"Now before we carry on with the story I would like
to dedicate it especially to Ayiliya Byrne, my
beautiful Great Niece who lives in Kent. I know she
loves animals and I'm sure she will love Sandy/Gus
and Carrie-anne as well as Marus and Rascal and all
the strange animals and friends they meet on
their journey around the
country-side."
The Tales of Sandy
Bramblefield
Tale One Saving the
Village
Boulder after boulder
continued to cascade down the steep mountain side,
already Bramble Cottage and
River-side Croft lay waste under the rubble that
was quickly filling the pass between
the Bryn and the Berain. The small road into and
out of the tiny hamlet
of Bramble-way, was impassable, and what was
even worse was the way
the falling rocks were now beginning to find
there way into the raging
river.
I tell you Doris, if these rocks keep falling all
night we shall wake up
drowned in the morning. Sandy said shaking his
head from side to side as he
looked at the water level rising on his legs.
If we drowned and wake up in the morning that will
be a miracle in itself. Doris said without looking
up from her task in hand,
"and if you used you hands more to build this dam,
hopefully we will not
drown at all, Sandy Bramblefield. Now get your
great paws down here and help me
with this dam, Jeremy said he wants it at least ten
foot high.
Oh look Doris! I
think thats your kitchen table over there. Sandy
said a broad smile on his
hairy face, It only has two legs left, poor thing.
Sandy Doris yelled at the top of her voice, which
was instantly drowned out
by the noise from the river. It is our job to try
to stop the water getting
into the hamlet from this left bank, now will you
move them boulders over here
now please?
Sandy muttered something under his breath, before
walking over to the nearest
boulder and picking it up as if it were a feather
he threw it over to were
Doris was standing, who only just managed to get
out of the way before it
landed with a heavy splash on the edge of the river
bank.
For goodness sake Sandy what are you trying
to do now? That almost landed on top of me.
Sometimes I wonder if you were born
with any brains at all.
I didnt mean for it
to land so close Doris, honest I
didnt, I was trying to get it so you wouldnt have
to lift it yourself, it is
very heavy. I really am very sorry Doris.
I should blooming well hope so you great oaf Sandy
Bramblefield Doris said as she picked herself up
and dusted some of
the mud off her coat.
With that she turned
on her heels and started to walk away
from the apologetic bear.
Where are you going Doris? Sandy shouted as she
walked away, I didnt
mean it honestly I didnt. I just got carried away.
I'm sorry!
Im off to find Jeremy he will have to find
someone else to help you finish
building it, I really dont want to end up
squashed. Doris
shouted back as she carried on walking up the
path.
Sandy
stood there, he felt really awful, ok, so he was a
bit clumsy, you might even
say he was heavy handed, but he was all heart. The
fact that his brain and his
heart walked two separate paths just made it a
little harder to co ordinate his
good will and his daftness.
He shrugged his shoulders and carried
on working on
his own, within no time at all, the dam was almost
in finished only a couple
more large rocks and it would be watertight. The
small cottages that lay all
along the bottom of the mountainside were
safe. The group of bears on the
opposite bank had worked furiously to keep up with
Sandy, now they moved back
away from the dam as Sandy moved himself
into place, carrying with him a rock,
so big that very few bears could have moved
together let alone on their
own. He dropped it into the hole and
immediately the water in the river
turned away from the village and raged down towards
the weir which was a few
miles further down the Ellewy.
A huge cheer went up from
the rest of the
villagers, there were quite a few there who
remembered the last time the mountains
descended into the small pass.
The Bryn side
of the mountain had always been a bit
temperamental. Sandys own father had
been killed in the land slide of forty seven, but
since then there had never
been such terrible storms, and without doubt they
had had lots more rain and
strong winds than ever before, this time another
avalanche further up the
stream had raised the level of the water and as the
current increased the base
of the Bryn collapsed and now there was a full
scale rescue going on to save
the Brambleway.
Sandy stood up admiring his work and
he bowed low to
the bears who were applauding him, a huge smile upon his big, brown
hairy face.
When the applause turned to screams, Sandy
didnt notice. And the next minute the sound of the
falling boulders made him
look up. He didnt have time to move out of the way
and the last the villagers
saw of him was his huge head fall forward, as a
massive boulder landed on top
of his shoulders. Sandy
was already unconscious when he was sucked under
the waves that carried his
body down stream towards the weir and certain
death.