It
was a difficult decision. Its not as if they’d made us swear an
oath of secrecy or anything but we were faced with something of a
moral dilemma.
Well,
what would you do if you came across an Oddsok, deep in the woods, in
the middle of the Lake District?. Would you tell the world that
there were creatures who no-one had ever suspected before living a
magical existence virtually on the doorstep?.
Apart
from worrying that everyone would think us daft, we had to consider
the Oddsoks themselves. Would we destroy their way of life? corrupt
them? As we’ve said, a difficult decision.
We
decided that we could afford to tell one special group of people.
Children. They’d understand. And they’d keep the secret. Mind
you, we haven’t revealed all we know. Like why these otherwise shy
creatures wear the most vivid Odd Soks for example.
Oh
No! The times not right for that yet.
But
we’re getting ahead of ourselves. You, of course, know nothing at
all about these strange little creatures. There are lots of them.
Different families. Different species even. They live high in the
misty mountains, around the lakes and deep in the woods.
The
Elms - They call themselves that because they’re a bit like elves
but they live under the roots of trees. (we shouldn’t reveal this
but the ones we know live on an island called Henholme on Lake
Windermere). Our three Elm friends are Rufus, Bud and Mosscrop.
(you’ll see what they look like from the drawings they allowed us
to make but if you could imagine an oval, a bit like a rugby ball,
with lots and lots of hair and arms and legs and feet with Odd Soks
the you’ll get some idea.
Rufus
has red hair and that suits his fiery personality. He’s always
alert and eager for adventure but he can be a bit impetuous.
Then
there’s Mosscrop. He has green hair shaped like a freshly cut
haystack and he’s a wee bit bad tempered to say the least.
Bud
is the youngest and he idolises Rufus. His
hair is blue.
Then
there’s Blind Crag. He’s not an Elm. He lives in a cave up in
the Langdale mountains. He’s not really blind either, just a
little short-sighted. But you’d expect that from someone his age.
(rumour has it he’s as old as the
mountains).
His
‘eyes’ are Pike, his constant companion, quick and clever.
And
we mustn’t forget the Lowbs. They live in the barns. At the
moment, they’re in Ambleside, but by the time we’ve finished this
sentence they could have moved on. Little Lowb is our favourite.
And
Then there are the Paddlers. There are hundreds of these in the
streams and rivers but most people would never know because they
cunningly disguise themselves as boulders. (amazingly, they never get
their Odd Soks wet!)
It
was Autumn when we first stumbled across them. The day when the
lightning struck the tree whilst Little Lowb was picking blackberry’s
with a hedgehog and The Elms were on the other side of the valley
gathering mushrooms. The day off the great forest fire when all
would have been lost. The day when Blind Crag used his ancient magic
to shape the mists into eagles and sent them gliding over the woods,
smothering the flames.
What
a day that was!.
We’ve
seen them many time since, we’ve even joined them for mushrooms
toasted by the fire and we’ve listened to their tales. Adventures
great and small, heart-stopping and funny.
Best
of all, We’ve learned about the countryside and its inhabitants and
how fascinating and precious there existence is.
For
example, there was a time when.....but no, that’s for another day.
