A warm autumn wind — the kind that makes one feel alive, but also a little jumpy — whistled through the open windows of the schoolhouse tree so insistently that everyone, even Mr. Owl, had trouble concentrating on schoolwork.

And so they decided to stop trying.

After gathering up books and notebooks and pencils, everyone ran outside, where they tossed their backpacks into a pile they’d sort out later.

With each gust of wind came a shower of swirling, drifting, floating leaves, and the children jumped and spun along with them, trying to catch as many as they could in their paws.

(Early November 2024)

Story © Jennifer McClain Singleton / Read+Purr

This is another vignette in my ongoing series of Tiny Garden Stories: peaceful 1-minute tales that let you read like a kid again. Click one of the first two buttons below to go to (or back to, if that’s where you fell down the rabbit hole) either the “Public Garden” archive page or (if you’re a Story Club member) to the members-only “Private Garden” page. Or click the third button to learn more about my Tiny Garden Stories.

If you’re new to Tiny Garden Story-land and would like 10 free stories from our first year, visit ReadPurrNewsletter.com.

Want a pawful of (illustrated!) tiny stories? Grab one or more of our tiny books: ReadPurrShop.com.