Friends Are Everywhere: A Gift of Love

By Ann W. Phillips

My book is about a little girl who is handicapped and her ability to talk to the birds and animals that come to her window and her two best friends, Smokey the cat and Bandit the dog. The critters get together and make a special Christmas gift for Cheryl and her family.

I have always loved animals and have always imagined what they would say if they could talk. I was a school lunchroom manager and loved reading with passion. I worked with teachers to donate books to the birthday book club for students who could not afford it. I live with a crazy cat named Charlie. He was a rescue.

• Language: English
• Publisher: LifeRich Publishing
• Release date: Oct 10, 2016
• ISBN: 9781489709738

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Copyright © 2016 Ann W. Phillips.

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This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission. NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks of Biblica, Inc. Use of either trademark for the offering of goods or services requires the prior written consent of Biblica US, Inc.

ISBN: 978-1-4897-0974-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4897-0973-8 (e)

LifeRich Publishing rev. date: 10/10/2016

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This book is dedicated to my parents, John and Frances Worsham. They were who I modeled the Mitchums after. My parents have passed on, but their legacy of love, faith and laughter still guides this family.

One day a very long time ago in a kingdom far, far away, a little girl sat in a very big chair and watched in wonder the world outside her window. From her window she could see all kinds of birds fluttering here and there. There were two families of rabbits hopping around all over the ground. There were some geese floating on the pond talking to and fro to their duck friends. There were all kinds of friendly critters here and there, but Cheryl was content just sitting in her chair

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Cheryl’s mom and dad worked very hard around the farm but they always took time to sit and read to her and make sure she stayed as active as possible. Cheryl just wished that she could learn to talk to all the animals out her window. They all looked so very busy scurrying around in the trees and on the ground.

Cheryl had a very special friend that curled up in the chair with her most of the time. It was her fluffy cat, Smokey. Her other friend that sat with her a lot was her dog, Bandit. These two friends knew that Cheryl was hurt and could not go out and play like the other children, so they tried to keep her company.

One day Cheryl’s mom and dad bought her a bunch of crayons, pencils, paints, paper and a special desk that fit over her legs. They were given to them by a sweet old couple that lived down the lane. Mr. and Mrs Sugarmaker came to see Cheryl a lot. She was always happy to see them. They were artists that had retired and settled in the little hamlet. They had been missionaries who served God with their artists’ talents around the world. They told Cheryl that when she looked at all the critters out of her window she would notice that God had clothed them in all kinds of different ways. Mr. Sugarmaker helped Cheryl name some of the birds at the feeder by her window.

Cheryl liked to see all the different birds. Some were dressed in blue feathers, some wore red, they all wore the colors God had given them. They were all happy in their own special colors. She especially liked to watch the hummingbirds as they fed at their special feeders. They were so tiny and fragile but oh so busy. They always seemed to be fussing about who could drink at the feeder. Sometimes they were so busy running each other off, none of them seemed to have time to enjoy their meals.

While Cheryl was looking out the window one day, a bluejay came and sat on the window sill. He turned and looked right at her. She was so worried that if she moved he wouldn’t fly away. Maybe she would