The Singing Veggie Patch

Lucy was helping in the garden one sunny morning when something strange happened... She grabbed the watering can and suddenly. "WE'RE SO THIRSTY, CAN'T YOU SEE? PLEASE BRING WATER, ONE-TWO-THREE!" Lucy froze. Was that... singing? She looked around. Mom and Dad were busy weeding on the other side of the garden. The singing came again - louder this time! "OUR ROOTS ARE DRY, OUR LEAVES ARE SAD! PLEASE GIVE US A DRINK, WE NEED IT BAD!" Lucy followed the sound. It was coming from the carrots! Their green tops were swaying back and forth, like they were dancing! "You... you can SING?" Lucy whispered. "OF COURSE WE CAN!" sang the carrots. "WE'RE THIRSTY, THIRSTY, DON'T YOU KNOW? WITHOUT SOME WATER, WE WON'T GROW!" Lucy giggled. Singing carrots! She quickly watered them. SPLASH! SPLASH! SPLASH! "AHHHH, THANK YOU!" sang the carrots happily. But then Lucy heard another song from across the garden. "YIKES! OH YIKES! WE'RE IN A FRIGHT! A SNAIL IS MUNCHING US, BITE BY BITE!" The tomatoes! They were singing too! Three red tomatoes were bouncing on their vines, watching a big slimy snail munch on their leaves! "HE'S CHOMPING ON OUR LEAVES WITH GLEE! PLEASE SAVE US NOW, EMERGENCY!" Lucy carefully picked up the snail and moved him far away to the compost pile. "HOORAY! HOORAY! YOU SAVED THE DAY!" sang the tomatoes. "Lucy, who are you talking to?" called Dad. "Um... nobody!" said Lucy. Just then, a new song started - this one was really loud! "WE'RE CRAMPED AND SQUISHED, WE NEED MORE ROOM! MAKE SOME SPACE OR WE'LL GO BOOM!" The corn stalks! They were all bunched together, singing in harmony! "WE'RE TOUCHING, PUSHING, CROWDED TIGHT! GIVE US SPACE AND WE'LL GROW RIGHT!" Lucy grabbed the garden tools and carefully made more space between the corn stalks. "MUCH BETTER NOW, WE'RE FREE TO GROW!" the corn sang with joy. Finally, a tiny, soft song drifted over from the lettuce patch. "Too much sun, too much heat... We need shade, that would be sweet! We're wilting here, can't you tell? A little shadow would be swell!" The poor lettuce leaves were drooping in the hot sun! Lucy found an old umbrella and stuck it in the ground, making a shady spot for the lettuce. "PERFECT! PERFECT! NOW WE'RE COOL! THANK YOU, LUCY, YOU'RE SO WONDERFUL!" Sang the happy lettuce. Lucy stepped back and looked at the garden. The carrots were standing tall. The tomatoes were bright and healthy. The corn had room to grow. The lettuce was cool and comfortable. All the vegetables started singing together - "WE THANK YOU, LUCY, YES WE DO! THE GARDEN'S HAPPY, ALL THANKS TO YOU! YOU HEARD OUR NEEDS AND MADE THINGS RIGHT! NOW WE'LL GROW HEALTHY, TALL, AND BRIGHT!" Then, just like that, the singing stopped. The garden was quiet again. Mom walked over. "Lucy, the garden looks wonderful! What did you do?" Lucy smiled. "I just listened," she said. And from that day on, Lucy always paid close attention to the garden. Because even though the vegetables didn't sing out loud anymore, Lucy knew that if you listen carefully to plants and nature, they'll tell you exactly what they need! The End.