JPG Story
Ernie and Ralph©
Written for the Red Hook Series
There was once a gecko named Ernie, each day Ernie would
wander the walls of the old house he lived in looking for
bugs and delectable things to eat. His favorite were ants. He
would sit silently for hours on end just waiting for his
dinner to show up then Whap with a swing of his sticky
tongue he would have his meal. At night he would huddle
under the house in the damp crawlspace and peacefully go to
sleep.
This of course was until the owners sold the house and new
owners showed up with a large dog named Ralph. Now
Ralph was no ordinary Dog, oh no. He was very curious,
adventure some and downright ornery. Sort of like Ernie.
Each day Ernie would watch Ralph run around the yard and get
tangled up in his chain until he was set free. On occasion
the owners would take him for a walk in the woods since it
was close to their home. All Ernie cared to do was wait on
his meal and watch from his hiding place.
Eventually one night Ernie decided to get a real close look
at Ralph and see what he was all about. As darkness set in
and the moon shone bright. Ernie left his perch and scooted
over to Ralph’s dog house. By this time Ralph was snoring to
beat the band and did not hear Ernie’s tell-tale squiggle in
the dirt. Ernie approached the entrance to the dog house
which to him looked like a sky scraper only bigger. He
managed to work his way up the side of the house and into
it. Ralph continued snoring peacefully and did not even know
he had a visitor. Ernie took stock of his new neighbor, and
after a loooong look decided he had seen enough especially
since Ralph had the gasses something awful.
Ernie jumped out of the entrance and scooted back to the safety of the crawlspace. There he waited until morning. As the cock crowed Ernie and Ralph got up and started a new day. Only this time Ralph was not on his chain since the owners had forgot to hook him back. RALPH WAS FREE. Before you knew it Ralph was bounding out and over the fence and soon was out of sight.