Apples Rolling to the Pond

Pip stood at the edge of the orchard with both hands on a low apple crate, trying very hard to look useful.

The apple trees at Cloverbell Fold were heavy with red fruit. A little farther off, the duck pond flashed blue-green between the grass and reeds. Mina was helping carry apples toward the barn, and Jori was tying up a loose fence post with neat, careful knots.

Pip wanted to be right in the middle of it all. He was the little one, yes, but today he meant to be the little one who helped.

Then one apple gave a soft pop and bounced out from under the trees.

It rolled fast down the sloping ground. Another apple followed it. Then another. They skipped over the grass, bumping away from the basket pile and angling straight toward the pond.

“Mina!” Pip called, and darted after them with his straw hat flopping over one ear.

He caught the first apple with both hands, but the second zigzagged away. The fence beside him had a loose gap in it, and the apples kept slipping through that opening before he could reach them. He scooped at one, missed, and almost stepped on the next.

From the duck pond, a few ducks lifted their heads and began to waddle closer, as if they had noticed the rolling fruit too.

Pip stopped with one apple hugged to his chest. The fence was still letting them out. The hill still sent them downhill. And now there were apples on the grass where the ducks could get to them.

He looked from the loose gap to the pond, then back to Mina and Jori. He could keep chasing apples, but that might just spread the mess. He could call for help, but then someone else might take over before he did anything useful.

Pip swallowed and stared at the loose fence, wondering which way would keep the apples out of the water without getting in everyone’s way.