15-“C” LIKE IN CAIMAN

"C" LIKE IN CAIMAN Monkeyfur showed me a notebook. "Do you know how to read?" she asked. When I nodded, she looked impressed. It seemed no one in the village knew how to read or write. Can you imagine? Reading and writing are my life! "Only THEY can do it," Monkeyfur blurted out. Then she clamped a paw over her mouth. "Who are they?" I asked. But she wasn't squeaking. I was dying to know what secret Monkeyfur was keeping. But I decided it wouldn't be right to pry. After all, she had just saved my life. Instead, I offered to teach her how to read and write. We sat down by the riverbank. We began

with the alphabet. "'A' like in apple, 'B' like in banana," I recited. Monkeyfur giggled. "I think I've got it," she said. Then she pointed to a pair of yellow eyes watching us from the river. "'C' like in cailnan," she said. She grabbed my paw, and we raced back to the village. Yes, Monkeyfur was a fast learner. But I was the fastest runner with that croc on our tails!