The One-Thing Cleanup

What to do when a job feels too big | 3 min read

The Feathernest Woods Spring Picnic had been wonderful.

The pies were warm and flaky.
The fruit salad was sweet.
The juice was cool and refreshing.

Sissy the Cat curled her tail happily.
Fred the Frog wiggled his little feet.
Lela the Elephant sighed a happy sigh.

Bobby looked at the blankets.
“Can we relax before the games start?” he asked.
“That sounds lovely,” said Mama Bear.

The children stood up and looked around.

Dirty plates covered the table.
Napkins were scattered across the grass.
Little bits of fruit were everywhere.
Big Meadow looked very messy.

“I’m tired,” Bobby said.
“Preparing the picnic was a lot of work,” Sissy added.
“So much work,” Fred agreed.

Lela looked around the meadow again.
“But if we don’t clean the meadow,” she said,
“we won’t have space for the games.”

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Bobby looked at Mama Bear.
“How long will it take to clean everything?” he asked.

Mama Bear looked around the meadow.
“It’s a lot to clean,” she said.
“It might take the whole afternoon.”

“The whole afternoon?” Sissy gasped.

Fred fell backward.
“Oh no!” he cried.
“What about the games?”

“Is there anything we can do to make it easier?” Sissy asked.

Bobby scratched his head.
“What if…” he said slowly,
“We all picked up just one thing?”

Mama Elephant nodded.
“I think that would help,” she said.
“Let’s all try it together.”

Fred hopped up right away.
“I’ll grab one napkin!”

But just as Fred picked it up—
Whoosh!

The wind blew the napkin away.
Fred chased after it.

Boing.
Boing.
Boing.

Finally, he caught it.

“I won’t let it get away again!” Fred said.
And he placed the napkin into the big cleanup bag.

Sissy picked up one cup.
She carried it to the washing tub,
where Mama Cat was cleaning the dishes.

That was easier than she thought.
So she picked up another cup.
Then another.

Bobby carried the plates carefully to the washing tub.
One plate.
Then another.
“This isn’t so hard,” Bobby thought.

Lela folded the chairs
and carried them back to the chair stack.

But Lela was getting tired.
The chairs felt heavy now.

Mama Bear noticed.
“Lela could use a little help,” she said.
Mama Bear carried a few chairs.
Mama Elephant carried the rest.
Soon, the chairs were stacked neatly again.

Everyone kept picking up one thing.
After a little while,
the table was empty
The grass was clear.

Big Meadow looked beautiful again.

“Cleanup was faster than we thought,” Sissy said.
“One thing at a time is easy,” Bobby added.

The blankets looked soft and cozy.
The sun felt warm.
The grass felt soft beneath their feet.
The children looked at the meadow and smiled.

Because in Feathernest Woods,
no one has to do big jobs alone.

The End

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➡️ Read all the stories in the Feathernest Woods Spring Picnic Series

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This story is part of the Feathernest Woods collection
For older children, explore the Silverbrook Valley collection

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