Leaping  out of his  hallowed tree hole
Mister grey squirrel sped up the food pole
Rain on his forehead dripped down his nose
Digging in his claws.. he followed his goal..
 

Stuffing and puffing.. ready to burst,
Mama Chipmunk ate til her sides hurt
Eating enough to last her whole week
Tucking much in  her pouched cheek.
 

Babies fast asleep.. dry in a tree trunk
Eight burrowed deep in a straw flea bunk.
Naked .. blind their world was black and dim, 
 Mama would soon come back to feed them.

Showering seeds in mad hop to the top.
Mister Grey Squirrel went flippety flop.
It was wet and slippery neath foot and toes
When he stood up, he exclaimed..OH NO!!
 

Wringing his hands in front of him,
In a comedic gesture, he folded them.
He  growled  dramatically in protest..
In his opinion, chipmunks were a pest.

Mister Squirrel kept his steadfast grudge
Vision blocked,  but he still chose to judge.
The mote and beam  beheld in foes eyes, 
Were perceived as logs of immense size. 
 

Soon  ears heard a drilled alert alarm
Pitiful  cries.. shrilled by baby chipmunks. 
Torrential rains spilled into the tree trunk
And had almost filled their nest bunk!
They could be killed or hurt by harm.
 

Mama's  reflexes fast.. dived into a  boat
Steering  past debris and fallen limb.
Fearing she'd drown.. She couldn't swim
And wasn't certain, if she'd stay a float.
 

Her eyes logged in, like a laser beam,
Clearing fogged mist to reach her brood
Before they'd be swept down stream
And lost forever in the rising flood.
 

She didn't cower..She had spunk.
She retrieved her litter out of the bunk.
Carrying them one by one up a tree house
To share space with  Mrs. Twitter  mouse.
 

From her haven high in the glass tower,
She had a good sky view of the food pole
Loud speaker kicked in for voice power
 Mrs. Chipmunk, pleaded  with heartfelt soul:

"DEAR  MISTER  GREY  SQUIRREL!

WE  DON'T  HAVE  TO  CAST  OUR  SHRINES

IN  FRONT  OF  ARROGANT  SWINES,

NOR  TOSS  THEM  POLISHED  PEARLS!

"WE  MUST  SEEK  JUSTICE  INSTEAD  OF  WAR,

REMOVE  PREJUDICE  AND  CUT  OUT  ITS   CORE.

SEPARATE PRIORITIES,  FROM  PETTY  MATTER,

BEFORE  CLIMBING   HIGHER  UP  THE   LADDER. "

© Andrea Jeanne Petersen 
Climbing higher
Written August 01, 2004 

Note:  A few years before my father passed away, a little
chipmunk befriended him in his work shop and followed
him around.. Today as I post this page on August 5th, 2004
it would have been Dad's 96th birthday.

Eastern Chipmunk  Tamias Striatus
Length: head and body, 5½- 6½ in; tail, 3-4½ in.
back stripes, extend only to rump.
Habitat: forests, brushy areas, gardens.

Chipmunks are ground-dwelling squirrels.  They spend most of their
lives at or below the surface, although they will also climb trees.
Their extensive burrows are up to 12 feet long and may include a
 storage chamber, sleeping room, dump, and latrine, along with
several concealed entrances.  The pantry holds up to half a bushel
of nuts and other food, all carried there in the chipmunk's outsized
cheek pouches . Eastern Chipmunks partially hibernate in winter
(they wake frequently and feed). The females give birth in spring or
 midsummer, producing litters of two to eight young.  Like other members
 of the squirrel family, chipmunks are naked, blind, and helpless at birth.