It was daybreak, and Spooky of the Mailbox was just returning from a successful night of flower collecting. She was especially pleased with one flower in particular. It was deep red with polka dots that changed colors. The brighter the dots, the happier Spooky became. She decided to use her treasure to pin back a tuft of her pink hair. She looked radiant as she headed out to the Morphadoodle Community Garden to see if she could find anything that resembled her special blossom and to tell Zoey of her adventure.

When she arrived at the entrance to the Garden, Sun Smile had just begun to spread his warmth on the ground below, and Zoey was watering the seedlings in the Rainbow Garden. Upon seeing Spooky, Zoey put down her watering can to welcome her friend.

“Good morning, Spooky. What are you doing out so early in the morning? Is there something I can do for you?”

As Spooky walked closer, Zoey’s mouth hung open in disbelief. “That flower…it’s so captivating. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Zoey stepped closer to examine the deep red specimen that had an orange stem, and bright blue polka dots. The Morphadoodle with two green thumbs immediately knew that this was no garden variety bloom. “It reminds me of a legend that I once heard about a place called Polkawood, but maybe it wasn’t a legend after all." She sniffed the blossom and turned to Spooky. “Where did you find it?”

“Last night when I was gathering pansies, petunias, daisies and daffodils, I decided to venture deep into the Laborastory forest, deeper than I had ever dared to go. I was flying over the far end of the MorphaZOOdle when a golden yellow pussy willow caught my eye. I swooped down to snatch it, and imagine my surprise when I discovered that it was not a pussy willow waving in the wind but the fuzzy tail of a yellow cat.”

“A cat?” asked Zoey.

“Yes,” said Spooky. “A cat named Buttercup. After I apologized for tugging on her tail, she stepped carefully toward me and studied me with her golden-green eyes. ‘You’re not from around here. Are you?’ she asked. Everything looked unfamiliar and I was beginning to feel lost and lonely. ‘Don’t worry,’ meowed Buttercup swishing her tail. ‘Follow me. I know someone who can get you home in a snap.’”

“We walked through the underbrush until we arrived at a small clearing where moonlight streamed straight down to the forest floor. Buttercup stopped at the entrance of a hollow log and told me that we needed to crawl through it together. We went quickly through, and I was surprised to see a bright sky ahead when there were so many hours of darkness still left in the night. ‘There’s magic in Polkawood,’ explained Buttercup, ‘just wait until you see what we grow here.’“

“When we stepped out of the tunnel, I couldn’t believe my eyes. A meadow stretched out before us that was filled with hundreds of polka dot flowers in every shade and hue. And there, in the midst of the burst of color, was a pink Morphadoodle fluttering about an easel with a paintbrush in her hand.”

“’Poppy,’ shouted Buttercup as we approached the smiling creature,'this is Spooky . She’s lost and wants to go home.’”

“Poppy turned to me and smiled. ‘I can help you. All you need to do is close your eyes,’ she said, ‘and paint a picture of your home using just your words.’”

“My words?” I asked.

“’Yes,’ said Poppy, ’and I’ll do the rest.’”

“So I stood there and told her all about my beloved corner of the woods until she told me to open my eyes. I couldn't believe how real the painting she had made looked."

"I want to go right inside and take a nap in my cozy mailbox,"  I said.

“’Why don’t you give it a try?’ she answered beaming. 'Come closer.  Place your hands on the canvas and think HOME.’”

“Won’t the paint be wet?” I wondered.

“She shook her head no. ‘This is no ordinary painting, Spooky. Trust me. I will not disappoint you.  After all, I am here to bring you joy.’”

“When I reached toward the easel, I felt a strange sensation.  It was as if the colors of the painting were pulling me inside.  One minute I was standing in a beautiful meadow touching the scratchy canvas; the next minute I was back in the Laborastory forest feeling the cool metal of my mailbox home.  I opened its door and saw something pulsing inside.  The bright polka dots of this flower," she said pointing to her hair. "It was a present from Poppy .”

Zoey was thrilled. “Spooky, you must have found Polkawood. You have to take me there.  I need to get a specimen of that flower for my garden.”

Spooky frowned. “But I don’t remember the way.”

“Not to worry," said Zoey as a thought popped into her head.  We'll go to the Leaf-Through Library. I'm sure Lizzie can help. That pup is a font of information.”

When the friends arrived at the library, Lizzie was all ears. She listened quietly as Spooky recounted her adventure of the previous night, jumped onto her feet at the mention of the cat with the pussy willow tail, and cocked her head with interest as Zoey told her what little she remembered of The Legend of Polkawood.

Lizzie dashed off and returned dragging the worn copy of The Book with no Cover, a treasure that she had discovered in the trunk of a fallen tree. She pushed the pages over with her cold black nose and let out a yip when she found what she'd been looking for. "Does this look familiar, Spooky?" she asked pointing to an illustration with her tail.

"Most definitely!" shouted Spooky, and Zoey began to cheer.

“Polkawood is a place where everyone and everything has an extraordinary attitude. A peppy pink painter named Poppy lives there. She is known as The Artist of Polkawood, famous for painting magical rainbows and growing polka dot flowers.  Her artistry has the power to spread joy.  There is never a cloud in Polkawood.  Poppy simply paints them away.  Bow WOW!" she barked.  "Poppy sounds like someone I’d like to know. There's only one problem," she said closing the book and turning to the pair.  "There are no directions to Polkawood in here."

"We'll never get there!" they wailed.

"Polkawood?  Were you just reading about Polkawood?" a familiar voice called out a from behind a stack of books. It belonged to Fuzzy, a Morphadoodle who loved to read. "I go there all the time.  Poppy's one of my very best friends."

"Really?" they asked.  "Then you must know how to get there."

"Of course I do," she answered pulling a beautiful painting from her backpack and showing it to the trio.

"The Polkawood!" shouted Spooky. "That's where I was."

"And that's where you'll be again if you trust in Polkawood magic," said Fuzzy adjusting his sunglasses.  "Come here, and we'll all touch the canvas."  Three pairs of hands and two front paws pressed against the painting.  A strange sensation came over them as if the colors were pulling them inside.  In an instant the Leaf-Through Library was empty, and four friends stood smiling in a meadow filled with polka dot flowers.  Fuzzy, Spooky, and Zoey went off to meet Poppy.  Lizzie had another idea.  She went in search of a buttercup that meowed.

It was Halloween night and Scary was flying across the face of the moon with Ghost with Hair in tow. “My favorite holiday,” he whispered darting past Crater 1 and tipping Pod over just for fun. “Everyone wants to be scary tonight, but I get to be SCARY every night.” Ghost with Hair glanced at his eight-eyed companion and shuddered just a little bit as the two entered the earth’s atmosphere. “Remember, little friend,” said the sinister Morphadoodle, “our mission is to get to the Tree with Many Trunks before the parade arrives. If Nicky did as he was told and set up the jack o’ lantern detour and my ingenious Slime and Slide, then when all those paraders make the turn, they will find themselves slipping, tipping and sticking in muck and I can finally get my hands on Goo’s Goo’s orange box.’’

Scary had been obsessed for a year with snatching the orange box from the round blue Morphadoodle ever since Goo Goo and his twin Sun Smile had left it on the curb to trick or treat at someone’s door. Not only was it his favorite color on the outside (which was reason enough for the attraction), but when he lifted the lid and peeked inside he couldn’t believe his octo-eyes. There were tons of video games in there and Scary loved to play. He actually had the box in his grip and was about to take flight when the only creature that could possibly scare him hopped toward him. A creature so appalling to Scary, that he dropped his jaw, dropped the box, and shot into the air screaming, “Help!!! I’m being chased by a Cuniculus!!!!!!!” “A Cuniculus?” said Goo Goo to Sun Smile, as the pair carried their Halloween booty back to the curb. “Is that Latin for a 7 foot tall Great Red kangaroo on its way to a kick boxing match?” “No,” said Sun Smile looking at the orange wake in the sky, “that’s Latin for cute little bunny rabbit with twitchy little nose and fluffy little tail.”

For 365 days Scary tried hard to erase that memory from his brain, but it hadn’t been easy. “If I don’t get that box this year,” he threatened, as The Tree with Many Trunks came into view, “I will be in a BAD mood for 365 more days…and you know what that means.” The tips of Ghost with Hair’s hair stood on end and a feeling of impending doom spread throughout his amorphous form. It wasn’t nice to see Scary in a bad mood for even one day – how could he possibly survive 365 more?

The billowy phantasm began to wrack his brain. “I could cook crab legs, shrimp and spaghetti for dinner,” Ghost with Hair thought, making a mental menu of Scary’s favorite foods, “but that would only satisfy him for one part of one day.”

“I could invite his friend Cary to come for a sleep over or take Ruffy for a walk,” he continued thinking as he watched Scary inspect the Slime and Slide trap. “But that only accounts for another day and a half.”

His worries were interrupted by the sound of merry-making Morphadoodles filling the night air. Scary motioned for him to help light the candle in the jack o’ lantern and the two slipped behind the giant pumpkin with the letters D… E… T… O… U… R… carved into it.

“Hmm,” said Electric, the Morphadoodle park ranger who headed the parade. “I don’t remember a detour, but I suppose we should follow it.” He turned his light beam head down the black path to lead the way. Pair after pair followed behind him, slid in the slime and stuck in the muck. Scary smirked at their dilemma and flew toward Goo Goo and Sun Smile who were trying to pull the orange box out of the trap.

“Let me help you with that, my friends” he said reaching down toward the box he had waited one year to hold. The pair made room for his hands and Scary began to pull, but something was wrong. His slime and muck were so thick that even he couldn’t release the box.

“What do we do now?” said Goo Goo beginning to cry. “Everything I own is inside.” “Don’t worry, little blue guy,” said Egg-Burto the Magician who appeared (as he often did) in the nick of time. “With one or two abracadabras I will have all of you free and on your way.” The Morphadoodles began to cheer. “Just a moment, everyone,” he said commandingly, “I’ll need an assistant to hold a few of my things so that I can put all of my effort into this trick.” His eyes rested on Scary whose body was surprisingly clean. “If you would be so kind,” he said, raising an eyebrow and removing his top hat that he held upside down, “would you hold my magic hat? I’m about to perform a powerful trick and would hate to have it land in this mysterious mess.” Scary nodded. “And, Sir,” Egg-burto continued, “make sure that Nibblet doesn’t hop out.”

“Did you say ‘hop’ out?” asked Scary, all eight of his eyes growing wide. “Please tell me that Nibblet’s a frog.” “A Frog?” shouted Egg-burto. “What magician pulls a frog out of his hat? Nibblet is a Cuniculus – a bunny rabbit with a twitchy little nose and a fluffy little tail.” Scary began to shake. “I believe,” continued Egg-burto, lifting his wand and tapping the brim one time, “that you met him last Halloween.” In an instant, out hopped Nibblet, who had only one word to say…….BOO!!!”

Scary’s eyes popped, his jaw dropped and he shot into the sky like a rocket.

Email (with attachment)

Fr: Professor Electra

To: Dr. Stalk

Drop everything (unless it’s a breakable test tube with a morphing doodle in it) and get here NOW! You won’t believe your eye!!! I was spelunking in the black hills of South Dakota when I spied this……….

It’s a drawing from the cave wall.

It’s a T-Rex. I’m sure of it – long body, short arms, short legs, HUGE teeth. But who could have drawn it? T-Rex was already extinct for 30,000 years by the time cavemen got here.

Oh and there’s a bunch of other shapes, too. One of them is the biggest oval I’ve ever seen. Another one is a giant triangle with little circles all over it. And if my eyes were not deceiving me I could swear I saw something that looked like a pair of c…..c….c…crab legs ---j…j…j… just crab legs and they were standing on a circle next to something that looked a lot like shrimp!!!! I’m very disturbed.

Hurry,

Professor Electra

E-mail

Fr: Dr. Stalk

To: Professor Electra

Take a few cleansing breaths, Professor. We don’t want your eyes to bug out any further than they already do. There are two things I must tell you before I Think and Blink and transport myself to the cave. Number One, I do not know how a cave person could have known about Tyrannosaurus Rex, but I suppose magic has always happened. Number Two, I am bringing Horatio. He might be able to decipher some symbols.

South Dakota here I come,

Dr. I. M. A. Stalk

After reading the email, Professor Electra turned off his computer and raced as fast he could on his bowed purple legs to meet his friends at the mouth of the cave. By the time he arrived, Dr. Stalk and Horatio had already dusted themselves off from their landing and were adjusting the lights on their miner’s hats to high beam. With no time to waste, Professor Electra gave them each a quick hug, turned on his over-sized flashlight and led the way into the darkness. The cave was spooky and leathery batwings flapped overhead, but the trio pressed on undeterred.

“There it is!” shouted Electra as his high beams struck a wall deep inside the cave, “The drawing of the T-Rex!” He scuttled towards it, and bounced his light across the span of the wall, revealing more and more of the painting’s complexity. Dr. Stalk and Horatio ducked their heads and anxiously followed him into the recess, their eyes growing wider with each step.

“Indeed,” it is the art of a cave dweller, but I won’t just need Horatio’s expertise in this effort,” said Dr. Stalk after several minutes of silent examination. “I will also need Chef Poire’s, because if I am correct, my friend, we are staring at the menu of the first restaurant. I believe,” he said, pointing one leafy hand to a white poof sitting on T-Rex‘s head, “that shape is the symbol for a chef’s hat.”

Then he lowered his light several feet revealing a long purple rectangle that “hung” under the T-Rex’s chin. “And that one,” he continued, tracing its outline, “is an apron – absolutely, an apron.” Dr. Stalk paused and faced his friends, a look of consternation clouding his eye, “Could it be that the very dinosaur we deem to be the most terrifying was just a nice guy who liked to cook?”

“Quite possibly,” said Horatio, who was using a tail feather to sweep ancient dust from a row of glyphs. “His name was Jacob the Chef T-Rex”, he read, “and he must have been nice. He liked to dance. He liked the color green because green means LIFE. And, he had a pet – a dog called Game (because he liked to play games).”

“Intriguing” said Dr. Stalk, straightening his scarf and preparing to transport himself to the Eiffel Tower. “I must retrieve Chef Poire from La Boulangeroodle at once. Horatio,” he said right before he vanished into thin air, “if you could have the ancient entrees deciphered by the time we get back, I would be most appreciative.”

“Will doodle-do,” Horatio crowed and that’s precisely what he doodle-did. Upon their return, for the first time in millennia, Jacob the T-Rex Chef’s menu was read out loud:

“Shrimp and Crab Legs Stegosaurus (Sorry, Professor Electra, crustaceans have always been popular with the palette)

Pterodactyl Eggs Over not so Easy (made with the world’s biggest and heaviest eggs)

Spaghetti with Woolly Mammoth Meat Balls

“And...” he said cackling, “Something’s just never change! The last item and the Specialty of the Cretaceous Period:

A slice of pizza with extra cheese!”

It was another sunny day in the Morphadoodle meadow and Goo Goo and Sun Smile were playing a friendly game of hide and seek.

“1,2,3…” Sun Smile counted from behind a cloud as Goo Goo dashed about looking for a clever hiding spot. He had his trusty orange box with him, so he needed to find a leafy bush or some really tall grass to disappear from view.

“9, 10, 11…” Sun Smile continued. Running out of time, Goo Goo hesitated at the edge of the forest. From where he stood, he could see a tree with brightly colored leaves flapping in the breeze. The tree had a big thick trunk – wide enough to hide his orange box. It was darker in the forest, but it was still day light and he figured that Sun Smile would find him rather quickly. Goo Goo took a deep breath, dashed behind the tree, dove headfirst into his orange box and waited for his cheerful friend to shine above him.

Goo Goo waited, and waited, and waited some more. He waited so long in his favorite orange box that the chirping and buzzing of the forest lulled him to sleep. He slept deep into the night. Suddenly, his box began to move. He was jostled around to the left, to the right, tilted left again, and fell out onto the ground with a THUD. Now wide awake, Goo Goo opened his eyes to see a large brown snout and wet pink tongue approaching. The nose sniffed and snorted. The tongue licked and tickled. Finally, he saw the kind eyes of a very surprised MorphaZOOdle dog who let out a startled yip.

“Oh my goodness! I didn’t know that anyone lived in this box. I saw it behind my tree and thought it would be a nice addition to my collection of treasures. I am Lizzie, the great finder of all things. I just have a nose for it I suppose.”

Relieved to find himself in the company of such a friendly dog, Goo Goo said, “Well, I was waiting to be found, but now it’s dark and Sun Smile is gone. I don’t like the dark.”

“Well, lucky for you I sniffed out your fine orange box and brought you to the Leaf Through Library. It’s quite late and you should be asleep. Your friend Sun Smile should rise in just a few more hours. Make yourself comfortable and I will read you a special poem from the “Book with No Cover”.”

Lizzie opened her book to a dog-eared page, gave a little bark to clear her throat and began to read:

“Xian Xian The Love Rat”

If you are ever frightened

When the sun turns out her light

You can always call for Xian Xian

To help you through the night

She will slip out from her soft nest

In the hollow of a tree

And bring The Sandman’s crystals

Wherever you may be

If you’re a wee bit hungry

She will share a bedtime snack

And if you need some comfort

She will gently rub your back

She will whisk away loud noises

With her rainbow-colored tail

And you will soon

See The Man in the Moon

On his nightly journey sail

If you’d like to thank her

Upon waking the next day

Draw a picture of your dream

And send it Xian Xian’s way

Mail it to:

Xian Xian The Love Rat

c/o the Hollow Tree

Deep in the Park

(The Tree that’s filled with Music

When Daylight turns to Dark).

Lizzie quietly closed the book and asked “Did that poem make you feel better, Goo Goo? …Goo Goo?”

But Goo Goo did not answer. He had fallen into a deep slumber and was dreaming of the picture that he would send to Xian Xian’s hollow tree.

I

Zoey was confused. “I could have sworn I planted this patch of the Community Garden with carrots – dozens of them.” She scratched the top of her heart-shaped head and knelt down to look closer at the ground. Sure enough there were rows upon rows of perfectly empty holes. “Somebody’s

been eating my carrots,” she said, and set off to talk to Dr. Stalk.

II

Egg-Burto the Magnificent was confused. He had just reached into his magic hat to pull out his trusted rabbit when he discovered that there was no hare there. He checked his watch. “I could have sworn I told Nibblet that rehearsal would begin promptly at 9.” He said a few magic words, waved his wand, and reached back into his hat. This time he pulled out a few very crunchy looking crumbs. “Somebody’s been eating with my rabbit,” he said and set off to talk to Dr. Stalk.

III

Professor Electra was confused. The picture he was developing in his dark room had just come to light. “I could have sworn I was photographing a swarm of white butterflies with black spots– the common pierrot – but,” he said, dipping his eyes stalks as close to the sheet as possible, “there’s something else captured in this picture.” He reached behind him and took a magnifying glass from a shelf. He held it over one particular corner of the photograph. He gasped, “This is noooo butterfly,” he said, his eye stalks bobbing up and down. “Oh it’s white and it’s got wings all right, but unless I’m mistaken,” he said as he slipped the photograph carefully inside his backpack, “somebody’s been fiddling with my photograph,” and he set off to talk to Dr. Stalk.

IV

As soon as he opened the door to the Lab, Dr. Stalk’s head began to spin. Zoey, Egg-Burto and Electra were talking all at once. “Friends,” Dr. Stalk said, raising his leafy hands, “I can’t possibly help you unless you each take a deep breath and calm down.” The three Morphadoodles looked at each other, inhaled and let out a collective sigh. “Now,” continued the green scientist, “let’s examine the facts.” He took out his clipboard and pen and turned his large eye to Zoey.

“Missing carrots,” she said, “dozens of missing carrots.” Dr. Stalk wrote, “Carrots uprootus” and turned to Egg-burto who said, “Nibblet is missing, and I found this stuff where my bunny should have been.” The magician handed Dr. Stalk the crumbs. He studied the particles through his monocle, took a sample taste of the kernels and wrote, “Hare nowhere/ Cerealus and canine crunchus there.”

When it was Electra’s turn, the purple professor thrust the photo into his friend’s hand. “Well?” he chirped, hardly giving the scientist a moment to analyze the fluffy, four legged, winged creature flying among the gentle butterflies. “What do you think? What do you think?” Dr. Stalk examined the picture for several seconds while his anxious friend scuttled back and forth. “I think,” he said at last, with a bright eye and a wide smile, “that you have photographed ‘Bunnoggy’ our adventurous Morphadoodle who has been missing since the day he popped out of the test tube.” Dr. Stalk turned to Zoey and Egg-Burto. “And I think,” he added, “that your evidence is further proof that Bunnoggy is very close by.”

“Our evidence?” they said together. “Absolutely,” replied Dr. Stalk. “Bunnoggy is half bunny and half dog. He’s been roaming the forest for weeks – looking for food – looking for friends. He found rabbit food in your Garden, Zoey and a rabbit friend in your Nibblet, Egg-Burto. And if my logic serves me correctly all we have to do is to follow some paw prints to find his canine companion and fellow cookie cruncher.”

As if on cue a dog barked just east of the giant oak tree. “Sounds like Lizzie,” said Electra. “LIZZIE!!!!” all four Morphadoodles shouted and they bee-lined down the path toward the cleverest dog in the forest. When they arrived they found her and Nibblet curled up against what looked like a fluffy cloud - a cloud with kind eyes, the ears of a rabbit, the tail of a dog and a pair of sky blue wings – Bunnoggy, the missing Morphadoodle. After a morning of chasing fast balls and faster cats, they were sharing a dish of ice cream and a pawful of doggie biscuits whose crumbs looked remarkably familiar.