Sunrise that morning revealed a sleepy pile of chipmunk and squirrel children, snuggled in blankets and quilts. The night before, after the feast, they had begged to be allowed to sleep outside with their friends, under the glittering stars.

As the sun rose over the trees, the adults gathered all the leftover desserts — a few slices of pumpkin pie, half of a nut pie, an entire apple pie that Raccoon had held back expressly for this occasion, and the last of the whipped cream — and carried them out to the tables still set up in the meadow from the night before.

Rabbit tapped on the cottage window and motioned for the cats to join them outside, and to please bring one of the tea canisters.

Soon, everyone was feasting on a holiday breakfast of pie and strong Scottish Breakfast tea.

(November 2022)

Story © Jennifer Singleton / Read+Purr

This is another vignette in my ongoing series of Tiny Garden Stories: peaceful 1-minute tales, full of cozy vibes, delicious details, and generous dollops of imagination & whimsy. 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 Private Garden page. Or click the third button to learn more about my Tiny Garden Stories. Want each week’s featured story delivered directly to your inbox? Subscribe to my Substack.