My dear little girls and boys! You might be wondering what kind of forest this Sweet Forest is. Well, in this forest, right alongside ordinary gum trees, grow sugar wattles with jelly-bean leaves, flowers where the pollen is sweet jam, doughnut trees... there are too many to list! And the creatures who live here are rather unusual too: they can talk, invent things and, of course, make friends. But let's get to know them properly. So, welcome to the Sweet Forest!
The bunny sisters were famous for their cheerful nature across the whole forest. All these little hoppers ever wanted to do was weave flower crowns and nibble on jelly-bean leaves. They even made up wonderful stories at forest school and would tell them to their friends with bursts of giggles.
One day at recess, while playing in a circle with their friends, one of the sisters noticed that Hedgie was standing all alone, only glancing over at them now and then with a sigh.
Hedgie had moved to the Sweet Forest only recently, so the kids didn't know much about him. He did well at school and always carried a book around. The other kids decided he was a terrible know-it-all and started calling him a show-off behind his back.
Look, look, the show-off is glaring at us! Grumpy, thinks he's smarter than the rest of us!
He's not a show-off at all, ‘ the little possum pointed out, ‘he's a prickly grump!
Yes, yes, yes! ‘ the others chorused. ‘That name suits him much better!
The days went by, and the little ones kept steering clear of the ‘Prickly Grump’. And he never came over to them either, just watched them for long stretches from a distance.
One afternoon, Bella was walking home from school. Her little sister was sick, and Mum was looking after her at home. Bella was humming a cheerful tune under her pink nose when she suddenly heard a sad sniffle. She looked around and saw Hedgie.
Prickly Grump... oh, I mean Hedgie, what's wrong?
Hedgie looked up at her with eyes full of tears.
Why won't you be friends with me?
Us? ‘ Bella was taken aback. ‘But you're the one who never comes over to us. Do you actually want to play with us?
I'm just too shy, ‘ said Hedgie, and covering his face with his little paws, he scurried off.
Bella thought about it. She didn't chase after the hedgehog, and when she got home she asked Mum:
Is it really possible for someone to want to chat with others but not be able to go up first because they feel too shy?
Of course, ‘ laughed Mum. ‘You lot are chatterboxes: you go straight up and start talking. But some people find those first steps really hard! Why do you ask?
Bella told Mum all about the ‘Prickly Grump’ and about meeting the crying hedgehog. Mum just shook her head.
Goodness, I never expected my girls to be handing out nasty nicknames left, right and centre!
Sorry, Mum, ‘ Bella felt terrible.
Don't say sorry to me, say it to Hedgie. He wasn't staring at you because he's a grump or a know-it-all. He didn't know how to start a conversation, because he's a very shy boy!
The next day Hedgie didn't come to school. The teacher said he was feeling unwell. But Bella already knew what they would be doing after class. She told her friends about her talk with Mum, and all the kids felt dreadful about calling the hedgehog a prickly grump.
Hedgie lay in bed thinking: ‘I'm never going back to school, never!’
Mum came into the room:
Sweetheart, you have visitors!
Who could possibly come to see me, Mum, ‘ Hedgie sighed sadly.
We are! ‘ rang out some cheerful voices, and Hedgie looked up in surprise to see his classmates.
Bella stepped forward:
We decided to come and visit you, so please don't be cross with us and get well soon! We're waiting for you, we've still got loads of games to play! And this is for you!
The kids began setting out sweet treats for Hedgie on the table: jelly-bean leaves, berries, little mushroom lollies and plenty of other goodies.
Thanks, ‘ said Hedgie, beaming.
Yes, dear little ones, that's how it goes. We are all different: some of us are very brave, while others, like Hedgie, are afraid to take the first step. It might seem to us that he's cross with us, when in fact he's just shy.
