's Big Squirrel Surprise

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Chick woke up bouncy and full of ideas. “Today,” she announced loudly, “I will build the tallest acorn tower EVER.” Squirrel looked up from the grass. “How tall is ever?” she asked. “VERY ever,” said Chick.

Chick found twelve big acorns under the oak tree. She stacked the first one carefully. She stacked the second one confidently. She stacked the third one EXTREMELY confidently. Wobble. Wobble. CRASH! “Hmm,” said Chick.

“I need a better plan,” Chick decided, tapping her beak. She collected all twelve acorns into a neat pile. This time she would stack them PERFECTLY. Squirrel watched very closely. Chick felt very important.

Stack. Stack. Stack. The tower grew taller than Chick's head! “It's working!” Chick gasped. Then a breeze floated by. Just a tiny, gentle, perfectly innocent breeze. WHOOSH. Wobble. SPLAT! Acorns bounced everywhere like wild popcorn.

One acorn bonked Chick right on the beak. Bonk! One rolled into Squirrel's ear. Boing! One disappeared completely. “Where did it go?” asked Squirrel. “I am NOT looking,” said Chick firmly.

Chick sat down in the grass with a thump. “Maybe towers aren't my thing,” she muttered sadly. Squirrel patted her wing. “What if we try together?” “Together,” said Chick slowly. “Hmm.”

They made a brand-new plan. Squirrel would hold the bottom acorns steady. Chick would place the top ones gently. “Ready?” said Squirrel. “Ready!” said Chick. Neither of them was entirely ready.

Stack. Stack. Stack. Stack! The tower grew taller than Squirrel's ears! Taller than the wildflowers! Almost as tall as the lowest branch! “DON'T MOVE,” Chick whispered. Squirrel did not move. Not even her tail.

Then a bee buzzed past Squirrel's nose. Squirrel's nose twitched. Her tail flicked. Her whole body wiggled like a wobbly jelly. The tower swayed left. Then right. Then— “CATCH IT!” yelled Chick.

Chick dived. Squirrel lunged. Feathers flew everywhere. And somehow — SOMEHOW — the tower stayed up. All twelve acorns. Still stacked. Perfectly tall. Chick and Squirrel stared at it. “We did that on PURPOSE,” said Chick.

That evening, they sat proudly beside their tower. “So,” said Squirrel, “what will we build tomorrow?” Chick grinned her biggest, bounciest grin. “Something VERY ever,” she said. And THAT is why you should never, ever build an acorn tower alone.