Story Hour
Danny and Nicker Visit the Lake Elf
Written by Gene B. Williams
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Danny went to visit his Grandma again. There were many geese on Lake Edie, more than Danny had ever seen before! Baby geese are called goslings. A daddy goose is called a gander. Usually, a family of geese is the goose, the gander and two or three goslings. Danny and Grandma Edie found a family of thirteen goslings! Wow!
People who live near Lake Edie bring food for the animals that live at the lake. There are the geese, of course. There are also ducks, egrets, red-wing blackbirds …. Also in the water are turtles and muskrats, squirrels in the trees, rabbits in the brush.
Danny loved bringing food for the animals. He loved when the goslings came up so close that he could practically touch those fluffy feathers. If he got too close, the goose or gander would twist their neck into a question mark and HWONK! a warning.
HWONK!
“Get away from our babies.”
HWONK! HWONK!
Danny would step back. He didn’t want to frighten the goslings or the parents.
Nicker would stay back in the cattails. He didn’t want to frighten them, either. More, he didn’t want to get chased again. (Do you remember the last time Nicker went to Lake Edie?) If you’ve ever been chased by a goose, you’ll know what I mean.
One morning, Grandma Edie said, “Danny, I have someone for you to meet.”
Danny was very excited about this. Grandma Edie knew so many interesting people. She also knew many interesting animals. What he didn’t expect was what she said next.
“He’s an elf,” she said. “He lives beneath a tree by another lake not far from here. Would you like to go see?”
I don’t know if you believe in elves or not. Danny … well, he wasn’t so sure. He’d read stories about fairies and elves and other things. Grandpa Gordie had even made him a bridge, the billy goats gruff and an ogre that went under the bridge. Those were carvings, though. Now, Grandma Edie was telling him about a real home, under a real tree.
In the state of Minnesota is a beautiful city called Minneapolis. This is where Grandma Edie lives. It’s called the City of Lakes because there are so many. One of these, of course, is Lake Edie. Another is Lake Harriet. This is where the elf lives. You can find it on a map. A street named Queen Avenue comes up to Lake Harriet Drive, the road that goes around the lake. Near that is a set of concrete steps that go from the road and down to the lake. Near that is a tree. In that tree is the elf.
The elf has a nice yard. It’s not hard to find. And there is a door. Sometimes people leave him notes and letters – and sometimes he even answers. I don’t know if he will answer Danny’s note or not. In our note, we gave him the address (Nicker Stories, 18521 E. Queen Creek Rd., Suite 105 #603, Queen Creek, AZ 85142), and we’ll let you know if he writes.
Meanwhile, you can drop us a letter, or maybe even a drawing.
He wasn’t home that day. What do you think he looks like?
As you just read, Nicker went to Minneapolis again, to visit Lake Edie and also to visit the elf who lives by Lake Harriet. To my great surprise, someone seems to have spotted him there, and even took photographs. Maybe some others of you who live in the Minneapolis area know about it. I bet it was even in the newspapers there. Now you get to see it here.
The picture comes from Lisa who was there on a visit. She has promised to send more.
I also heard that Nicker went to France. He heard about a cotton stand there that also has a duck game. Our friend Pierre will be sending pictures soon, I hope
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