Hello. My name is Quirrel. S. Quirrel.

I would like to tell you what happened to me recently. It is a sad story so please you might want to have a Kleenex Box nearby. It was an ordinary Tuesday; life was good. I had run across the backyard fence, stopped to shrill a twill at my neighbor Sammy and began the day with a good dose of sunshine and raspberries from the big guy’s garden.

I then whipped up the ol’ pine tree, pulled a cone from a branch and within 8 or 9 seconds I was in my new-found nest in a beautiful Tudor style attic I just discovered. Awesome. Then out I was again to the pine tree. Back and forth I’d go, piling my cones high, and then peeing off in the far corner. Life is great. Right then, I saw the big fat guy up climbing my tree! And he had one of those sticks with a claw on the end and he was banging my doorway! I tried to tell him about my door by running up the branch he was on and screaming but he wouldn’t listen. Believe it or not, he just covered up my door!

Now this guy was really starting to bug me. Every time I turned around, he was trying to get into my stuff, or close one of my doors. Then all went quiet.

The next day passed without incident but then something happened. I found the bestest treat ever! I couldn’t believe my luck. It was a beautiful brown peanut still in its shell! And then I found another, and another! Woo hoo! They led up my staircase right up onto my picture-view balcony skyline. It was awesome.

But then I froze. What was this? Something new. Some peanuts were all rolled up into a ball of sorts held together by MORE PEANUTS! Smoothed out like butter! I couldn’t believe my little eyes. I was in heaven, scrumptious heaven! I was eating this glorious treat when all of a sudden I noticed that the artwork had changed. There was a frame around everything I looked at. A little steel frame… actually hundreds of ‘em. It seemed like a cage of some sort but I quickly check and ‘yes!” the doorway was wide open so I shrugged and continued my feast till it was all gone.

Every day for two more days, the peanuts magically appeared, more and more of them, though less and less of the tasty gooey stuff and again more of the peanuts. I didn’t care! This was awesome. I shoved some away for a later date, and continue to clean out the contraption that looked like a cage with the open door.

Then something changed. Hmmm. I didn’t like this.  This  was different. A couple of peanuts were on the ground; a couple of peanuts inside the cagey thing… and one big honkin peanut in mid-air! It was hanging by a thread or something in the middle of the cage. I was suspicious but you’ve got to understand, these things tasted so so good that I just had to have it. I slowly entered in.

I had only cracked open the shell when BANG! Scared the crap out of me! But I felt around in my fur and everything was okay; and there were no bullets around… I couldn’t see the fat guy anywhere so I just kept on eating till my treat was gone. Mmmm, delicious – Now what?

Then I saw him. Big guy was coming up the ladder; he was coming toward me and, and gosh darn, I can’t get out! Push, push the frame! No, it’s not working! The door has closed! I’m trapped! I’m trapped! Ahhh!

Before I know it I’m put into some sort of loud device which moves along four wheels like my cousin G. Erbil has in his little house, except this one is not going around and around; it’s actually going somewhere. When big guy came back to see me, I didn’t recognize where I was. It was a big big forest out there but I saw no houses, no doorways or stairs…. or peanuts. My world had completely changed.. .and I don’t think for the better.

So a word of warning to you — just because something seems really really good, there might be a string attached, and it might be a trap that changes your whole life! A wise old squirrel once said “temptation wouldn’t be temptation if it didn’t look good.”

“There is a way that seems right unto a man, but in the end it brings forth death.” – Proverbs 14:12