Sparky Helps Mary Make Friends Read online

  Custard’s gray body shook as the branch bobbed and wobbled.

  I hoped Custard could read my mind: Inch forward. Inch forward, I repeated. If she could read my mind, then once she got to the thicker part of the branch and then the trunk, I could guide her with my mind all the way down.

  But Custard didn’t budge. Holy cow! What were we going to do?

  I thought of my dad. I often did that in a pinch. I pictured him in his full Border Collie glory, running and weaving alongside the sheep, herding them to go just where he wanted them. Herding Custard was no use. But then I pictured another sheepdog trick Tasha and I had seen on the show Super Sheepdogs.

  Sometimes when strong stares and weaving and running didn’t get the sheep where they’d want the sheep to go, a couple of quick snap-snaps of the teeth did the trick.

  That was it! My teeth!

  I plopped my front paws on the windowsill and stretched my whole body forward. My snout was now within a Kibble-and-Bit of Custard’s tail. I watched as her tail swung from left, to right, and then bam! Right in front of my snout.

  I snapped my snout forward. This time, my whole mouth clamped gently on her tail and I pulled her down the branch, closer to the window.

  Custard yeeeoowed the whole way until the moment she had to let go of the branch. I held tight but knew—from experience—that trusting someone you only just met and weren’t all that sure you liked was not the easiest thing to do. But sometimes you have to trust somebody (this is Trick #5).

  And Custard did. With one final MEOW, she sprung her paws free from the branch and I pulled her all the way back through the window.

  It was like I was born to do this! (Ahem, Be Yourself = Trick #6.)

  I expected a hiss and a swat. But Custard surprised me. As I sat my Good Dog Sit in front of the open window, Custard purred and snaked her body along mine. Custard rubbed her face on my neck just as Mary opened the door.

  “Wow!” Mary said. “How did you two become such good friends?”

  Mary knelt on the floor and scratched us both. Her eyebrows scrunched when she pulled a leaf out of Custard’s fur.

  “What on earth…?”

  Then Mary looked out the window. “Custard, tell me you weren’t out there.”

  Just then, something caught in my throat. I coughed and coughed and finally spit out a small, wet tuft of gray fur. And a leaf.

  Mary grabbed it before it could hit the rug. She tilted her head toward me and said, “Is this Custard’s? Were you in the tree too?”

  I barked. What else could I do?

  Mary laughed and said something about wishing she could’ve been a fly on the wall. I hate flies so I was glad she wasn’t.

  Although, maybe now that I know how to make friends with cats (Be Memorable! Trick #7), I could probably make friends with flies too.

  But that would have to wait for another day, because it was time to head home. I was sad to leave. I liked Mary! And, believe it or not, I liked Custard too. Sshh, that’s our secret.

  Tasha and I went back to visit Mary the next day. We all walked to the playground at her school for Meet the Teachers.

  Mary was nervous. I could feel it through my leash.

  “You okay?” Mary’s mom asked.

  Mary took a deep breath and reached down to pet me.

  “Yeah,” Mary said. “I’ll do just what Sparky showed me with Custard.”

  Mary’s mom smiled. “Remember to relax and use your manners,” she said.

  Even Mary’s mom knew my tricks!

  Mary and I walked to the playground. Mary’s mom and Tasha stayed a few steps behind.

  A girl walked up and asked to pet me. Mary nodded and put out her hand. The girl smiled and shook Mary’s hand.

  “I’m Jazmine,” she said. “Are you the new girl? I was the new girl last year.”

  Then Jazmine knelt down to pet me. Mary did too. They talked about teachers and lunches and cats. They giggled when I rolled over and scratched my own back on the blacktop.

  More kids came by and Mary shook lots of hands. She laughed and listened and was kind and so brave. She got through almost all my tricks right there on the playground.

  A bell rang. It was time to go meet her teachers—and time for Tasha and me to head home.

  Mary hugged me goodbye and handed my leash to Tasha. Jazmine grabbed her hand and they ran off across the playground together. Off to a new adventure!

  I barked, Tasha waved, and Mary’s mom sniffled. I licked her hand.

  “Hope she’s okay,” Mary’s mom said.

  Mary would be just fine. She knew all my best tricks. Mary was going to make a million friends.

  Epilogue

  Dear Sparky:

  My first day of school went really well. I was so scared when my mom said good-bye. I had to stand in line by myself! So I thought about you and how petting you made me feel better. And that helped! I felt better just imagining I was petting you.

  Then I saw that girl, Jazmine, who we met on the playground. Remember her? She said you were super cute. Anyway, Jazmine isn’t in my class, but she said we could play at recess. And we did! Maybe we can all play together when you come to visit next week.

  My teacher, Mr. Jefferson, is really nice. He told everyone I’d just moved from Texas. Then Todd, the boy next to me, said he moved from Texas two years ago! Todd wanted to know if we still had rattlesnakes in Texas. I said we did, and told the story of how my dad found one curled up by the pool once, and the kids all screamed. Todd and I laughed.

  Most of the kids seem nice. One girl seems kind of mean. I smile at her and she just looks away. I thought maybe we won’t be friends. But then I remembered you and Custard. Miracles happen, right? Hahaha.

  I’m baking more peanut butter banana muffins for when you come next week. Can’t wait.

  Love,

  Mary

  Sparkplug’s

  7 Tried-and-True Tricks for Making Friends

  TRICK #1: Use your manners.

  Good manners are never just about being fancy. Good manners are always about being considerate or putting other people first. It shows people that we care when we do things like hold a door open or send a thank-you note. Even table manners—not smacking our food and remembering to put our napkins in our laps—show love to the people around us.

  TRICK #2: Settle down. Remember, it’s going to be OK.

  Starting a new school or moving to a new neighborhood can be scary. We worry that the kids won’t like us and that we’ll miss our old friends terribly. This is normal. Everyone worries about this (even the kids you think don’t!). But we can also let our imaginations get the best of us when we imagine the worst thing that could happen. What about imagining the best things? It takes time to make new friends, but we don’t have to worry. When we feel afraid, it helps to practice our settle: sit on the floor with a real pet or furry stuffed animal and breathe in and out while petting the animal. Remember, it’s all going to be OK.

  TRICK #3: Be a good listener and share your heart.

  Everybody needs someone to talk to. So one of the best ways to make good friends and to be a good friend is by being a good, trustworthy listener. When we want to make a good friend, we can ask questions and then listen carefully to the answers or the stories. Then we can also share things about ourselves. It can be scary! But by sharing funny or sad or embarrassing stories from our own lives, we help make new friends feel comfortable being themselves around us.

  TRICK #4: Make ‘em laugh!

  Todd and Mary became friends because they were able to laugh together. There’s nothing quite like sharing a joke or a funny story or giggling that brings friends together. The library is full of great joke books for those of us who need a little silly inspiration.

  TRICK #5: Trust somebody.

  We all worry that other people are goin
g to hurt our feelings. And know what? It does happen to all of us! No one goes through life without getting their feelings hurt. Sometimes our feelings get hurt because we have to move. Other times, kids say or do something mean. But just like Custard had to trust Sparky, we have to trust other people once in a while. This means when someone tries to reach out to us, we can reach back.

  TRICK #6: Be yourself!

  It’s easy to try to make friends by changing who we are and pretending to be someone we aren’t or to like something we don’t. Be willing to be you! Be weird if you’re weird. Be funny if you’re funny. Be creative if you’re creative. Be smart if you’re smart. Be athletic if you’re athletic. Be brave if you’re brave. Be all those things and more if it means being yourself.

  TRICK #7: Go on adventures and create memories together!

  We don’t need to go on a safari or discover new worlds to go on adventures. Adventures are all around—even right on the playground. But one of the best ways to make friends is to have fun—play, pretend, explore, and make a million memories.

  FUN FACTS

  About Border Collies and Bernese Mountain Dogs

  Sparky is a mixed breed, or a mutt. That means his parents were not the same breed. In the story, Sparky’s father is a Border Collie and his mother is a Bernese Mountain Dog. These two breeds are very different from each other. But they came together to make Sparky a special dog.

  Sparky is smart and likes to work hard. Those are qualities of a Border Collie. These dogs get their name because they originally came from the border of Scotland and England. All Border Collies are descended from one dog named Old Hemp, who was born in 1893. Old Hemp herded sheep. Unlike other herding dogs, he was gentle but he could still show those sheep who was boss!

  Border collies are very smart dogs. If they cannot keep busy with work or play, they get bored. And a bored Border Collie can get into a lot of trouble! Some Border Collies on farms still herd sheep. But most people don’t have sheep for their dogs to herd. That’s why many Border Collies take part in games called agility (uh-jil-uh-tee) trials. These are tests that let a dog run, jump, and race around obstacles. Border collies also like to play with toys and go on long walks and runs.

  What about Sparky’s other half, the Bernese Mountain Dog? These dogs are big and beautiful. They originally come from Switzerland, and some experts think the breed might be more than 2,000 years old. Because these dogs are so big and strong, they were once used to pull carts. A Bernese Mountain Dog can pull up to 1,000 pounds. They also make great herding dogs and guard dogs. They are great pets, too, if you have the space.