ORANGE in the Land of Lakes and Volcanoes

By Krista Dowell

When Orange decides he needs to improve his Spanish skills, he and Jes head for Central America. A nervous little chihuahua begs them to help her find the Tacos Dorados, and the search takes them across Nicaragua. Together they encounter excitement, danger, and a little bit of Spanish vocabulary as they journey down the Rio San Juan. Laugh and learn with Jes and Orange in the Land of Lakes and Volcanoes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Goldminds Publishing
• Release date: Feb 4, 2017
• ISBN: 9781946504029

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Chapter 1

RIGOBERTO

High overhead, Carrie, the carrier pigeon, flew from Texas toward Missouri. She carried an important letter in her claws. The letter said:

Dear Folks,

We received a job offer in Nicaragua. We’ll be performing along the banks of a river where tourists go a lot. We tried to see you before we left, but you weren’t home, and we didn’t have time to wait. We can be reached by sending a message downstream from San Carlos, Nicaragua. We love you and miss you, but adventure is in our blood, and we must go. We’ll be back in a couple of years.

Love, Ronnie and Judy

The letter was rolled up tightly and the pigeon carried it carefully. But, suddenly a storm blew in. Before she could seek shelter, the rain was coming down in torrents. Thunder and lightening were crashing all around her when BANG! a large hailstone bonked her on the head and knocked her out. Free-falling through the air, she was fortunate to land in a squirrel’s nest high up in a tree. When she came to, an angry squirrel was standing over her, shaking its tail and scolding her in a high-pitched, chattering voice. The rain was hitting her face, and the paper she carried was soaked.

Oh no! she thought. I never fail to deliver a message. But she would fail this time. Sadly, she let the soggy, smeared, disintegrating letter fall from her claws. But she was determined to continue. She had to at least let the family know that a letter had been sent. Apologizing to the squirrel for dropping in unannounced, she continued her flight. Finally she reached her destination – Haskin’s Ford, Ozark County, Missouri. She remembered where she was supposed to deliver the letter, and went straight there. Finding a family of crows in a tree, she asked to make sure this was the right family. Upon hearing Ronnie and Judy’s names, the crows eagerly crowded around for information.

I’m so sorry, mourned Carrie, but I didn’t read the message. I never do – those are private. Ronnie and Judy came to me down in Texas and asked me to deliver a letter to you. But the rain destroyed it, and I don’t know what it said. They were headed south and they were fine when they gave it to me, so I wouldn’t worry. But that’s all I know. She went on her way, and the crow family gathered around for a family conference.

I saw them flying south. I thought they were just takin’ a little vacation, said one of them. They’ve done that before.

They could have gone away for a job or something, said another one.

They wouldn’t do that without telling us, said another.

Old grandma Lizzie Crow stood up. I’m tellin’ y’all, they’ve been kidnapped. Somebody’s grabbed them for Judy’s voice. They’re gonna hold ‘em hostage and make her sing. We’ll never see ‘em again! My baby’s gone forever! Then she broke down in a sobbing heap of black feathers.

Okay, said old grandpa Willie Crow, here’s what we’ll do. Buster, you go get some ‘missing’ posters made and we’ll send that carrier pigeon back out to post them on every tree from here to South America.

Jes’s chores were finally done. He was free. Running outside, he shouted for his friend. Orange! Where are you Orange?

¡Buenos días, mi amigo!

What? Who was that?

Orange? Jes called again.

¡Si, si! Estoy aquí.

Who said that and where is my friend Orange? asked Jes, getting a little concerned. He had never heard the pig speak Spanish before.

"Orville Robert Abraham Norman George Englebert! Where are you?"

Soy yo. Y estoy aquí.

What?

I said I’m right here, and you don’t need to use all my names.

Jes hurried to the little shack by the creek where Orange liked to hang out to read and study. He peered inside and there, behind a big book that was entitled Let’s Learn Spanish, sat Orange.

What are you doing? asked Jes. You had me worried.

Perdón, Jes. Se me olvidó que estaba hablando en español.

What? exclaimed Jes. You do realize you are speaking Spanish, right?

Yes and no. I kind of forgot at first.

Why are you studying Spanish?

Porque, creo que estoy…I am sorry…I think I am losing my Spanish skills, so I am brushing up.

Oh! Well, I’d help, but I don’t speak any Spanish at all. Hey! I have an idea! Why don’t we go to a place where Spanish is spoken by everyone? You’d get a good refresher course that way.

Orange’s eyes lit up and he put his book down.

"Jes, that is a wonderful idea. I happen to have a friend in Mexico who could help us.

He originally came from Nicaragua. I bet he could set us up with some cool places to go and things to see."

That sounds great! exclaimed Jes. Let’s go!

¡Vamos a Nicaragua!

Jes was eager to climb on board Orange’s back and fly again. After their wonderful adventures in Australia, Jes had been dying to go on another trip. This was a perfect opportunity to have more adventures and learn a little Spanish while he was at it.

Finally it was time to go. Orange had made his preparations and off they went. It only took a few hours to arrive in the border town of Matamoros, Mexico. Orange landed and began making a funny little clicking sound.

What’s that? asked Jes.

Oh, that’s the sound geckos make, answered Orange. My friend taught me how to do it and said if I ever needed to find him I could call him that way. I guess I have a bit of an accent, because he said he would recognize my click.

Pretty soon, a tiny lizard appeared.

Hola, he said.

Just in case you are not a Spanish speaker, you need to know that the h is silent in Spanish. So,