One hot morning, Jasper the Lion, Susan the Zebra, and Richard the Meerkat were playing hide-and-seek in the playground at school.
“Hey Susan, I can see your stripes!” said Richard when he spotted Susan behind a barren shrub.
“This is really boring. You always win,” Susan complained.
“I don’t always win!” Richard said with a grin. There was more than a bit of pride in his voice.
“Where’s Jasper?” asked Susan.
“Hmm… I haven’t found him yet.”
The two set off in search of their friend, looking behind every bush and hut. They even looked behind the school building.
“Where could he possibly be?” squeaked Richard. He was getting worried. “Recess is about to end!”
When the bell rang, all the students streamed back into their classrooms. Richard and Susan spotted Jasper on the way.
“Where have you been? We’ve been looking all over for you!” whispered Susan so the teacher wouldn’t hear.
After their geography lesson, the three of them walked down the hall and Jasper told his friends about his neighbor, Sara the Giraffe.
“I heard a lot of sneezing and coughing in the neighbor’s house this morning so I went over to see what was going on,” Jasper explained. “Then Sara told me that she had caught a nasty cold and might not be able to go on the class trip the day after tomorrow. She has a headache, a sore throat and the chills. Her dad has been making her lots of herbal tea with honey, but unfortunately it hasn’t helped yet.”
“If she’s cold, then she needs something warm to wear!” said Richard.
“Yes, she needs a scarf and a hat!” exclaimed Susan.
“But where are we going to get a scarf and hat that will fit a giraffe?” wondered Jasper.
“Let’s each go home and see what we can find. Then we’ll meet up and go to Sara’s house for a fitting,” suggested Richard.
The three friends parted ways to search their homes for warm clothes. They met again a few hours later in their favorite shady spot, beaming with joy and each holding a colorful scarf and hat.
Susan showed off her blue scarf and straw hat.
“You’re funny! That’s not a hat that will keep Sara warm!” Richard said, giggling.
“Fine, let’s see what you brought!” said Susan.
Richard pulled out a wool hat and a knitted yellow scarf.
“Not bad,” said Jasper as he pulled a green scarf and hat out of his bag.
“Great! Let’s go show Sara this stuff,” said Susan.
As they neared Sara’s house, they could see her walking around sadly.
“Hey! You look like three days of rainy weather!” shouted Richard. They walked up to Sara who suddenly couldn’t stop sneezing.
“Look what we brought!” said Jasper. He lifted the colorful scarves and hats as high as he could so Sara could see. “Why don’t you try on these clothes to see if they fit?”
Sara tried on all three scarves and hats and was even sadder than before. “Thank you, friends! I really appreciate it, but the scarves are way too short for my long neck. I guess I really can forget about the class trip now.”
In addition to the sneezing and coughing, Sara was now sobbing.
“Oh no!” said Richard. “We really need to help Sara get well quickly!”
The three friends looked at each other. Then Jasper had an idea.
“I’ve got it! Let’s go to my Grandma. If she can’t help, no one can!”
They promised Sara they’d be back soon and set off.
At Jasper’s grandmother’s house, they described Sara’s situation.
“So your scarves don’t fit her because her neck is too long? That won’t be a problem at all!” said Jasper’s grandmother with a smile.
The three friends looked at each other in surprise.
“What do you mean, Grandma?” asked Jasper. But his grandmother had already gone to the living room closet.
“I knew I still had it!” she said as she held up a bundle of needles, thread and colorful yarn. “It’s been a while, but I think I remember how to do it!”
The three friends watched in anticipation as Jasper’s grandmother skillfully sewed the three colorful scarves together.
“See!” said Jasper’s Grandma happily. “If you’ve learned something once, it’ll come back to you with practice! The scarf should be long enough now to keep a giraffe’s neck warm. What do you think?”
“I knew we could count on you, Grandma! Thanks for your help!” said Jasper.
Susan, Richard, and Jasper quickly and joyfully made their way to Sara’s house and proudly showed her the long, colorful scarf.
It fit perfectly around Sara’s long neck.
“Get well soon and have a good rest!” they shouted as they waved goodbye.
—
On the day of the class trip, Jasper, Susan, and Richard stood in front of the school and waved happily to Sara.
“Thank you so much, you three!” Sara shouted as she happily boarded the bus for the school trip.
