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Anita and Inga
Garden Adventure
By J. J. Pearson
Balboa Press
Copyright © 2012 J. J. Pearson
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4525-4248-5
Chapter One
"Mum, can I go outside and play?" asked Anita.
"Oh sure," Mum replied. "But be careful near the veggie garden."
"Why?" Anita asked.
"Just take care around the veggies." Was all Mum said.
Outside, Anita went straight to the sandpit under the cubbyhouse. Anita loved the sandpit because she could play with all the toy trucks and dozers she had there. But most of all she loved the sandpit because she could talk to her pet Echidna Inga.
Anita's mum said Inga Linga is an aboriginal word for the Echidna so Anita just calls her Inga for short. Inga lives in the old log in the corner of the sandpit. Anita sat down on the log and picked up one of her favourite trucks. Just then Inga popped her head out from the end of the log.
"Hello," Anita greeted.
"Hello," Inga answered.
"What have you been doing today?" Anita asked.
"I've been down to the tap at the bottom of the veggie garden. I can get a drink of water from the puddle underneath."
"Really. All the way down at the bottom of the garden." Anita said astonished. "How can you do that? I'd be way too scared to go down there. Mum said to be careful but I don't know why."
"She probably just doesn't want you to damage any of the veggies. There's nothing to be scared of." Inga said confidently.
"Oh, I don't know," replied Anita. "I've never been all that way on my own."
"I'll come with you," said Inga. "It's such a lovely day and another drink would be refreshing."
"I'm frightened," said Anita with a worried look. "I don't know what's there."
"How about if we just go to the garden shed first. Would that be OK?"
"Oh yes. I can do that," exclaimed Anita excitedly. "That's not scary at all and it's not very far."
Anita stood up from the log she'd been sitting on and started towards the garden shed with Inga.
I can do this, thought Anita.
Anita and Inga walked along the path that leads towards the back of the garden. The sun was shining and the flowers on the edge of the path looked lovely with all their brilliant colours and soft velvety petals .
When they reached the shed Inga climbed up on the wood pile and Anita sat on the grass.
"This is fun," declared Anita. "I've never been to the garden shed without Dad before. It's pleasant sitting here in the sun."
Inga said that if she wanted to they could walk a bit further and stop again at the compost bin.
"The compost bin," exclaimed Anita. "But that's all the way down the path near the big tree."
Even as she said the words Anita realised that she'd come this far and hadn't been scared at all. In fact, it was wonderful.
She started to think that she could go all the way to the big tree and maybe even the veggie garden .
You know, Anita thought. The veggie garden might even be interesting to see. Mum said that the beans I had for dinner last night came from the garden.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Anita and Inga by J. J. Pearson Copyright © 2012 by J. J. Pearson. Excerpted by permission of Balboa Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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