Fellowship Farm 2: Books 4-6

By Melanie Lotfali

Leezah, Skye-Maree and Olingah Fitzgerald live with their parents on Fellowship Farm. In the first volume of the Fellowship Farm series (containing books one to three) , you met the children and learned about their daily activities on the farm. 

In this the second volume (books four to six) the Fitzgerald children are visited by their

• Language: English
• Publisher: Melanie Lotfali
• Release date: Feb 10, 2016
• ISBN: 9780987333353

Melanie Lotfali

Melanie Lotfali PhD is a graduate of the Australian College of Journalism in Professional Writing for Children. Melanie has taught spiritual education classes for children for the past twenty years in five countries and is currently an active animator and trainer of animators for the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program. She is a qualified counselor and classroom teacher, and for over six years facilitated violence prevention and respectful relationships programs in high schools. Much of her childhood was spent on the farms, beaches and mountains of Tasmania, where the Fellowship Farm series is set. As an adult she spent four years in Siberia and four years in East Timor as a pioneer. She currently lives in Lismore, Australia, with her family.

Book preview

BOOK FOUR

FOUNTAINS, FEASTS, & FIRES

Your friends, the Fitzgerald children have their beloved cousins, Nick and Annissa, visiting for two whole weeks. Join them as, together with their cousins, they rescue Olingah from a mouse-attack, participate in the 19-Day feast, and head out for a camping adventure…

BOOK FOUR - CHAPTER ONE

Olingah needs rescuing

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It was a much slower ride from Fellowship Farm into Kellyton when they went by horse and cart instead of in the Ute. And much more fun. Dr and Mr Fitzgerald sat on the seat of the cart at the front. Skye-Maree who was nearly nine, sat next to them holding the reins guiding the big hairy old horse pulling the cart. The horse’s name was Bonnie. In the back of the cart having a bumpy ride as they trotted along the dirt road to the town were Skye’s sister Leezah, who was ten, and their younger brother Olingah who was six. They sat with their cousins from Sydney – Nick who was eleven and six-year-old Annissa.

The sun shone down on their hatted heads. In a few days it would be January so it was the middle of the Tasmanian summer and quite warm. Annissa and Nick were visiting their cousins at Fellowship Farm for two weeks. They had arrived last Monday. One week had already flown by and today they were all off to the Sunday market.

As the family arrived at the market place Skye-Maree pulled gently on Bonnie’s reins. Whoa Bon, she said. The children jumped out of the cart. Skye tied Bonnie under a tree where some long grass was growing and where some other horses were also tied. Leezah took a bucket from the cart and filled it with water at the tap nearby. She put it where Bonnie could reach it if she needed a drink.

They were later than usual because they had come in on the cart, so the market was already humming with activity. There were lots of Leezah, Skye and Olingah’s school friends there with their families, some of whom lived on neighboring farms and some of whom lived in the town. Everyone knew each other and the market was very safe so the children were allowed to wander off by themselves. They arranged to meet the adults back at the cart at 12:30 for some lunch in one of the tent ‘restaurants’ set up at different places in the market grounds.

Before the children went off to explore Mr Fitzgerald gave each of them five dollars to spend at the market. Thanks Daddy! Thanks Uncle Flip, they said.

On the far side of the market was a big tent and inside the tent were pens with different pet animals for sale. It was the Fitzgerald children’s favorite spot. Do you want to go see the pet animals? they asked their cousins. Their cousins wanted to very much, so they walked through the market to the animal tent.

They passed stalls selling arts and crafts, second hand books, a whole variety of cakes and sweets as well as honeys and jams and other things. There were quite a few stalls selling Christmas decorations very cheaply as Christmas day had just passed. In the far field down by the river were the rides. The swings that swung round high and fast, the little trains that went round in their tracks, the jumping castle. The children would go there later.

The children arrived at the animal tent and went inside. In cages and pens, on straw and in ponds there were kittens and puppies, ducklings, chickens, guinea pigs, mice, even little ponies and some lambs. The children used to spend hours at the puppy pen cuddling the puppies. But now they had their own puppies so they spent more time watching the other animals like the little ducklings pecking at their food or climbing up the ramp and sliding down the slide into the pond. Annissa was thrilled to pet a little furry guinea pig and Nick’s favorites were the brightly colored parakeets in a tall cage at the back of the tent.

Olingah went up to the person in charge of the mice and asked if he could hold one. She let him into the pen that was covered in fine mesh so that the mice stayed safely in the cage. She picked up one of the brown mice that was hiding in the sawdust of the pen floor. The little mouse scuttled around in Olingah’s palms. It tickled. Olingah started to laugh. He turned to call to his sisters and cousins.

Leezah was looking at the frogs when she heard her brother’s voice:

Hey Leezah, Skye, come look at, eeeeeee, ow ow ow ow ow OOOOOOOOW HELP HELP

BOOK FOUR - CHAPTER TWO

Springs & winds

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Leezah and Skye rushed over to where Olingah was standing in the middle of the mouse pen screaming. The little mouse had run up his arm and into his t-shirt. So that she wouldn’t fall the little mouse was digging her claws into Olingah’s back as she ran up and down trying to find her way to safety. When Olingah started squealing and moving about the little mouse became terrified. She felt like she was trapped on a big roaring monster. So she started to bite him. Olingah didn’t know what to do and he was also terrified. He started swinging his arms around and crying hysterically.

The person in charge of the mice was worried that Olingah was going to step on the mice resting in the sawdust. She grabbed his flailing arms and held him still. Skye lifted up his t-shirt and Leezah pulled the petrified mouse from his back and lowered it to the ground where it fled for its life. Olingah’s brown back was covered in scratches and nips and little bits of blood appeared on some of the wounds.

Sorry, said Leezah to the girl in charge of the mice, as she led Olingah from the cage. Olingah had calmed down once the mouse was taken out of his shirt, and he dried his tears with a dusty arm leaving wet dirty streaks across his cheeks. The three children left the animal tent and went to sit under a tree nearby. Olingah took off his shirt. Leezah spat on a bit of the shirt and used it to wipe his back.

The mouse must have thought you were chocolate flavored cheese, smiled Skye gently, holding her brother’s hand. Can I try? Skye pretended to nibble at Olingah’s fingers and he started to laugh. He put his shirt back on and soon they went back into the tent to look for their cousins. Annissa and Nick were watching the snakes. Skye sneaked up behind them, touched their necks and said, HSSSSSSSSSSS.

Nick and Annissa sprung backward and squealed. Don’t be ssssssscared, itssssss only me, Ssssssskye, she laughed and her cousins grinned. Letssssss go for isssssssssssssssscreamssssssssssssssss she added.

Yes, said Olingah. Ice-cream!

The children left the tent to look for ice-cream. They walked in the direction of the rides, down by the river. Near the rides was an old parked caravan which was covered in pictures of different kinds of ice-creams. There were dozens of different colors and then some of them had chocolate on top, some had colored freckles, some had red frogs sticking out