Kendra's Nook
A Children's Book by Benjamin Nelms
In the great green countryside of Mannaville lived a little girl named Kendra. Kendra was a spirited child who liked to chase butterflies and run barefoot in the grass. But more than anything, Kendra liked to climb up the ladder into the attic of her house, lean against a pile of old soft quilts that her grandmother made, and look out the big window in the cozy corner. From this window, she could see over the great green countryside of Mannaville.
-----
Kendra had a name for her corner window and soft quilts...she called it “Kendra’s Nook.” She would escape alone to her nook just to let her mind wander, or to find animal shapes in the clouds, or sometimes to sing quietly to herself. Her father found a big wooden plank outside the barn, and he hung it above the corner window in the attic. On the plank he painted, in big orange letters: “Kendra’s Nook.”
It was her favorite place in the whole world.
-----
On clear days and nights, Kendra would look way beyond the great green countryside of Mannaville and see on the western horizon the big bright skyline of Busy City . She would daydream about what life was like in Busy City , with all the very important people and the big bright lights. You see, even though Kendra loved to chase butterflies and run barefoot in the grass, she would sometimes get lonely. There weren’t any other children like her who lived nearby in the great green countryside of Mannaville.
-----
One morning, as Kendra sat in her nook and daydreamed of going off to Busy City to make new friends, a little brown bird flew into the open window.
“Good morning,” said Kendra, “how are you, little brown bird?”
“Well,” the little brown bird answered, “I’m free to fly high in the sky and rest in the trees, so I am very happy!”
Kendra smiled, and spoke back, “My name is Kendra. What’s your name?”
“My name is Hope,” chirped the little brown bird.
“You’re nice, Hope. Will you be my friend?” asked Kendra.
“Of course! And you should also meet my friend the Tall Tree…” Hope sang as she turned and flew away.
-----
The next day, Kendra climbed up to her nook and looked across the yard at the Tall Tree outside the window.
“Are you Hope’s friend?” she called.
Surprised to be spoken to, and as if waking from a long nap, the Tall Tree answered, “What? Why yes, I am a friend of Hope. I like to let Hope rest in my branches. Who are you?”
“I’m Kendra. As long as I can remember, I have climbed your branches and sat under the shade of your leaves.”
“Oh yes,” chuckled the Tall Tree, “I know you. I don’t have eyes to see you, but I know the feel of your hands and feet on my bark. I have known you your whole life.”
“Does that mean you are my friend?” Kendra inquired.
“Of course!” bellowed the Tall Tree, and then he whispered through his outstretched branches, “I always have been.”
-----
The next morning, Hope again flew into the window of Kendra’s Nook.
“Good morning, Hope” said Kendra, “how are you?”
“Well,” Hope answered, “I’m free to fly high in the sky and rest in the trees, so I am very happy! Did you meet my friend the Tall Tree?” asked Hope.
“Yes, I guess I have known him my whole life,” answered Kendra. Then she asked Hope, “Have you ever flown to Busy City ? If you have, I would just love for you to tell me about the very important people and the big bright lights.”
“No, no,” chirped Hope, “I am just a little brown bird, neither graceful like the goose nor fast like the falcon. I cannot fly that far. But you should meet my friend the West Wind. He has been there many times…” Hope sang as she turned and flew away.
-----
The next evening, Kendra fell asleep in her nook, waiting for Hope to return. A strong West Wind blew by and tickled Kendra’s hair across her face. She woke up.
“Are you Hope’s friend?” Kendra asked the West Wind.
“Yes, I am a friend of Hope,” whistled the West Wind. “I like to carry Hope high in the sky. Who are you?”
“I’m Kendra. West Wind, have you been to Busy City ? If you have, I would just love for you to tell me about the very important people and the big bright lights.”
“Yes, I have been to Busy City , many times. But I very much prefer being here in the great green countryside of Mannaville. Here, I can make songs in the leaves of the Tall Tree and bring the music to the animals of the forest.”
“Really? I sometimes like to sing, but only to myself,” Kendra said shyly.
“Oh yes,” swirled the West Wind, “I have heard you sing, and I have many times carried your music to the animals of the forest.”
“Does that mean you are my friend?” Kendra wondered.
“Of course!” blew the West Wind, and then he whispered through the window, “I always have been.”
-----
The next morning, Hope again flew into the window of Kendra’s Nook.
“Good morning, Hope” said Kendra, “how are you?”
“Well,” Hope answered, “I’m free to fly high in the sky and rest in the trees, so I am very happy! Did you meet my friend the West Wind?” asked Hope.
“Yes, he has heard me sing,” answered Kendra. “The West Wind very much likes it here in the great green countryside of Mannaville, much more than in Busy City .”
“The wind is very wise,” Hope replied.
“But I think that Busy City must be much more exciting than here,” Kendra announced, “For it has so many very important people and big bright lights.”
“Maybe,” chirped Hope, “But you should meet my friend, the Lively Lily. She is very exciting, too…” Hope sang as she turned and flew away.
-----
For weeks, Kendra waited in her nook for Hope to return. She began to get lonely again, even with the West Wind and the Tall Tree to keep her company. Soon, spring came, and flowers grew and painted colors across the great green countryside of Mannaville. Outside Kendra’s nook, in the garden below the Tall Tree, a magnificent white flower, a Lively Lily, sprang forth from the ground.
“Are you Hope’s friend?” Kendra asked the Lively Lily.
“Yes, I am a friend of Hope,” laughed the Lively Lily. “I like to dance when Hope flies above me. Who are you?”
“I’m Kendra.” Kendra admired the beautiful flower, and said, “Lively Lily, you are so beautiful, with your dancing petals and your smile reaching to the sky. What did you have to do to become so exciting?”
“Oh, my dear girl, my dear girl,” sang the Lively Lily, “I neither toil nor spin, nor do I worry. I just touch the sky and dance! I have watched you dance, too, you know, barefoot in the grass. What could be more exciting than that?”
“Does that mean you are my friend?” Kendra asked the Lively Lily, and she couldn’t help but dance and twirl up in her nook as she asked.
“Do re me fa so la tee…Of course!” sang the Lively Lily in a boisterous voice, and then she reached up with her petals and shouted to the window, “I always have been!”
-----
The next morning, Hope finally returned and flew into the window of Kendra’s Nook.
“Good morning, Hope” said Kendra, “how are you?”
“Well,” Hope answered, “I’m free to fly high in the sky and rest in the trees, so I am very happy! Did you meet my friend the Lively Lily?” asked Hope.
“Yes, she is so beautiful,” answered Kendra. “She has such magnificent clothes and dances so freely! I wish I could be as beautiful as she.”
“Beauty is more than what you wear and how you look,” Hope chirped back. “You should meet my friend, the Rolling Rain. He is beautiful far beyond the eye can see…” Hope sang as she turned and flew away.
-----
Three nights later, Kendra again fell asleep in her nook. A Rolling Rain moved over the great green countryside of Mannaville, and some big fat raindrops splashed through the open window onto Kendra’s arm. She woke up.
“Are you Hope’s friend?” Kendra asked the Rolling Rain.
“Yes, I am a friend of Hope,” rumbled the Rolling Rain. “I like to fill the puddles where Hope can splash around and take a bath. Who are you?”
“I’m Kendra. Rolling Rain, Hope said that you are beautiful far beyond the eye can see. What did she mean?”
“Oh, my child, I cannot call myself beautiful,” said the Rolling Rain. “I am not beautiful unless you feel beauty while I am around. Close your eyes for a moment…”
-----
Kendra closed her eyes just as the Rolling Rain had asked. Just then, the thunder snored in the background and Kendra felt cozy in her grandmother’s soft quilts.
“Now,” continued the Rolling Rain, “Reach out your hand.”
Kendra reached out her hand, and just then, big fat raindrops splashed in the palm of her hand and made her laugh.
“Now,” finished the Rolling Rain, “Touch your lips with your hand.”
Kendra took her rain-soaked hand and gently touched her lips. The big fat raindrops had a sweet warm taste, like honeysuckle in the dew of the dawn. At that moment, Kendra realized how beautiful the Rolling Rain really was! And she discovered all this with her eyes closed. For some reason, Kendra started to cry.
“Oh Rolling Rain, does this mean you are my friend?” Kendra asked sweetly.
“Of course,” whispered the Rolling Rain. “As surely as there are teardrops in your eyes, I have always been your friend.”
-----
All summer long, Kendra talked to her new friends the Tall Tree, the West Wind, the Lively Lily, and the Rolling Rain. And whenever Kendra began to get lonely, come morning, Hope would fly in through the window of Kendra’s Nook to introduce her to another new friend.
But at the end of the summer, Kendra’s parents decided to move to the Busy City . When Kendra heard this, she jumped for joy. Finally, she would get to see it all for herself. She would meet so many very important people, and she would walk around under the big bright lights. The night before they moved, Kendra was so excited she could hardly sleep. She climbed up into the attic to sit in her nook one last time. There, she finally fell asleep.
-----
When morning came on Kendra’s last day in Mannaville, a little brown bird flew into the open window. It was Hope.
“I will be leaving, Hope,” Kendra told her, “I finally get to go beyond the great green countryside of Mannaville, and I finally get to see the Busy City !”
“I am sad. I will miss you,” sung Hope with a low whistle. “So will the Tall Tree, the West Wind, the Lively Lily, and the Rolling Rain, I suppose.”
“Can we still be friends, even if we cannot see each other?” Kendra asked. She was suddenly sad to be in her nook for the last time.
“Of course!” answered Hope. “As long as you remember us, we will always be your friends…” Hope sang as she turned and flew away.
-----
So Kendra moved off to Busy City .
There, she grew up. And she became a good grown-up, too. In fact, she mastered the art of being a good grown-up…she learned to walk fast, talk in a serious tone, and dress very proper. She became one of those very important people of Busy City under the big bright lights.
And the big bright lights were so bright that she spent most of the time squinting and covering her eyes.
-----
The years passed by in Busy City , and Kendra continued to be a good grown-up.
Kendra eventually got so busy that she forgot about the great green countryside of Mannaville, about her friends, and about her nook in the attic by the window and the soft quilts. And Kendra, the good grown-up, the very important person, was very, very lonely.
-----
One day, as Kendra was walking very fast in her very proper clothes on the way to her very important job, the clouds opened up and it began to rain. It rained so hard that the big bright lights were dimmed. It rained so hard that all the very important people ran inside so that they wouldn’t get wet.
Kendra ran, too, but as she reached to the door to go inside, thunder snored in the distance and big fat raindrops splashed in the palm of her hand. For some reason, she began to laugh. She brought her hand to her lips and tasted the raindrops. They were sweet and warm. Kendra couldn’t help but think that she had tasted this rain before.
-----
As Kendra waited inside for the rain to stop, a small boy ran inside to wait with her. He was a delivery boy, and he was delivering flowers. As the two of them waited together, Kendra saw something moving in the boy’s cart. When she looked closer, she saw a magnificent white flower twirling and dancing in the cart. Kendra couldn’t help but think that she had seen this flower before.
-----
The rain finally rolled through town, and Kendra walked outside. She was in a hurry, for she was late to work, and she had many very important things to do. Suddenly, a strong wind blew from the west. The wind was so strong that all the very important people again ran inside to avoid getting their hair messed up or losing all of their very important papers.
This time, Kendra stayed outside. The wind blew through a small bush planted near the sidewalk and it sounded like music. Kendra couldn’t help but think that she had heard this wind before.
-----
The wind grabbed some of Kendra’s very important papers and blew them down the street. She ran after to catch them. She ran down the sidewalk, past the big bright lights, and towards the eastern exit of Busy City . She kept running, and chasing, and running. She ran so fast that her shoes fell off, but she kept running barefoot. The concrete under her feet changed to green grass, and she kept running.
-----
Finally, the wind calmed down, and Kendra caught up to her very important papers. They had blown all the way beyond the very eastern exit of the city, into a green countryside, where they finally stopped under a tree. Kendra was very tired from running, so she leaned her hand against the tree to rest. Kendra couldn’t help but think that she had felt this tree before.
-----
Under the tree, Kendra looked up and saw a ramshackle house. The windows were broken, the paint was chipped, and the lawn was overgrown with long weeds. A knot welled up in Kendra’s throat as she finally realized where she was.
A flood of childhood memories came back. Her hand was resting on the Tall Tree. Her papers had been blown by the West Wind. The dancing flower had been a Lively Lily. And what started it all had been the Rolling Rain. Kendra ran inside the old house and climbed up into the attic.
-----
An old wooden plank lay in the corner. Kendra turned it over. In faded orange letters were the words “Kendra’s Nook.” The attic was empty, and the corner window was covered with cobwebs. Kendra took her proper grown-up jacket off and cleaned off all the cobwebs, and then she opened the window.
From the open window, she could again see the great green countryside of Mannaville. It was still green, and it was still great.
-----
From her old nook, Kendra remembered being a young girl and chasing butterflies and running barefoot in the grass. She remembered first meeting the Tall Tree, the West Wind, the Lively Lily, and the Rolling Rain. And then Kendra finally remembered the most important thing of all…she remembered Hope. Kendra became a little sad then, because she knew that it was a very long time ago that she had known Hope. And she knew that little brown birds simply do not stay in the world a very long time.
-----
Kendra felt at home, so she decided to stay in her old house. She cleaned it up so that it wasn’t ramshackle anymore. She gave it a new coat of paint. She tidied up the lawn and planted a new garden. She even found her grandmother’s old soft quilts, and she put them up in the attic near the corner window in the cozy corner. Hung above the corner window was an old wooden plank painted again in fresh big orange letters: “Kendra’s Nook.”
-----
Years passed, and Kendra was never lonely again. She realized that all around her were so many friends for life – the trees, the winds, the flowers, and the rain. She learned to recognize friends everywhere she looked. Kendra slowly grew old, too old to chase butterflies and run barefoot in the grass. But she never grew too old to climb up to the attic to sit in her nook to look over the great green countryside of Mannaville.
It was once again her favorite place in the whole world.
-----
One morning, when Kendra was very, very old, a little brown bird flew into the open window of Kendra’s Nook. Kendra’s heart leapt with joy!
“Good morning,” said Kendra, “how are you, little brown bird?”
“Well,” the little brown bird answered, “I’m free to fly high in the sky and rest in the trees, so I am very happy!”
Kendra smiled a huge smile, and spoke back, “My name is Kendra. Are you Hope?”
“No,” chirped the little brown bird, “But Hope was my great-great-great-great-grandmother. She would tell stories about this nook and a little girl who was her friend. In my family, this story was passed down from generation to generation. We were supposed to keep an eye out, in case the little girl ever returned.”
-----
“You’re nice, little brown bird,” said Kendra. “Will you be my new friend?”
“Of course,” whispered the little brown bird. “I have always been.”
“What’s your name?” asked Kendra.
“My name…” answered the little brown bird, “My name is Grace.”
This time, the little brown bird did not turn to fly away. Instead, she and Kendra snuggled together in the cozy nook and went to sleep.
And it was the best place in the world.
-----
The End