Evangelos (a.k.a. Squirrel)

I woke up to the smell of crisp leaves and the feel of my hammock under my back. Swaying on the branches of my tree, I took a deep breath of the fresh and clean air. Charlie, the tree I named, happily whispered good morning to me with the rustle of his leaves. I like to name the trees. They are living beings that have helped me learn how to climb, grow, and be patient. I learned a lot as a child staring at trees, climbing them, jumping from branch to branch - they have allowed me to hone in my skills. My glasses have also helped me understand the way of the tree. The inner biology and functions.

“Hey Squirrel!” a voice called.

I shifted over in my hammock to see who was calling me.

“Hey Gobble, how’s your morning going?”

“Morning?!” Gobble chuckled. “My friend, it is the afternoon. How long have you been sleeping up there?”

“Long enough.” I hopped down, moving from branch to branch like a squirrel in its habitat. “How can I help you? Is this a checkup?”

Gobble was the local Check-Upper. His job was to check up on everyone in a community to see where their studies and development are.

“You know it is. This is a beautiful treehouse!”

“Thank you I built it myself.”

“Impressive,” Gobble scratched his chin. “For a sixteen year old…very impressive. Where are your parents?”

“My mom is probably painting her tree Monica, and my dad is usually by the beach talking with the fish.” Gobble nodded and I smiled back.

“I have a task for you that I think you may be open to.” Gobble tapped on his glasses. “Check your hardware.”

A message on my glasses screen popped up from Gobble. Opening it, I watched a visual diagram of a large wooden structure surrounding multiple trees on an island in the center of the ocean.

“Are these schematics?” I asked incredulously.

“You bet they are. You want to help build it? I could use someone like you. You have a knack for it” My eyes grew wide. A real task to help the community? This was fantastic! I thought I would have to wait a few years. I knew that working on my own tree would help me go places.

“Can I bring my friends?” I blurted. Popcorn, Fimble, and Bob would love to help build this structure.

“Of course! You know everyone in Solar Plexus is allowed to do anything they are invited to do! You may invite your friends. I trust you all to stay safe and listen to your Glasses.” Gobble smiled and turned away. “I'll send you more information, Squirrel. Take care and enjoy your day.”

When I was alone with Charlie, I jumped up and down and howled with excitement. “Group Call: Bob, Fimble, and Popcorn” I said to my Glasses. Communicating with our glasses, I informed them of the exciting task I had been assigned. They all agreed to join and we spent the rest of the day in Popcorn’s treehouse. He named the tree Tree for obvious reasons. It was within the branches of Tree where we studied the schematics and made a game plan for the next year.

At the end of the night, I looked at my three best friends and proclaimed, “By this time next year, the three of us will have used the knowledge we learned growing up and apply it to help the community! Exciting!”

The night was full of laughter, song, and games. We ate dinner with each other's family and watched a movie on our Glasses. I felt as though my world had opened up even more. My childhood had been full of adventure and opportunity. After today, I now know that my future will hold the same virtues.