Invest Acceptance
"Lucy! Lucy! Where are you?"
"I'm right here mommy." Lucy said as she crawled out from a pile of crisp fall colored leaves. She shook like a rattle to get the dirt off her little dome-back. Lucy's family had just moved to this shelter when the days started getting shorter outside.
"Lucy, we have a few families coming in to share our shelter with us."
Lucy came closer to her mother and father and watched as they all started coming in. "One, two, three", she counted to herself. She soon got tired of counting when she reached 50. And they were still coming in! It was getting darker outside and Lucy y started shivering. She went back and buried herself under the leaves but could not get warm.
"Psst!" Lucy thought she heard something. "Psst!" She heard it again. She peeked out from under her leaves and about ten beetles shoved their way in from the cold and were quickly burrowing in for the night. They looked a lot different from her. Some were orange, yellow and many did not have any black spots at all. They were dirty and noisy as they were all making themselves at home. It seemed like only seconds when one of them started snoring. And WHAT was that smell? Did someone just toot?!
"That's it!" thought Lucy. She snatched up a leaf and began storming out, when she felt a little tug on her wing. She turned around and saw the teeniest little ladybird clinging to her. The bug was sooo tiny that Lucy couldn't see any spots. She continued moving forward dragging the little bug behind her. Lucy tried to shake the bug off but, in fact, the motion was putting the little one to sleep. Lucy stopped and using her leaf as a mat, laid right down where she was. She cradled the little bug under her wing, making sure it was warm and finally Lucy fell asleep.
In the middle of the night, Lucy woke up. She was feeling so warm and content for the first time since living in the shelter. She forced one eye open to see that she was sandwiched in with beetles on every side. And the teeny tiny ladybug without the spots? It was nestled under Lucy's chin. Lucy fell back asleep with a smile on her face.
Ask your child:
Why did Lucy want to leave the shelter?
What changed her mind?
In the fall when the weather starts to cool, ladybugs (beetles) seek shelter, typically in protected locations under leaves or behind bark . Thousands of ladybugs can gather in the same place to take advantage of the collective warmth. Dr. Becker, Mercola Healthy Pets, Jun 26, 2015
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