0:28

Hello friends and welcome to the

0:30

Sparkle Stories podcast. This is Lispe

0:32

of Sparkle Stories. And as

0:34

I am recording this, there is a winter

0:37

storm just a raging outside. And

0:40

so I'm inspired. I am picking

0:42

a story called Winter Wonder. I'm up here

0:44

in Vermont. And, you

0:46

know, sometimes when the

0:48

weather is really messy, really,

0:50

really cold, really, really wet,

0:52

really, really windy, we don't want to go

0:55

outside. We want to stay inside. We want

0:57

to snuggle up. But what I think

0:59

we find when we're inside too much is

1:02

we get kind of out of sorts. We get

1:04

kind of wheelie and cranky. And I kind

1:06

of think we humans need at least a little

1:08

bit of outside time every day, if not a lot.

1:11

And when my kids were little, we were a

1:13

part of a school in a friend community where we believed

1:15

that really the only issue was

1:17

the right clothing. There was no weather too harsh.

1:19

We just had to get everybody in

1:21

the right clothing or the right winter

1:24

gear and we'd be fine. And there's

1:26

some truth to that.

1:28

So this week we are talking all about

1:30

getting outside. Of course, where you are in the world, it

1:32

may not be winter, it may be summer, but

1:35

I think we should all just

1:37

get outside unless the weather is

1:39

completely dangerous. We should get on

1:41

out. So I'm picking stories all week over

1:44

at Sparkle Stories that are about that. And

1:46

this podcast story is

1:50

perfect. It is Winter Wonder

1:52

from Martin and Sylvia Nature School in

1:54

which some of the

1:56

kids in nature school are starting to feel kind

1:58

of sick of winter. But Martin,

2:00

oh Martin, shows

2:03

them all the ways to appreciate

2:05

the gifts of this wintry time

2:07

of year. So

2:10

the story you're just about to listen

2:12

to is a part of our giant

2:14

library of original audio stories. We

2:17

have almost 1,500 original stories

2:19

here at Sparkle Stories. That's

2:23

a lot of really sweet stories

2:26

and you can enjoy them all for

2:29

free for a week. All

2:31

you have to do is go to sparklestories.com,

2:33

click the button at the top that says

2:35

start free trial and then you can listen

2:37

to as much as you like, anytime

2:40

you like. Okay,

2:42

now on to the story, Winter

2:44

Wonder from Martin and Sylvia's

2:46

Nature School. Enjoy. Martin

3:08

and Sylvia live in a tall house

3:10

with lots of windows. In

3:13

their second story loft bedroom, they

3:16

can see their entire backyard with

3:18

the tall maple and oak trees on

3:21

one side and the horse

3:23

fence that borders the browns farm on

3:25

the other. Brother

3:28

and sister love the natural world and

3:31

once a week, every Thursday, they

3:33

each get to spend the entire

3:35

day exploring, adventuring

3:38

and learning in their

3:40

own nature school. For

3:44

Martin, who is seven, it happens at the

3:46

Goose Eye Wilderness School and

3:48

for Sylvia and her friend, Sophia, who

3:51

are both five, it happens

3:53

in Sylvia's backyard in the browns

3:55

farm and throughout the

3:57

surrounding forest. It

4:01

was a cold, grey, late

4:03

winter morning when Martin

4:06

joined his goose-eye friends on

4:08

Thursday. Martin

4:10

hopped out of Daddy's warm truck,

4:13

and when he breathed in the

4:15

freezing air outside, he

4:17

felt like the inside of his nose

4:20

became ice. He

4:22

smiled because it tickled a little, and

4:24

then he ran as fast as he could

4:26

toward the yurt where the other

4:28

early arrivals were waiting. Chick

4:32

Ward, the head of Goose-eye Wilderness

4:35

School, was feeding small

4:37

logs into a wood-burning stove

4:39

inside the yurt, and

4:41

Martin quickly joined the four other

4:44

kids huddling around it. Troy

4:47

and Helmut, two of

4:49

the apprentices, were also there working off

4:51

to the side on setting up some

4:53

kind of project. His

4:56

friend Sam, one of the deer mice group,

4:59

was holding her hands out to the

5:01

stove, and Martin noticed that

5:04

she did not seem happy to be

5:06

there. "'Hi,'

5:09

he said tentatively. "'Hi,'

5:12

she answered. Martin

5:15

was surprised to see her looking a

5:17

little down. Generally,

5:20

Sam is one of the most energetic

5:22

of the deer mice, always ready to

5:24

go charging through the woods or hide

5:27

quietly in a tree or creep

5:29

along silently to sneak up on

5:32

one of her friends. He

5:35

hadn't seen her for two

5:37

weeks, however, because she was

5:39

sick the week before. He

5:41

wondered if she was still not feeling very well.

5:45

"'Are you feeling better?' he

5:48

asked, raising his eyebrows. "'Hmm?'

5:51

she asked, not sure what he meant at

5:53

first. "'Oh, yeah. It

5:56

was just a cold. No, I'm

5:59

fine.'" Martin.

6:04

Nodded and was quiet. He.

6:07

Was wondering what she meant by sort

6:09

of. After a

6:11

few moments, Sam added. I

6:14

just missing Arizona. Mart.

6:18

Not it again. He

6:20

knew that Sam recently moved from Arizona

6:22

and that the mountains and trees and.

6:25

Ground. And whether we're very

6:27

different there. I

6:30

really like the snow. She. Said.

6:33

It's. Just. Winter.

6:35

Is kind of going on for

6:37

a long time. The

6:39

cold a nice and all that. I'm

6:42

just. Hoping. Springtime will

6:44

get here soon. Martin.

6:48

Raised his eyebrows and cocked his head.

6:51

He. Loved winter but.

6:54

Wanted Sam to feel better. He

6:57

was about to say that spring was

6:59

coming soon, but then he thought about

7:01

a conversation he had recently with. Daddy

7:04

he about how. Daddy

7:06

said there was probably another

7:08

six weeks of winter weather

7:10

before they would see signs

7:13

of spring. He.

7:15

Thought that Sam didn't want to hear

7:17

that there was going to be six

7:20

more weeks of winter. And

7:22

even then, it's still took a while

7:24

for things to grow. Their. He.

7:27

Tried to think of encouraging things to

7:29

say where. Are

7:32

you going to visit

7:34

Arizona? Sam

7:37

shook her head. no. Not.

7:39

For a while. My dad

7:41

needs to stay here because it says

7:44

new job. Was he

7:46

is winter like in Arizona. Ast

7:48

Troy who joined them by the

7:50

stove. Oh. Ah,

7:53

Warmer. She said with a

7:55

smile. But. It can get

7:57

kind of cold sometimes. No. snow

8:00

but a little chilly, I guess."

8:03

A little chilly, said Troy with

8:05

a smile. That would be something.

8:08

"'Sounds like summer in Bavaria,'

8:11

said Helmut with a big smile. A

8:14

little chilly. Luckily, I

8:16

love the winter." "'Why?'

8:20

asked Sam softly. Helmut

8:23

looked at her and Martin saw a sparkle

8:25

in his eye. "'Well, I

8:28

think I will show you today. I

8:31

am the dear my apprentice and I

8:34

just decided our theme can

8:37

be Winter Wunder.'

8:41

Neither Martin or Sam knew

8:43

what Winter Wunder meant and

8:46

Helmut lived. In

8:48

German our double u's sound

8:51

like wies. We call

8:53

them double wies. So

8:56

Winter Wunder is

8:59

Winter Wonder. Today

9:03

we will wonder at winter. We

9:06

will, uh, oh, when

9:09

you have amazement what is that?' he

9:11

asked, looking at Troy. Um,

9:15

said Troy, who looked a little confused.

9:18

"'I think wonder's a good word.' Marvel

9:22

asked Martin. He knew it was

9:24

one of his mother's favorite words. "'Yes,

9:27

Marvel. Thank you,

9:29

Martin. Winter

9:31

Wunder, Martin

9:34

Marvel and Sam.'

9:38

"'Surprise?' asked Martin. "'Sam's

9:42

surprise,' said Helmut

9:44

with admiration. "'You

9:46

are good at this, Martin. Martin

9:49

Marvel.' Just

9:52

then the bus from the city arrived and

9:54

both Martin and Sam went outside to greet

9:56

their friends. Martin

9:59

was delighted to be here. to see his friends

10:01

climb out of the bus and wince

10:03

as they felt the cold air. Whee!

10:07

My face just froze, called

10:09

Dion. Too cold,

10:12

said Alexander, who started to jump up

10:14

and down. Brrrr, said

10:17

Jayla, who walked over to Denisha,

10:20

another apprentice, to get warm. Hi,

10:23

everybody, called Jojo, who arrived

10:25

right after the bus. She

10:28

was wearing her hat, but her jacket

10:30

was unzipped as she ran toward them.

10:33

How can you have your jacket open?

10:36

asked Dion with amazement. Oh,

10:39

she said with a smile. Forgot.

10:42

And then she waved to Griffin, who just

10:44

arrived as well. Griffin

10:46

approached, carrying his favorite walking stick

10:48

in one hand and a

10:51

long icicle in the other. He

10:53

held up the icicle proudly. This

10:56

came from our barn, he called.

10:59

My mom kept the heat in the car

11:01

on low so it wouldn't melt. I

11:03

want to lick it, but I think my tongue

11:05

might stick to it. All

11:08

the deer mice, including Martin and Sam,

11:11

huddled together and chatted a moment before

11:13

Helmwert called to them from the head

11:15

of the trail. Deer

11:17

mice, there are

11:19

seven pairs of snowshoes

11:21

lined up over here.

11:24

Pick a pair, put them

11:26

on, and then find

11:29

me in the woods, if

11:31

you can. Then

11:34

Helmwert smiled and dashed down the

11:36

trail with his snowshoes

11:38

kicking snow and bits of ice

11:40

behind him. Martin,

11:43

Griffin, Jojo, and Jayla immediately

11:45

ran toward the snowshoes ready

11:48

to play while Dion, Alexander,

11:50

and Sam walked behind. Can

11:53

we take the bus into the woods? asked

11:56

Dion out loud. Alexander

11:59

said, Yeah! But Sam did

12:01

not respond. She just

12:03

held her arms and continued forward. By

12:07

the time Sam arrived, Jojo was

12:09

already running down the trail while

12:12

Griffin helped Alexander put on his

12:14

shoes. Jayla helped

12:16

Dion and Martin helped Sam.

12:19

The snowshoes were small and made of

12:22

metal and plastic. They

12:24

had a strap to the back of the

12:26

boot and then two pull straps that kept

12:28

the front in place. We

12:31

don't have to run, Martin said to

12:33

Sam, trying to be sympathetic. I'm

12:36

good at walking. Sam

12:38

smiled and when she

12:40

finished strapping the second snowshoe, she

12:42

stood and then they followed

12:44

the others. The

12:47

ice and hard snow of the

12:49

trail made loud crunching

12:52

and scraping sounds as they

12:54

walked, so Martin pulled

12:56

off the trail and onto the

12:58

fresh snow. It

13:00

was much quieter there and instead

13:03

his shoes made a faint squeaking

13:06

sound as he walked. Sam

13:09

did the same and was surprised at the sound.

13:13

What is that? she asked. Oh,

13:15

said Martin with a smile. When

13:18

it's really cold, snow does that.

13:21

I don't know why. Squeak,

13:23

squeak, squeak, squeak. They went side by

13:26

side, keeping an eye on the other

13:28

deer mice in front of them, but

13:30

also looking around the quiet,

13:33

still forest. Is

13:36

this the first time you wore snowshoes?

13:38

says Martin. No, said

13:41

Sam. Our neighbors let

13:43

me try theirs a few weeks ago. I

13:46

thought I walked better around without them. These

13:49

ones are nicer. Yeah,

13:51

said Martin. We have

13:53

old fashioned ones at home, the big ones.

13:56

I love snowshoeing. They

13:59

walked. some more, and Sam asked. So,

14:03

you like the winter? Yeah,

14:05

a lot, said Martin. I

14:08

love snow and sledding and making

14:10

forts and doing this. The

14:12

snow makes it so you can walk anywhere. Sam

14:16

looked up and agreed. It

14:19

was a lot easier to get around when you

14:21

had snow shoes, and there was

14:23

snow everywhere. She

14:26

remembered how thick the forest was

14:28

in early autumn when wilderness school

14:30

began, and really had to

14:32

stay on the path. But

14:34

this felt wide open and free,

14:38

and Sam, feeling a little surprised,

14:41

smiled. They

14:44

walked and walked, and then saw that some

14:46

of the other tracks left the main trail

14:48

and headed off to the right. I

14:52

think Helmut went this way and someone

14:54

followed him, suggested Martin. Sam

14:57

nodded, but then narrowed her eyes and looked

15:00

around. But others

15:02

continued on, and then up

15:04

there, one of them branched off again. Martin

15:08

looked ahead and could see what Sam

15:10

had spotted. What

15:12

do you want to do? Martin asked. Well,

15:17

said Sam, who was no longer

15:19

thinking about the cold, let's

15:22

find the snow shoe tracks that

15:24

are biggest and follow those. Good

15:27

idea, said Martin, who looked

15:29

around. They studied the

15:31

tracks and found that, indeed, the

15:34

largest shoe tracks continued forward. This

15:36

delighted them both, and they followed.

15:40

They came to two other sets of tracks that

15:42

left the trail, one to the left

15:44

and one to the right. But

15:46

Sam insisted that the largest

15:48

shoe tracks continued forward. Martin

15:51

enjoyed Sam's enthusiasm. They

15:55

walked a bit further until Martin

15:57

spotted Smoke ahead. I

15:59

think. Helmut must have started a fire,"

16:02

he said quietly. They

16:04

approached slowly and more carefully, but

16:07

the snow continued to squeak as they

16:09

went forward. Soon

16:11

they saw a single figure sitting on

16:13

the other side of the smoke, and

16:17

then stood still as they realized

16:19

it was Helmut. "'You

16:22

didn't hide,' Sam said. "'I

16:25

didn't say I would,' said Helmut

16:27

as he smiled and tossed another

16:29

log onto the fire. "'I

16:32

just said, you should find me, and

16:34

you did.' Sam

16:36

and Martin smiled. They felt special

16:39

and very clever for finding him. "'So

16:43

the smile on your face, Sam,

16:46

tells me that you are enjoying the

16:49

winter just a little bit more,' said

16:51

Helmut, who indicated that they should both come.

16:54

"'Come join him by the fire,' said

16:58

Sam with a shrug. "'I like

17:00

snowshoeing.' "'Snow

17:02

is a gift,' said Helmut.

17:05

"'Like the cold is a gift.

17:08

The snow wakes you up,

17:11

makes you feel alive, and —' "'Ah,

17:14

what is the word?' "'Alert.

17:18

And the snow is a different kind

17:20

of gift. It's

17:22

calming, heavy in

17:24

a way. Peace.

17:28

Ah.' "'Then Helmut

17:30

held out his arms and smiled, like

17:33

he was giving the forest a big

17:35

hug. Martin

17:37

nodded. He often felt this way about

17:39

the winter, and then he looked

17:41

at Sam and saw that she was not

17:43

really convinced yet. But

17:46

it was true the winter was long where

17:48

they lived. He could recall

17:50

last winter, which seemed to

17:52

last a very long time. He

17:55

remembered last year's Easter was very cold,

17:57

and there was no sun in the

17:59

day. In of spring anywhere. But.

18:03

You are thinking of home

18:05

in Arizona. Correct. Assed.

18:08

Helmet to Noticed the same

18:10

expression on Sam's face. Sam.

18:13

Shrugged and then said. I'm

18:15

just. A little tired of

18:18

winter. I believe

18:20

it said helmets who again padded the

18:22

spot on the log next to the

18:24

fire. The two

18:26

of them sat next to him and after a

18:29

moment of quiet, he said, Snow.

18:33

And ice Or cold.

18:36

And. They can feel like a bite.

18:39

And. You have to. Where are these Heavy

18:41

close all the time and. It's.

18:43

Dark. Know. It's.

18:46

Not any easy season.

18:49

You see, I grew up in

18:51

long winters so I have a

18:53

lot of stories about winter in

18:56

my life. About. Snow

18:58

and Skiing And. Skating.

19:03

Sledding. And snow shoeing. I

19:06

spent all day outside, even on

19:08

the coldest days because it was

19:10

the only time of the year

19:12

when I could do these things.

19:15

I remember digging a tunnel in

19:17

the snow from my house all

19:20

the way to my friend Yurgens

19:22

house. And our parents

19:24

didn't even know about it. I

19:27

have a lot of memories like that. Now

19:30

you he said clapping

19:33

Sam on the shoulder

19:35

and smiling. Have winter

19:38

memories in Arizona! Where.

19:41

My. Don't know, Arizona? are. Those.

19:45

Tax. To seize your. Cacti

19:47

that look like people there.

19:50

It. Is it's. All. Desert

19:52

Hot and dry. Kind

19:55

of said sam. But. It's. Really?

19:58

Pretty and colorful. And there's. Always.

20:00

Something happening and always something to

20:02

do. Ah said film

20:05

a tooth. nodded his head.

20:07

So. Yes, I see, It.

20:10

Is the same with you? You

20:12

know, Arizona? And what is happening

20:14

and what there is to do. And. I

20:16

know Bavaria and this part of the

20:18

world now and. Winter. And.

20:21

What is happening and why there is to

20:23

do here. And.

20:25

Then he looked at the two of them and winked. And

20:28

so. What? Do we do? When.

20:31

We are some place new.

20:33

And someplace where we don't know what is

20:36

happening in what there is to do. Sam.

20:40

Looked at Martin. And then back at

20:42

helmet. And.

20:45

Ask someone. Yes

20:47

that is true you could ask

20:49

someone said helmet nodding his head.

20:52

But. What if you don't have

20:54

any one to ask? Or.

20:56

You. Don't like their answer? What do

20:59

you do? What? To

21:01

shoot you use to find out

21:03

what is happening and what the

21:05

is to do. Both.

21:09

Sam and Martin. Tried to

21:11

think of an answer. Sam.

21:13

Wondered if he was talking about using

21:16

the computer. While. Martin was thinking

21:18

of. reading new books

21:20

out of the library, Finally,

21:23

Helmet answered it for them. You.

21:26

Use. Martin.

21:28

Marvel and San Surprise he

21:30

said with a laugh. Marvel.

21:34

Is. Walking around with

21:36

your eyes wide open saying

21:39

wow, what is that. And.

21:42

Surprise is noticing things you

21:44

never saw before. Wow, I

21:47

never saw that. And

21:50

here is being.wonder.

21:53

Winter. Wonder. The.

21:56

Two of them nodded and smiled at helmet. Though.

21:59

Sam's. It wasn't sure how to

22:01

do this. She enjoyed how excited

22:03

helmet was getting. So.

22:06

Here. Is what you do. He. Said the

22:08

same. You. And Martin are

22:11

going to go into the woods. And.

22:13

Find everyone like you Found me!

22:16

All. The deer mice. All of them. But.

22:19

You. Can't talk to each other.

22:22

You. Will work together with out

22:25

using any words. This.

22:27

Excited Martin and he noticed that Sam

22:30

liked the idea is well, Meanwhile,

22:32

I'll keep the Dm eyes moving

22:35

around to make it a challenge

22:37

for you. Once. You

22:39

find them and call out there

22:41

name. Only. Their name. They.

22:44

Will return to the fire to stay

22:46

warm while you look for the others.

22:50

Both Sam and Martin nodded their heads.

22:53

Playing this game is very different

22:55

than in the spring, summer, and

22:57

autumn. There. Are advantages

23:00

And this advantages that

23:02

you will discover. Keep.

23:05

That in mind. Okay, When

23:08

you hear my call, come back to the

23:10

fire yourselves. Off you go. Then.

23:13

He waved for the two of them to go

23:15

into the woods. Martin.

23:18

Looked at Sam and could see a

23:20

sparkle returned to her. I. She.

23:23

Liked this game. They

23:26

started off still wearing their snow

23:28

shoes, but after a few strides,

23:30

Sam tapped Martin on the arm

23:32

and put her gloved finger to

23:34

her mouth to indicate that they

23:36

were walking too loudly. Then

23:39

she demonstrated how they should walk. Carefully.

23:42

Slowly. So. As to

23:44

keeps squeaking and crackling as quiet

23:47

as possible. Martin.

23:49

Obliged. And. The two of

23:51

them snow shoe tip toed off

23:53

together. sam

23:56

lead the way while mark and followed and

23:58

kept look out They walked

24:00

and walked, and then Martin thought

24:03

he heard a rhythmic crunching

24:05

sound in the distance. He

24:07

tapped Sam and then pointed toward the

24:09

sound. They stood still,

24:12

and the silence was crisp

24:14

and clean and wonderful. It

24:16

was like he was in a very

24:18

special place where everything was perfect

24:22

and light and filled

24:25

with marvel. They

24:29

stood still, and

24:31

then Sam could hear it. Crunch, crunch,

24:34

crunch, crunch. She smiled,

24:36

and the two of them turned and

24:38

walked toward the sound. After

24:41

a few more strides, they heard soft

24:44

voices as well and increased their pace.

24:47

Then Sam suddenly stopped and looked

24:49

wide-eyed at two figures walking in

24:51

front of them. It

24:54

was as if they suddenly appeared. It

24:57

was Dion and Alexander, and

24:59

Dion was talking on and on about

25:02

something, and Alexander was giggling. Alexander

25:07

called Martin. Dion called

25:09

Sam. Ah, said Dion.

25:12

How did you find us? We

25:14

were being so quiet. Sam

25:17

looked at Martin and smiled, and Martin,

25:19

thinking of Helmut, looked at Sam and

25:22

winked. Let's

25:24

go to the fire, said Alexander.

25:27

Oh, I hope Helmut made some

25:30

tea, said Dion, and off

25:32

they went. Sam

25:34

and Martin watched the two of

25:36

them go, and when it was quiet enough,

25:38

they listened in other directions

25:41

again. They heard

25:43

the creaks of the trees, the

25:45

coying of a crow far away,

25:47

and then both of them heard the same

25:49

thing. A soft laugh.

25:53

It was Jayla's laugh. It

25:57

sounded very far away, like on the other side

25:59

of the tree. of a canyon, but at

26:01

the same time the snow and

26:03

ice and empty trees made the

26:06

sound seem also very close, almost

26:09

inside their ears. It

26:12

was magic. It

26:14

was marvel. It was

26:16

winter wonder. Sam

26:20

and Martin looked at each other, smiled,

26:23

and this time they both winked.

26:27

And as they headed in the direction of

26:29

the faint yet magically close

26:32

sound of their friend's laugh,

26:34

both were in agreement. Winter

26:38

was indeed filled with wonder

26:42

and marvel, and it

26:44

was definitely filled with

26:46

surprises. If

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27:01

Just go to sparklestories.com and click the

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27:05

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27:23

has been an original story

27:25

by Sparkle Stories, of sparklestories.com.

27:28

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27:32

rights reserved. We hope

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