>>3354122There once was was a young squirrel named Ricky who lived in a big oak tree in a city park. Ricky was a brown squirrel and lived in the oak tree with all his brown squirrel friends and family. Every day, Ricky would look out from the top of his tree and wonder what kind of squirrels lived in the other trees. The older squirrels warned Ricky that the squirrels in other trees were thieves and liars. They were never to be trusted. Ricky had a rebellious heart and would not form his opinions based on anecdotal evidence.
One night, a red squirrel appeared at the bottom of Ricky's oak tree and woke Ricky and his family. "Oh please help me." said the red squirrel. "I am lost and I have nowhere to go." The elders were quick to turn the red squirrel away, but Ricky scurried down the trunk of his tree and stood firm next to the Red Squirrel. He yelled up at the elder squirrels. "How could you turn him away? Just because he is from another tree? He needs our help!" Affected by Ricky's assuredness and determination, the elders agreed to take in the red squirrel. The red squirrel thanked Ricky for standing up for him. "You won't regret this." He said.
"Tomorrow we can get to know each other and become best friends!" said Ricky to the red squirrel. The red squirrel made a sound that Ricky took for agreement, and the two squirrels curled up to sleep. Later that night, Ricky woke up to the sound of leaves rustling in the oak tree. He looked around. The red squirrel was gone! Ricky surveyed the landscape below and saw a pack of glowing eyes approaching the base of his tree. Cats! Ricky heard a voice from a nearby tree. It was the red squirrel! "I'm sorry." he said. "They were following me, and I couldn't bring them to my tree. They would have eaten my family!" As the cats ascended the tree and began to devour Ricky's friends and family, Ricky reflected on his decisions. His last words were "I really wish I would have trusted my elders."
The End.
