Th
Dir
dventures A e
of
l l ty D a ean the Dustb
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Once upon a time there lived a little fellow that went by the name of Dirty Dean the Dustball. Dean lived under the kitchen floor, near the potbelly stove in the Sanders farmhouse. Since Dean was a dustball, he was a naturally light hearted fellow. Dean was made up of the kinds of things that are swept into corners, sewing thread, small pieces of paper and of course dust. Deans mouth was made from a piece of twine and his eyes were two unpopped popcorn kernels and his arms and legs were made up of bendy bread ties. Every morning Dean would wake up to the sound of the farmhouse rooster. He would climb out of his tissue box bed, stretch out his tiny arms and legs and give himself a good fluffing. One of his favorite things to do was to watch the Sanders family as they ate breakfast. Dean has to shimmy up the pipe near the back of the stove and climb through a tiny hole in the floor to see them. The young boy and girl, Tommy and Sally were in a particular mood this morning.
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“Sally, Tommy, your father and I want you to come straight home after school today. I know that today is the last day of school, and you’re both excited about summer, but do come home right away today.” said the children’s mother.
“But mom I wanted to go fishing today after school.” Whined Tommy. “Mama, I wanted to go to the store for some new hair ribbon.” pleaded Sally. “Sally. Tommy. Do what I tell you and come home right after school. We have a surprise for you!” said their mother, grinning from ear to ear. Tommy and Sally begged their mother to tell them what the surprise was, but, she wouldn’t tell them. So they finished the last bites of their breakfast and hurried out the door. Today was the last day of school for three whole months. Dean made his way back down through the hole in the floor; thinking to himself about surprises, and school and summer, and what it all meant. Dean had so many questions. “Chirp, chirp, click, click...well, hello there Dean, good morning.” greeted Mr. Bill Cricket. “Oh, hello Mr. Cricket...can you tell me something please? What is a surprise?” asked Dean. “Well let me see,” said Bill as he calmed his wings and cleared his throat, “ I believe that a surprise is something you get when you’re not expecting it. I do think that most surprises are good things though.” “Tommy and Sally are getting one today, after school, they were so excited about it. A surprise must be a wonderful thing to have.” said Dean. 3
“Would you like to have a surprise too Dean?” asked Bill. “Oh yes! Yes I would like it very much; what is it?” asked Dean. “It’s the best kind of surprise, it’s an adventure! An adventure is a wonderful thing. Now we must decide where to go. Hmmm... I know the perfect place! We’ll journey to the top of the stairwell, to the window sill. From there you can see the whole farm.” said Bill excitedly. “But how will I travel to the top of the stairwell Bill? I could get caught in a breeze, and blown so far away, it would take me days to get back to my home all the way by the stove.” said Dean, a little worried. “Oh Dean, never fear my friend, I’ll be with you every step of theway, why you can ride on my back all the way there and home. It will be so exciting! Come on, say you’ll go.” pleaded Bill Cricket. Dean took a deep breath, mustering up all the courage he had, and said “Let’s Go!!!”
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“That’s the spirit! Now, climb up on my back and hold on tight. The first thing we must do is reach the doorway to the stairwell. We will have to cross the kitchen floor, it could be dangerous.” said Bill Cricket. Dean held on with all his might as Bill climbed out from under the stove. They scampered to the table, and paused for a moment. Bill was just ready to bolt for the doorway when...SWOOSH! A draft caught them and carried them all the way across the floor. Mr. Sanders had just come in, to wash up for lunch. “Wooohoo! That was great, can we do it again?” asked Dean, so excited he could hardly keep still. “You liked that? Humph, I didn’t exactly plan that, but it was fun.” said Bill with a grin. Dean and Bill laughed for a moment, as they caught their breath. Now they were ready for the next challenge; the staircase! Dean held on while Bill clambered his way up the steps, one by one. Dean was amazed at all the beautiful things in the house. He especially liked the light fixture that hung from the high ceiling; it sparkled with lights. The carpeted stairs were nice too. Along the way Dean collected a few bits of dust and some scraps of thread. Dean was fluffy and full, he’d never felt better, nor been so happy. It took Dean and Bill the better part of the day to reach the top of the stairs. “Well”, sighed Bill, “we’ve made it to the top, now comes the hard part. We must climb onto the curtain, and make our way up to the windowsill. From there we will be able to see everything!” 5
Up they went, Dean first, followed closely behind by Bill Cricket. Dean had never climbed on fabric before; but he made it fine. When they got to the top, they swung in and landed on the window sill. “Oh my, it’s so beautiful; so this is the outside, it’s so much bigger than I had ever dreamed it would be.” exclaimed Dean. Dirty Dean the Dustball and Mr. Bill Cricket sat in the window sill for hours, looking, talking and dreaming too. Bill told Dean about all the animals in the barnyard. For the first time Dean saw the rooster that wakes him up every morning. He saw the cows and chickens, the barn, the hen house and all the farm tools. Dean was most taken in by the clouds in the sky. The clouds were his favorite part of the world outside. They reminded him of himself; and he wondered if he looked like a cloud. “Thank you so much for my surprise adventure Bill, it’s been so fun, I’ll never forget it.” said Dean. Just then there was a loud crash! Dean and Bill turned from the window to see what had happened. GRRRRROWL.....RARR.....RARR....RUFF RUFF. Sniff Sniff....“What is that?” asked Dean 6
“I’m afraid that is Tommy and Sally’s surprise, Dean. Hurry, climb the curtain as fast as you can, hurry, hurry!!” shouted Bill Cricket. Dean climbed as quick as a dustball could; but it wasn’t fast enough. Suddenly the curtain began to sway back and forth, there was alot of shouting and alot of growling. Dean started to fall. He fell much slower than Bill Cricket; for the air went right through him. Dean saw Bill below him. Bill landed on his feet and squeezed into a crack near the window sill. Dean landed on the carpet at the bottom of the curtain just in time to see a very large animal being pulled away by Mrs. Sanders. “Oh my goodness, what am I going to do with you. If you are going to live inside, you can’t raise such a ruckus every time you see a cricket?” cried Mrs. Sanders. “Now come on, be a good puppy and settle down. Tommy and Sally will be home in a little while.” said Mrs. Sanders as she took the puppy downstairs.
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Dean was scared and excited all at the same time. A surprise puppy for the children, a fall from the curtain, a look at the world outside, all in one day! Wow! But where was Bill Cricket? How was Dean going to get home, to his cozy place under the kitchen floor? Dean was afraid to move. He stayed behind the curtain, sitting on the carpet for the longest time. Tommy and Sally had come home from school some time ago; they just loved their new puppy. Dean listened to them laughing and playing. Tommy tried to get the puppy to play fetch by tossing a ball up the stairs, but the puppy wouldn’t fetch the ball. Soon it was evening, and time for the Sanders family to eat dinner. Mrs. Sanders had just called her family into dinner when Dean heard the sound he’d been waiting for. Chirp...Chirp...Clickity...Click... “Bill...Bill Cricket is that you?” cried Dean. “Psssss...over here, in the corner, it’s me, Bill!” answered Bill Cricket. “Oh! Thank goodness it’s you. I’ve been so afraid. I was beginning to wonder if I’d ever see you again. I saw you creep into the crack, are you alright?” asked Dean. “Yes Dean I’m fine. I’m truly sorry for leaving you for so long. You see, crickets are terrified of dogs. I had to make sure that the puppy was gone before I came out again.” said Bill.
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“Bill, how are we going to get home again? Are you not afraid that the puppy may see you?” asked Dean. “Don’t worry Dean. I have a plan.” said Bill Cricket. Dean and Bill waited until long after dark, till the Sanders family had gone to sleep, before they made a move. They both heard the puppy outside, scratching at the door, so they knew it was safe. “Dean in a couple of minutes we are going to have a visitor. I have a friend that’s going to help you get home; you see I don’t think that I can carry you back down the stairwell, my back is very sore from squeezing through that crack.” said Bill. “Who is your friend?” asked Dean. “Her name is Martha, she’s a Luna moth; and quite beautiful I might say.” said Bill. “Oh my...but how will Martha the Luna Moth help me get home, and what about you? How will you get home?” “Don’t worry, you’ll be just fine. Martha is an excellent flyer. Just think of this as another adventure.” said Bill. A few moments later Dean looked up and saw Martha coming toward them. She was so graceful, and quite beautiful. Her wings were silvery in color, and so soft. She had large eyes and very long legs. Martha lofted down to the carpet as gentle as a falling leaf.
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“Good evening gentlemen, how do you do?” Martha asked. “It’s my understanding that you need some assistance getting home Dean, is that right?” she asked. “Why yes, I do need some help, if you don’t mind.” said Dean. “Have you ever flown before, Dean?” she asked. “No, but Bill tells me that you are an excellent flyer, and I would greatly appreciate your help.” said Dean. “Very well then, let’s get ready. Dean, you’ll need to tighten yourself up into a ball, the best you can. I’ll pick you up and we’ll be off.” she said very confidently. “O.K.... Bill, thank you for the wonderful day. I’ll see you soon.” said Dean, as he squished himself up into a tight little ball. Martha picked up Dean just as she said she would. At first Dean closed his eyes, but then opened them slowly. How magical this was! The light fixture in the hallway was so beautiful as it reflected the light of the moon.
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Dean and Martha flew very high. They flew so high that Dean could stretch out his bendy bread tie arms and tough the chains in the cealing fan! Dean could see so many things being up this high. Things he had never seen before. He could see the tops of the tall bookshelfs and on top of those shelves were toys the children had lost. The living room and kitchen seemed so far away from them. Things that once looked so big to Dean, now seemed so small. “Thank you so much Martha, that was just wonderful, a true surprise.� said Dean.
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Dean climbed off of Marthas back. “Thank you again Martha. I had a wonderful time. I hope we meet again. Goodnight”. Dean waves goodbye to Martha the Moth as she flies away. You’re quite welcome, Mr. Dustball.” said Martha as she flew away. Dean made his way back to the hole in the floor, under the potbelly stove. He shimmied down to his cozy tissue box, and snuggled in. He thought for a long time about the events of that day, and all that he had learned. Dean realized that there was no place else he would rather be than the Sanders house on the Kansas prairie. That nigt Dean had the most wonderful deams. He deamed about the new friends he had made and all of the wonderful adventures they would go on. Maybe one day they would go on even bigger adventures and make more friends.
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Written by: Sally Holman Margaret Reynolds and Sarah Reynolds Illustrated by: Sarah Reynolds