Matthew Goering
Fiction Writing Workshop

     
     Little Gabriel raced down the creek bed in tattered overalls, zigzagging in and out of the crisp, slow moving water with wonderful shouts of joy and amazement.  It was his most favorite place to be in the whole world, except possibly Grandma's house.  But at Grandma's you weren't allowed to get very dirty, so , yes, he supposed the creek was maybe a little bit better. He stopped quickly and itched his freckled nose while he crouched over a water skipper and thought about how neat it would be to glide smooth across the still surface, leaving a tiny wake to spread out behind him.
     "Being a water skipper would be a good job." he thought out loud, "Maybe I'll be a water skipper when I grow up."
     Gabriel's wonderings were pleasantly interrupted by the crashing noise of Captain Tom, Gabe's friend, his guardian, his puppy dog, loping down the middle of the stream looking somewhat like a smaller than average bear with a big, floppy tongue.
     "Captain Tom!"  yelled Gabriel, and he grabbed his stuffed animal rabbit the Bunny Carrot by the ears and jumped at the huge Newfoundland dog, grabbing him around the neck and letting out a cry of delight as Captain Tom went easily over onto his side into the water, throwing the wrestling match to his little friend and master much in the same way fathers and mothers purposefully lose games of checkers and Candyland simply to see the pride on their children's faces
     The two soaked playmates stood up and Gabriel climbed up onto Captain Tom's back, as was their custom after rough housing, gave him an enormous hug, and upon laying his head down on the dog's broad neck, clutching Bunny Carrot in one arm, Gabe whispered, "I love you, Captain Tom."  into the Newfoundland's ear.  
     Little Gabe rested there for a while, playing with Captain Tom's thick hair as the dog lumbered down along the creek bed in the peaceful spring sunshine.  There wasn't a care in the world between the two, just as it should be with children and dogs.
     After a time Little Gabriel finally sat up on his friend's back, riding his puppy much like a horse with Bunny Carrot propped up between his legs, and listened to the wind for a moment.
     "I think, Captain Tom," he said, "that we should go and check out the frog spot." Captain Tom turned his head up and back a bit, as if wanting more of an explanation.  "Last night, right after bedtime, before I fell asleep, I'm pretty sure I heard quite a few frogs singing to each other, and since the only frogs I know of live around the frog spot . . ."  He sneezed, hopped off Captain Tom's back and began to run upstream past the beaver dam toward the frog pond just beyond.  Captain Tom followed like a shadow, for while many considered him to simply be a big stupid fellow, he was in fact tremendously intelligent and twice as loyal.  Truth be told, he watched over Little Gabriel as diligently as he would have his own pups, ready with a sloppy kiss on the face or a reassuring nudge whenever his little friend needed it.  The Bunny Carrot just swung by the ears from Gabriel's hand, simply along for the ride, as always.
     And so they walked for a bit, with little Gabriel stopping now and then to skip a stone and ask Bunny Carrot for directions.  Once Gabriel asked Carrot if he wouldn't mind drawing a map for him in the mud for he was having a little trouble remembering exactly where the frog spot was.  He even placed a stick in Bunny Carrot's hand, but the one eyed, mud splattered bunny just sat there silently and stared at a tree.  
     Gabe gave the tattered rabbit  a couple pats on the back.  "It's O.K. Bunny Carrot, I'm sure we'll find it anyhow."  He turned to Captain Tom and whispered, "Carrot can be kind of a quiet rabbit sometimes, but you know that.  You're his friend too."  Then he took a step back, his hands on his hips, and surveyed the landscape.
     "Tell me, Captain Tom, I'm remembering the frog spot is just over that rock over there. Does that look right to you?"  The dog looked in the direction Gabriel pointed and let out a deep, affirmative bark.  "Good, then it must be!" replied Gabriel, "Come on!  Let's go see if there are any frogs out.  Maybe they will let us play with them today!"  He started off, then turned to Captain Tom, "I like it mostest when they jump!"  And the three, Gabe towing Bunny Carrot, followed by Captain Tom, climbed the rock to the other side and stumbled upon the much desired frog spot.
     It must be said that Gabriel's frog spot was no ordinary place for him.  It wasn't simply a muddy pond to play in as so many frog spots tend to be.  Gabriel's frog spot was his wildest place of imagination.  You see, Gabriel's heroes weren't basketball stars or football players, not in the least.  Gabriel loved books, especially long ones, and Gabriel's heroes were most often found in the pages within.  They were young boys named Peter Pan and called Christopher Robin, and, even though he didn't generally like girls much at all, Gabriel held a little girl named Alice, that his mother had read to him about, in fairly high esteem as well.  Gabriel's heroes lived in whimsical places called Never-Neverland and the Hundred Acre Wood.  Gabriel chose to live at the Frog Spot.  
     And so it was that upon his arrival at the frog spot Gabriel quickly began turning over a few rocks and peeking under a log or two, keeping his ears open for a ribbit and his eyes peeled for a dash of green.  Unfortunately is was all without success, so he finally decided he would have to get wet and dirty and check the water for the frogs he'd heard the night before.  He waded into the mud at the pond's edge while Captain Tom sat with Bunny Carrot up on a patch of grass.  Gabriel turned to the dog and held a finger up to his lips.
     "Shhhhh, Captain Tom, let's be quiet and listen hard for frogs."  He turned towards the water, then turned back, "I'm telling you to be quiet and not Bunny Carrot because Carrot never says anything anyway."  With that Gabe began to take silent steps out into the water, tipping his head this way and that, listening for croaking noises.  He had just looked up again after spending some quality time squishing mud between his toes when he glanced over and to his great surprise saw a man who looked quite a bit like Santa Claus, only older and wearing brilliant and billowing patchwork skirt, sitting on a tree limb across the pond, swinging his bare-feet in the breeze.  
     "Ribbit."  Said the round, old man, with a smile.
     Instantly Captain Tom, who had been taking a tiny nap, leapt onto his feet at the sight of the stranger and was at Gabriel's side with a loud bark and undeniable presence that said to the silly looking old man: "This little guy here is my boy, so treat him kindly or you'll be in trouble with one big puppy."  Gabriel instinctively reached over and grabbed Captain Tom's collar, not at all to hold the dog back, if Captain Tom wanted to go, Captain Tom was going to go, but instead to reassure himself that everything was O.K., a lot like children at the grocery store who hold their mothers' pantlegs and then say hello to everyone who walks by, delighting in the attention they get, yes, but even more so in how brave they are being to talk with strangers.
     The old man hopped to the ground and scratched his arm beneath his colorful shirt.  He smiled at the two in the water a smile that was so kind and so genuine that Gabriel felt Captain Tom ease up on his collar.  The old man grabbed a walking stick leaning against the tree from whence he'd come and, as he came closer towards the pond and sat upon a small boulder, little Gabriel realized how small the old man was.  In Gabe's expert opinion the old man couldn't have been any bigger than a seventh grader.  Bobby Wilson across the street was in the seventh grade and Gabriel thought, tugging on his overalls, that this man with a big white beard couldn't be any taller than Bobby Wilson, no way.  "Bobby might even be an inch taller." he told Captain Tom.
     No sooner had Gabriel come to such a conclusion than the slightly chubby old fellow waved to him and said,
     "Boy, that's quite a dog you've got there, little man!"
     Now, Gabriel had been taught very well by his mother to never talk to strangers, but he could tell, as little boys can with their dogs, that Captain Tom wasn't wary of the little old man at all any longer, and if Captain Tom found nothing about the tiny fellow in a skirt to worry about, neither would Gabriel.
     "Yes, he is big," replied Gabe matter of factly, "He's a Newfoundland.  They're big dogs."  He looked at Captain Tom, then added, "His name is Captain Tom, he's much bigger than me."
     The old man laughed at Gabriel's observation, twirled a piece of his skirt around his finger, and let it unravel, "Is he your puppy dog?"
     "Yes, sir, he is.  I guess.  I mean, he is my dog, but he's also my friend and I guess he's also kind of my babysitter as well."  And indeed Captain Tom was all of these.  Ms. Lafrantz, little Gabriel's mother, often said to people who asked her how she could possibly stand to have such a big dog in her tiny little house, "Oh, I don't know what I'd do without Captain Tom to help out with little Gabriel.  I've got to work, you know, single mother and all that.  Why without Captain Tom I suppose I'd have to send my little baby to a day care after school or something of that sort.  That simply wouldn't do, not in my book, leaving him with strangers all day.  And Gabriel would hate it too, I'm certain.  He likes to explore too much and has far too wild an imagination to be cooped up in a place like that."  Then she would lean forward and tap the inquisitor on the knee.  "Don't you tell my mother I said this, O.K.?  But I think I very often feel much more at ease when I know Gabriel's out with Captain Tom getting into trouble than when I drop him off at Mom's."  This would usually be followed by a surprised "No!  Really?" or "You don't say?"  and Ms. Lafrantz holding up her hand and replying, "God's honest truth.  I wouldn't get rid of Captain Tom for anything in the world!"
     The old man leaned over on his walking stick, then pointed out, "He looks like a great babysitter to me!"
     "Oh, he is sir, he is.  My mom has to work all day, so I spend most of my days with Captain Tom.  It's been that way long as I can remember.  Since Daddy left anyway.  But, don't feel bad for me, Mom says Daddy was a bum anyway."
     The old man let out a surprised laugh that made Gabriel giggle as well.  Gabe looked at the old man for a moment, then asked "Who are you?"
     "I thought you'd never ask, sir!" he replied and then he jumped up off the boulder, did a turn so his skirt billowed up around him, and leapt down onto the bank of the pond with his walking stick and wrote into the mud where Gabriel could see: P-A-P-A J-O-J-O.
     Gabriel peered at the letters in the soft earth for a moment and scratched his head.  Then, looking over at the old man with a mischievous grin, said, "I don't read so good yet.  I'm one of the last ones in my class who can't, but Mom says it just takes some kids longer than others so I shouldn't worry about it."
     "Your mother," smiled the old man, "is a very wise woman.  And, since you can't read it so well, I will help you to."  He pointed at the first letter with his stick and with great patience, helped Gabriel sound it out.
     "Pa Pa Jo Jo."  They together slowly.
     "Your name's Papa JoJo?"  Asked Gabriel.
     "That is what you may call me young man."
     "Oh.  Mine's Gabriel.  It's nice to meet you Mr. JoJo."
     "Please, call me Papa JoJo, Gabriel.  And, the pleasure is all mine."  He reached out and the two shook hands, looking each other over.
     "Did you know, Papa JoJo, that you are wearing a skirt?" asked Gabriel.
     "Oh my, yes!"  Papa JoJo replied.  He grabbed a handful of his patchwork on either side and spread it out for Gabe and Captain Tom to see.  It was an amazing combination of nearly every color one could imagine in almost every conceivable fabric.  Gabriel's favorite parts were the pieces with sunflowers or irises, they reminded him of his mother, she liked gardening, and a couple with sailboats.  One particular square had a cowboy riding a bucking bull.  Gabe thought he liked that spot best.  He found the skirt delightful, and Captain Tom must have as well, because he barked twice in approval.  "I feel much better in my skirt than pants or a suit." explained Papa JoJo, "Do you like it?"
     Gabriel reached out and touched the cowboy, "I love it!  I just haven't seen an old man in a skirt ever before!"
     "A-ha!  Old only in body, little Gabriel.  I've still got the mind of a child!"  Papa JoJo whirled around and looked at the small pond for a moment. "You know, this one of the best places to find frogs in the whole world?" he asked.
     "Of course I do!" blurted Gabriel, "this is my and Captain Tom's frog spot!  I thought I heard them singing last night but I can't find any anywhere today.  I think it must have been a cricket."  Gabe reached over and scratched Captain Tom behind the ears, coaxing out a low, contented groan.
     "Oh, they're here alright." said Papa JoJo,  "Should I call them out?"
     "Sure!  If you can."
     "If I can!" exclaimed Papa JoJo, "Little Gabriel, you are in for a treat.  Especially if you like frogs.  Now, you must be very quiet and very still while I call them out so don't move and don't make a noise."  Gabriel nodded his head in agreement and with great fascination watched the old man take a couple steps into the pond.  Papa JoJo got about four steps into the water when Captain Tom, who really was trying to be quiet too, sneezed.  Papa JoJo spun around with a stern look on his face, pointed his walking stick at the big dog, and in an instantaneous transformation his frown melted into a jovial smile and he stuck his tongue out at the Newfoundland.  Gabriel giggled.  
     "Now shhhhhhhhh." whispered Papa JoJo, and, holding his skirt up above his knees, he waded deeper into the pond so very slowly that at first Gabriel didn't notice him moving at all. Then Papa JoJo leaned down low, with the tip of his beard skimming the water, and began to say, very quietly at first, "Ribbit, ribbit, ribbit."
     Little Gabriel watched in amazment and began searching everywhere for signs of frogs. Papa JoJo began to get louder, "Ribbit, ribbit, ribbit," as he walked deeper into the shallow.  But nothing happened.  Captain Tom looked puzzledly over at Gabriel who returned his dog's look with a wary frown.
     "It seems to me, Captain Tom, that just maybe Papa JoJo in a big skirt doesn't really
know what he's doing after all.  I don't see any frogs anywhere.  Do you?"  Captain Tom just plopped his rear end down in the cool mud in response.  "Good." said Gabriel, "I thought maybe I just wasn't looking hard enough, like momma always says."
     "Papa JoJo!"  He called out quietly, "Maybe it was just a cricket I heard last night."
     But no sooner had Gabe uttered the words when Papa JoJo turned around to them, and with that same intoxicating smile upon his face, he said, "Mr. Gabriel, Captain Tom, doubting Thomases . . ."  Gabriel thought he definitely saw a twinkle in the old man's eye; a twinkle that reminded Gabriel very much of the star in the sky where he sent his wishes when they were very important.
     "Who are you, Papa JoJo?" he asked quietly.
      Papa JoJo smiled secretly at him, bowed a long sweeping bow that got his beard all wet, held his arms out and, instead of answering Gabe's question, whispered, "Frogs!" Simultaneously hundreds of the little creek frogs began jumping out of the brush and woods and water over to the bank next to the old man.  Gabriel completely forgot about everything, slapped a hand over his mouth in astonishment and then leaned over with his mouth wide open and his hands resting on his knees.
     "Why, Captain Tom!" he gasped, "Have you ever seen so many frogs in all your life?  I think I've counted maybe a billion already!"  
     Papa JoJo clamped his hands upon his hips in triumph and walked very proudly over to Gabriel.  "What do you think?"  Little Gabriel was so excited he just almost didn't know what to do with himself so he gave Papa JoJo a tremendous hug that almost knocked the old man over backwards, and said, "Wonderful, Papa JoJo, Wonderful!  Frogs are my favorite animal in the whole world, except for Captain Tom and the Bunny Carrot, of course!"  Little Gabriel then, not knowing how else to react, looked exactly like his mother, Ms. Lafrantz, when she was trying to calm down as he stood his little body up as tall and straight as he could make it, placed a palm over his heart, and let out about as big of a sigh as his tiny lungs could muster.
     "Can we play with them?" he asked.
     "Oh, by all means, yes, little Gabriel!  That is why I called them out here.  Let's the three of us run over and you can be the Frog King and I will be your wizard and Captain Tom can be your horse!  And we can sail to Turtle Island and maybe, if we're lucky, even talk with the moon! How does that sound to you?"
     "I would like that all very much, Papa JoJo!" smiled Gabriel, "But I have one question to ask before we play."
     "What would that be?"
     "Can we make it four?  Or is that too many?"
     Papa JoJo looked quizzically at Gabriel, a bit confused, "Four what?"
     "Four players, silly!" said Gabe, raising his arms and then letting fall to his side in a gesture of exasperation.  "I almost forgot," he told Papa JoJo, "about my good friend the Bunny Carrot.  He's sitting over there under the tree.  He doesn't say much, but he's still a lot of fun and I would feel bad if I didn't include him.  Mom says I should always let everybody play who wants to, and I have the feeling Carrot wants."
     "Well, that sounds great to me!" exclaimed Papa JoJo, eyeing the Bunny Carrot up on the bank, "Pretending is almost always more fun with more pretenders.  So, in that case, little Gabe, how would you feel about five?"
     "Five?"
     "Yes, five.  I came here to the creek this time with my friend from Poppycock forest,
Chicken Claire.  She went to look for worms, but she should be back any moment and she loves to pretend too."
     "A chicken!?" said Gabriel, "I have never played with a chicken before!" and as if she had been listening to the two talk about her, a small, white hen came clucking out of the trees to stand next to Papa JoJo.
     "Chicken Claire," said Papa JoJo, "I would like you to meet my new friend, Gabriel."
     Chicken Claire let out a loud "BAKAW!"
     "It's very nice to meet you too, Chicken Claire." said Gabriel.  His glance returned to Papa JoJo. "You know, I've never seen a big person who likes to play Frog King and sail to Turtle Island before."
     Papa JoJo leaned over so his nose almost touched little Gabriel's and so his beard tickled the little boy's chin. "Remember, little Gabriel," he said, "that I am not your average grown-up. In fact I'm not grown up at all.  So what do you say?  Should we play?"
     "I get to be the Frog King?" asked Gabriel with a smile of great anticipation.  He felt very much like the Christmas before when he had seen Mrs. Lafrantz bring his new red bike into the house late at night but had still had begged his mom to tell him what the big present in the corner was.  The fun, you see, was in already knowing but acting as if you didn't.  
     "You can be anything you wish to be.  Anything." said Papa JoJo, "That is what pretending is all about."
     So Little Gabriel ran over and grabbed the Bunny Carrot by a paw and he, Papa JoJo, Captain Tom, and Chicken Claire, made their way in and out of the frogs, being very careful not to step on any of them, all the while playing Frog King with an enthusiasm the frog spot has not seen before and very doubtfully since. They all had the most wonderful time.
     Gabriel was the Frog King himself, riding around upon his trusty steed Captain Tom, shouting jumping orders out to his subjects with great gusto as his wizard, Papa JoJo, zapped this and that, stirred up strange creek water concoctions in sandy holes, and occasionally yelled "Long live the King!" to Gabriel's utter delight.  The Bunny Carrot did a wonderful job as the Captain of the S.S. Blarneypoop, sailing the King and friends over the hot lava ocean with great precision to Turtle Island where, after meeting Princess Claire, they had a wonderful banquet of mud pies and giant squid and spent a time in the jungle catching tigers in elaborate traps and pits for their whiskers, which, when planted in the right spot along the water's edge, quickly grew into the tallest, most brilliantly striped trees in the entire world.  And, yes, they did indeed talk with the moon near the end, but Gabriel was getting tired, so they had to cut it all short and finally decided to head back home and get some rest.  
     There is, though, a little something extra worth noting about the utter fantasmical quality of this particular rendition of the Frog King pretending, and it happened just as the S.S. Blarneypoop docked at the pier leading up to Chicken Claire's beautiful pink castle.  
     "What a great trip!" Gabriel had exclaimed, hopping off the boat, which was really just a large and funny shaped fallen tree lying half over the water.  He hugged the Bunny Carrot and said, "Bunny Carrot!  You really are a wonderful boat driver!  I don't know how we'd have made it across the hot lava ocean without you!"
     Papa JoJo shook his head in agreement, walked over and shook the Bunny Carrot's hand. "It's a pleasure sailing with you, sir.  Really it is."  Then he tipped an imaginary hat to Gabriel's furry little friend.
     Their praises were interrupted by the loud sound of a trumpet blare and they all turned to see Chicken Claire, dressed in a flowing red gown, approaching them surrounded by frogs.  Papa JoJo suggested it would be nice of them to meet the princess halfway to save her the walk, and so Gabriel led the procession out to the point where the two dignitaries met.  
     Princess and King looked each other for a short moment and then Chicken Claire held out her wing to Gabriel, palm down, wrist up, and smiled at the Frog King as she waited for the ritual kiss on the back of the hand that all fair maidens are privy to when it comes to greetings. Gabriel, fully enjoying himself, though a little wary of kissing in general due to the fact that he was very conscious of cooties and how they spread, reluctantly obliged and said, "Thank you for having us here on Turtle Island, Princess Claire."  Then he and all his subjects, including his wizard, horse, seaboat captain, and entourage of tiny frogs, bowed admiringly to their gracious host.  
     That is when it happened, for the Princess Chicken Claire curtseyed back at them, took Gabriel's hand and said in a very soft dignified voice, "Please, Mr. Frog King, I would be very happy if you would just call me Claire.  Princess sounds so uppity.  I much prefer the other."
     Gabriel skipped a breath, heard his heart beat speed up in his ears, and stared blankly at the Princess in red, the ruler of Turtle Island, the Chicken Claire.  He was full of astonishment and surprise.  She had talked!  And on her own entirely!  Gabriel had not imagined any of it and this is what scared him so for the moment.  He'd had conversations before with frogs, trees, rocks, sticks, and, of course, Captain Tom and the Bunny Carrot, in fact he had them quite regularly.  But they never, ever, talked back unless his wild imagination suddenly willed them to. Gabriel looked at Captain Tom and then to the Bunny Carrot.  She couldn't talk before, at the frog spot.  No, he was sure of it.  Chicken Claire was just a chicken, just like Captain Tom was a dog and the Bunny Carrot was a furry stuffed rabbit; and, just like his two long-time playmates, Chicken Claire was not of the talking sort, no matter what imaginary land they visited.  All Chickens said was "cluck, cluck, cluck," and the occasional "BAKAW!"  They certainly didn't say things like "Please, call me Claire.  Princess sounds terribly snooty."  
     Gabriel looked back at Papa JoJo, who stood there with a beaming smile upon his rosy face.  "She . . ."  Papa JoJo didn't let him finish.
     "I know, Gabriel."
     Gabriel looked back at Chicken Claire, then back to Papa JoJo, "But she didn't before. And I didn't pretend it!  Did you?"
     "No, I didn't either.  And you're absolutely right, she didn't talk before.  Not at the frog spot anyhow.  You see, the frog spot is in the real world, where chickens don't talk, stuffed animal rabbits don't pilot schooners, and little old men don't climb out of little caves from far away magical forests.  But this, little Gabriel," Papa JoJo held out his arms, "is a land of make believe of the most incredible sort; a land where almost anything is possible.  Normal rules, Gabriel, do not apply.  Chicken Claire knows this as well as I do.  So here she talks whenever and whatever she pleases.  Do you understand?"
     Gabriel look amazedly at Papa JoJo and then at Chicken Claire, who batted her eyes in his direction.  "This isn't a normal pretend, is it Papa JoJo?" he declared.
     "No, Gabriel." answered Papa JoJo.  "My pretendings are never normal pretendings. They are much, much more."  He smiled and then looked at Princess Claire a look one often gives to and old, dear friend.  A look that really is a thought; and a thought that, because the two know and understand each other so well, is immediately understood.  Chicken Claire smiled at Papa JoJo, nodded, and tugged on Gabriel's hand.
     "Enough small talk, gentlemen!" she exclaimed, "I have an incredible feast sitting inside, squid and mudpies galore!  My cooks and I have been working at it all day and it just simply wouldn't do if it were cold by the time we sat down to eat.  Shall we?"
     Gabriel stood hesitantly for a moment and then looked back at Papa JoJo who encouraged him onward with a little wave.  "Go on, Gabriel.  Go on."  Gabriel then grabbed Captain Tom's collar very deliberately and turned to the princess.  "If you don't mind Princess, um, Claire, I would very much like to bring my horse with me, it makes me feel better if he's around."  He stopped and thought for a moment, then added, "Even at meals."
     "That would be grand." replied the Chicken Claire and before one could say Rumplestiltsken, Gabriel was swept back into his role as the Frog King in a flurry of excitement and wonder.  If any worries for Gabriel remained no one noticed, least of all Gabe himself, who was soon back to pretending anew and marching to and fro as the honourable Frog King, kind and gentle ruler of the frog spot, and guest of the now talking Princess Chicken Claire.  
     To put it all very simply and plain, it was a pretending of the most incredible sort; a pretending that Gabriel was sure to never forget.  Yet, as Gabriel was soon to discover, for his new friend Papa JoJo it was just another wonderful slice of everyday life.
     Upon their arrival back at the frog spot from Turtle Island little Gabriel decided it was time for him to give up his crown and sit in the grass and rest for a while.  He curled up with his head on Captain Tom, hugging the Bunny Carrot, and said to Papa JoJo, who was building a large mud tower on the bank of the pond, "That was a lot of fun, Papa JoJo!  I've never been such a happy Frog King!  Ever!  And I've been the Frog King quite a few times, that's for sure.  Do you think, Papa JoJo, that the moon was mad we left so quickly and didn't talk more?  Me and Bunny Carrot were getting tired and sleepy and worn out."
     Papa JoJo stuck a stick in the top of his tower and tied a leaf on to the top to make a flag before stepping back to look it over.  "Not bad . . ." he said entirely to himself.  Then he turned to Gabriel, "No, no, the moon wasn't upset.  I'm sure she understands.  Besides, she slips away behind the horizon every night whether I'm ready for her to go or not, never asks me how I feel about it.  It'll do her good to get some of her own medicine, if nothing else."
     "Hmmm, alright." answered Gabe.  He lay in the tall grass and watched Captain Tom napping beneath him, laughing at his friend pawing in the air and making strange noises.  He often wondered just what it was Captain Tom dreamed about.  He thought if he were a dog he'd dream of milk bones and no fences, but he couldn't be sure.  For a little child, and for everyone else, dog dreams remain a curious mystery so Gabriel had be content in knowing that Captain Tom's dreams, whatever they were, were rarely bad, and that good dreams or not he was very lucky to have Captain Tom as his puppy.  
     As Gabriel drifted off into thought Papa JoJo leaned on his walking stick at the edge of the pond and skipped a bunch of flat rocks he always carried with him in a pocket upon his skirt. Gabriel watched him curiously and then all of a sudden remembered a question he'd asked earlier that he couldn't remember any answer to.
     "Papa JoJo?"
     "Yes?" said the old man, trying terribly hard to get a stone all the way across the pond to the other side.
     "Who are you?"
     "Why, I'm Papa JoJo.  What a silly question, Gabriel."
     "I mean, Papa JoJo," sighed Gabriel, sitting up and popping a sticky piece of candy he'd just found in his pocket into his mouth, "What do you do?  My Mommy works in an office. Water skippers skip water.  I play with Captain Tom.  What do you do?"
     "I pretend, Gabriel."  Papa JoJo looked whimsically over in Gabriel's direction and let out a little chuckle.
     "You can't just pretend all day, Papa JoJo.  Not even I can do that, and I'm still a kid."
     "Well, I can, little Gabriel, and when you pretend as much as I do there's a lot more to pretending than just normal pretenders know about.  It really takes up most of my time, though I don't notice it."  Papa JoJo looked over at Chicken Claire, who was still strutting around amongst the frogs, undoubtedly having some strange fantasy about falling skies and croaking conventions.  He laughed at his barnyard friend and tugged twice on his beard for no apparent reason.
     "If you pretend all day, Papa JoJo, then where is it that you live?"
     Papa JoJo smiled at the little boy leaning against his dog.  "That, Mr. Frog King, sir, is a grand secret of mine.  But it is a secret I have come here to share with you, at Senor Marquez's urging, of course, so," grinned Papa JoJo, "if you would like to know, I would be very happy to take you with me through the tree roots to the mountaintop overlooking my home: Poppycock Forest." and he tapped Gabriel on the head with his walking stick very lightly in a very loving manner.
     Gabriel eyed him a little suspiciously.  "I don't think there are any mountaintops here, Papa JoJo, I'm sure I'd have seen it if there were."  Gabriel scratched his head, "I haven't heard of any Poppycock Forests either, and those are the types of things I know about."
     "Poppycock Forest, Gabriel," said Papa JoJo, trying hard to be patient, "is not around here.  It is a forest full of imaginations and pretendings that has been around as long as I can remember, and the only way to get there is through the tiny, dirty cave hidden under the tree roots along the far bank of the creek.  Just below the beaver pond and just above the Hooting Tree."
     "There's a cave between the Hooting Tree and the beaver pond!?"  exclaimed little Gabriel, awed by the prospect of a real live cave for him and Captain Tom to explore, "I haven't ever seen any caves down here!"
     "Well, you must look very hard and very close.  But when you find it, and if you choose to go through, you will find the most amazing pretending you will ever find in the whole universe.  I think.  There's the Sunflower Strip and the Butterfly Mile, and there's gobs and gobs of animals and other creatures to play with, just like Chicken Claire, who live all up and over the forest, and who love to pretend as much as you and I do.  There's spaceships, Gabriel, and boats that make the Bunny Carrots look like a tiny canoe, and adventures and explorations, and, Oh Gabriel I need to stop because otherwise I very well might just go on forever.  Senor Marquez, told me just this morning that you would be a good choice to bring back, so here I am.  It's really up to you, but I'd be delighted if you would come over to play.  What do you say?"
     Gabriel stared at the old man in his patchwork skirt and said "Are you telling the truth? Or are you making all this up?"
     "Well, yes I'm telling the truth . . .," said Papa JoJo, sounding a little confused himself, "but yes, I'm making it all up.  I know it's hard to understand, but you will if only you would come with me under the tree roots and see for yourself, little Gabriel.  I think you would have a grand time."
     Little Gabriel just sat there for a moment.  He knew that if he wasn't back for supper in time, Ms. Lafrantz would not be a very happy mother.  He and Captain Tom were late for meatloaf just the week before and Gabriel had lost his legos for two days because of it.  That, he thought, was definitely something to think about.  But the land under the tree roots as Papa JoJo had described it was more than his exploring, dreaming mind could take and so, as would be the case with any little boy or girl who pretended as much as he did, little Gabriel decided that he would at least take a peek through the little dirt cave and see for himself about Poppycock Forest, the home of his new pal, Papa JoJo, Chicken Claire, and places called the Butterfly Mile and the Sunflower Strip.  He looked up at Papa JoJo, wiped his nose on his shirt sleeve, and asked,
     "Can Captain Tom and Bunny Carrot come too?  I would feel much better if they could."
     "I would not have it any other way, Gabriel.  Is that a yes?"
     "Ohhh . . .," Gabriel rolled his eyes, then smiled coyly, trying to hide his excitement, and said, "Yes."  He jumped up with the Bunny Carrot and turned to his dog, waking up in the grass, "Come on, Captain Tom!  We're going to see Poppycock Forest!  Are you ready Papa JoJo?"
     "Whenever you are, little Gabriel." smiled back Papa JoJo.
     Captain Tom stood up on his feet and looked questioningly from Gabriel to Papa JoJo, then back.  "Come on, Captain Tom!" exclaimed Gabriel, who then ran around behind his huge puppy and lunged at Captain Tom's hindquarters with all his strength.  The big Newfoundland barely budged at the efforts of his little pal, but got the point nonetheless, and, thinking to himself that he wasn't sure if going to an imaginary place called Poppycock Forest was really a good idea for him and his boy to be doing, he reluctantly began following Papa JoJo and his excited master over the rock and back down past the Beaver Dam toward the place just above the Hooting Tree where Papa JoJo's mystical cave was supposed to be.
     It took quite a while for them to get there.  They played many games along the way and climbed their fair share of trees, but, thanks mostly to the Chicken Claire's persistent badgering, they finally came up to a dark hidden spot in the bank of the creek awash in tree roots and sand bars where Papa JoJo slowed down and began searching the dirt for what Gabriel presumed was
the cave beneath the tree roots.  Turning to Gabriel suddenly, Papa JoJo stopped next to a particularly big exposed root and planted his walking stick hard into the ground.
     "This is it Gabriel.  If you have any second thoughts, if you'd really rather run home and play with tinker-toys and Lincoln-logs, now is the time to say so.  I've never seen anyone peek out over the mountain above Poppycock forest and decide to turn back.  Never.  And I've been bringing folks here for a long time.  But, if you still want to see, Gabriel . . ." Papa JoJo's voice tapered off without finishing his sentence.  
     "This is it?  The cave is here?"  Gabriel squinted his eyes and stared back and forth at the shadowy bank.  Not a single thought of turning back entered his mind at all so he simply said, "I still don't see any cave Papa JoJo.  Where is it?  Is it there?"  He pointed over at a small hollow poking out obviously from behind a large, leaning cottonwood.
     Papa JoJo grinned a large excited smile, the kind of smile people grin when they know they have something unbelievably wonderful to share with someone else who couldn't possibly have the slightest idea what it is.  Papa JoJo knew he had one of those for Gabe and since he took Gabriel's response from his afore-mentioned question to mean a "yes", he reached out and took Gabriel by the hand and led him over to a spot on the bank Gabriel never would have chosen, even he'd studied the creekside for an entire day.
     "No, Gabriel, that wasn't it.  This is."  Papa JoJo reached out with his walking stick and slipped it through a bundle of tree roots.  Gabriel gasped, hugged the Bunny Carrot in anticipation, and with his other arm, reached out and hung onto Captain Tom's collar very tightly.  Papa JoJo then pulled the roots to the side and Gabriel saw a quiet glimpse of light poking through a hole in deep in the creekbank.  "Go on, Gabriel.  There's the cave.  I'll follow you and Captain Tom in.  Wait for me on the other side, if you will.  I think that would be best."  Gabriel just stared.  He felt Captain Tom shaking just a tad, not much, but it was enough to cause him to think twice about going through for the first time during the whole affair.  Papa JoJo saw the boy's hesistation and pulled the roots back just a bit farther, intensifying the light. "Go on." he whispered, and held out his hand to Gabriel in a very guiding manner which said, without words, "Gabriel, it'll be alright.  Nothing will go wrong.  I'll be there with you the entire way, no matter what happens, so you've got absolutely nothing to worry about."  And that was really all that Gabriel needed.  With one hand he gave Captain Tom a tiny tug on the collar and with the other he reached out to Papa JoJo who helped him up to the mouth of the cave.  He turned to Captain Tom and said, more to himself than the dog, "It'll be O.K. Captain Tom, don't worry." and then crawled through the tree roots into the cave with Captain Tom right on his tail. Gabriel heard Papa JoJo call from the creek side of the tunnel, "Welcome to Poppycock Forest, little Gabriel!" as Gabe crawled towards the light on the other side.  It got brighter and brighter as he crawled onward with Captain Tom hunched over behind him, and then, almost before he realized it, he began to see a brilliant view unfolding before him.  Gabriel took a deep breath, slid quickly to the opening now directly in front of him, and slipped quietly out from beneath a rock to find himself standing atop a towering mountain overlooking the biggest, strangest forest Gabriel had ever seen in books or otherwise.  Captain Tom squeezed out from under the rock behind him and walked over to Gabriel.  The small boy turned to his dog and said quietly through a daze of surprise and amazement, "Look, Captain Tom, look."  Gabriel pointed out over the imaginary land, "Have you ever seen anything like this?  Ever?  Have you  ever seen anything at all, Captain Tom, like the Poppycock Forest?"
     Captain Tom barked out a no.  The pretendending had begun.