Latin Root -port- Worksheets: Story 3, Jay's Portable Party

Jay was a blue jay who loved parties more than anything. His nest sat high up in a big oak tree. He wanted to have a party there for his best friends, Fen and Liv. He baked a sweet cake with berry jam on top. He tied red and pink ribbons on every branch. He even had a little drum for playing party tunes.

"This will be the best party in the woods," Jay said. Then he flew down to tell his friends.

Fen was digging for bugs by an old log. Liv was resting in the grass nearby. When Jay told them about the party, Fen looked down at her short legs. "I cannot climb at all," she said softly. "My claws are good for digging, not for climbing trees."

Liv gave Jay a slow smile. "I can climb," she said, "but I am very slow. By the time I got up to your nest, the party would be over."

Jay sat on the log and thought hard. A party was not a party without his friends. He wanted them both to come. First he tried to lift Fen with his feet, but Fen was much too heavy. Next he cheered for Liv as she began to climb the oak. After a long time, she was only as high as Fen's nose.

Then Jay had a big plan. "If my friends cannot come up to the party, the party can come down to them!" he said. "I will make my party portable!"

It was hard work to carry everything down from the nest. Jay packed the ribbons into a basket and flew them down to the meadow. On the next trip, he brought the little drum. On the last trip, he brought the cake down. He was very careful so he would not drop it. He set it all up on a flat stump in the sunny meadow.

Fen helped too. She dug a small hole to hold up a stick, and Jay tied the ribbons to the top of it. Liv noticed a tiny white flower in the grass and set it on the cake. Then Jay cut the cake and gave a portion to each friend. He played his drum while Fen danced and Liv tapped her toe, very slowly. It was the best party in the woods after all.