The Mystery of the Glowing Garden

"Wake up, sleepyhead! Get up! Get out of bed! It's almost noon. Mom's got our favorite breakfast ready and waiting." Miriam kiddingly commands, as she proceeds to shake, rattle, and try to roll her brother out of his late snooze.

Her dark brown eyes, almost surrounded by her same-color straight hair, keep looking for some sign of movement. But a petite body of ten has to work overtime when competing with the body of a BIG brother.

Brent, a brownish black-haired, tall, muscular boy of twelve, hears every word. But his bed feels so deliciously nice and comfy.

"What day is it—Saturday or Sunday?" Her soon-to-be teenage brother half-mumbles his words.

"It's a Friday, No School, Snow Day!"Miriam exclaims, feeling quite confident that announcement would light a fire under him.  "And I'm chompin' at the bit to get out in it!  We can break in our new fast-as-lightning Christmas sled."  Her voice could have lit up a dark black room.

Those ABC’s did the trick.  Or is it a treat?  Trick and treat combined.  It’s a…

                                  No School, Snow Day!

Brent puts one foot, then the other, then the weight of one solid boy body on the floor as he says out loud, "Move, bones."  And they do begin to pick up a little speed when his smeller catches wind of salty country ham, fluffy blueberry pancakes, and baby marshmallows melting on a sea of hot chocolate.   The aroma of his Mom’s prizewinning wake-up food pulls Brent straight to a kitchen chair.

Plop! Still half asleep, he picks up the fork and the rest is history.  Miriam woofs hers down, too.  And as quick as a chicken can lay an egg, Brent and Miriam prepare for the wintry white wonderland awaiting them, fully fueled by their favorite foods and fun-filled frostbitten fantasies.

Their farm, made up of racing horses and chickens, sets up high on a roller coaster-type hill that screams snow sledding—loud and strong!  It’s rather isolated with the closest people living a good ten miles away in a newly constructed suburb of Lexington, Kentucky.

Just six months age, they had left New York to take on this horse farm.  At first, Brent and Miriam fought the extreme city-versus-country change of living.  Not to mention the hardship of leaving old friends.  Pouting, crying, complaining, and outright begging to go back were all used to help them express the death of life in New York.

But as time passes, they grew to really enjoy living on a farm.  Both of them actually looked forward to doing their chores.  Imagine that!  Brent took more to the amazingly strong thoroughbreds while Miriam preferred the clucking chickens.  Finding new school buddies to share this new adventure with just put double strawberry icing on their chocolate chunk cake.  Country life had brought a breath of fresh air to the entire Bingham family.

"Hey, Brent! Help me get this sled down.  Wasn't it advertised as a speed demon?  Well, either it's too heavy, or I'm too weak."

"Sure, Sis. I'm coming.  Hey!  Have you looked out lately?  It's snowing again.  I thought Kentucky didn't get much white stuff.  This kinda reminds me of the truck loads of snow we got in New York.  Rad!  Totally Rad!  Let's make haste and not waste any more time inside!"

At last, out they go to the No School, Snow Day surprise!

               Up                              Up                           Up  

                  and                             and                          and  

                       Down,                        Down,                     Down,

they rocketed over the thrill-packed, feel-your-heart-pounding rolling hills. How fresh and bright! What a delightful sight! They went at it with all their might!

Terribly tired, soaked to the bone, and fully famished, Brent's ready to call it a day.

"Let's make for the farm, Miriam.  I'm all in.  I need heat, food, and rest."

Brent starts to make one final trip up the hill.

"Me, too!  But before we go, could we leave Mother Nature a see-you-later message in her sweet cold stuff.  Pleeease!  Let's make her some angels snoozing in the snow.  And then tomorrow, we could create some cool statues!  How 'bout it?"

Brent knows how his sister loves anything to do with frozen white rain.  Girls!

"Oh alright, but make it fast," he answers back, already doing jumping jacks in the icy stuff to make a quick a couple of quick beings from the heavenly host.

At this moment, out of a tiny corner of his eye, Brent spots an oh-so-slight movement in the nearby woods. Brent spots little 'ole reptile…….Me! Permit me to introduce myself.  My name is Button Boy—hopelessly lost, alone, and dying!

I am a baby rattler who has gotten off course in the dead of winter. Life would have escaped me if it hadn't been for two humans finding me. 

"Hey, Miriam, come here! Shhh! There's something alive over there. Be crazy quiet, "Brent whispers as he gently starts to make his way over to check me out.

They both just stood there, staring at me for a while. I am half in shock, too cold to do any more moving.

"Miriam, let's move down a little closer to it. But be super slow, so we don't frighten the frozen little fellow."

"It's a baby snake! Miriam responds as quiet as a church mouse during the Sunday sermon. I thought all snakes were in hibernation right now. My class had to do a report on reptiles. They're cold-blooded, you know. She looks half frozen. Poor little thing!"

Miriam would have rattled on with compassion in her heart, but Brent decided to interject his opinion.

"No Way! I've seen baby snakes before, but never one with such weird scales. And look at his tail. It looks like a button!"

"Wonder where she got that scarf and hat? I think she's adorable!" Miriam comes back in her high-pitched nurturing mode that sounds like a guinea pig. Wee! Wee! Wee! Wee! "We have to get her warm fast. It's a miracle that she's survived this long. Let's call her Button Girl."