What Are You? UFLI Foundations Lesson 105

Steve had seen every distant cave. He had been up every tall hill. He had been down to the deep sea. He had seen it all. Nothing could surprise him now. Then one day he found the cave with the bright green moss. 'Wow,' Steve whispered. He crept to the edge of a hidden pool. Two little axolotls stared up at him with big, silly grins. 'What are you?' Steve asked. They just kept on smiling at him.

Steve bent down low for a closer look. One axolotl did not swim away. It did not hide. It did not distrust him at all. It climbed right out of the pool. Then it sat at his feet like a wet little dog. Steve had never seen such a thing. 'Well,' Steve said. 'I think you picked me, buddy.' The axolotl just smiled back at him.

Steve took the axolotl all the way home. He held it close in the long, dark tunnels. He walked it over the green hills. He walked it down to his own little pond. 'Your new home, buddy! Go on in!' He knelt down and held the axolotl out over the water. The axolotl looked at the pond. It looked back at Steve. It looked very disappointed.

'Fine, fine, I get it. Too plain. Hold on!' Steve scooped up big handfuls of moss and tossed them on the rocks. He packed it in every little crack. He tucked it behind every stone. He did not miss a single spot. He took a step back, panting, with dirt all over his hands. The axolotl slid into the water, wiggled once, and smiled wide. It was not disappointed now. Steve jumped up high and let out a yell. 'Yes! I knew you would love it!'

That night, Steve could not sleep. He sat up in the dark, distressed. What if his axolotl was lonely? He took his axolotl and raced back to the cave. There, glowing bright and still, was a white axolotl. His axolotl found it first. Its grin got so wide it lit up the dark cave. 'You want that one?' Steve said. 'Say no more.'

Steve took the white axolotl home. The two of them slid into the pond together. They bumped noses and swam in slow, happy loops. They splashed and played a sweet little game. Each axolotl had its own distinct grin, but they swam side by side like best friends. They floated in the sun like two tiny, smiling pancakes. 'I did that,' Steve said. He felt very proud.

Steve held a bucket and scooped up a fish. 'Wait till my friends see this!' he said. 'They are going to flip!' He spun around to show off his find. Right behind him, the axolotl had its head out of the pond. It had a wide, silly grin. 'Stop that!' Steve said with a smile. 'You will distract my friends from my big show!'

Steve never did show his friends. Every time he tried to leave, the axolotls did something new. A splash. A spin. A belly flop so small it made just a tiny ripple. They would disrupt every plan he had. Steve sat down and watched them play instead. 'Fine,' he said. 'You win. This is better than any day I have ever had.' The axolotls smiled. They always smiled. But this time, so did Steve.