Garry and Morris Meet Gilbert the Crow

It was a rainy spring day and Gary and Morris were visiting their friend Bullwinkle at his cabin. He had recently repaired the chimney and needed help getting the fireplace cleaned up. 

Being a full-sized moose, he was a bit too large for a good job and the raccoon family was out on vacation. He figured that while the cats may not have opposable thumbs, they were just the right size to help him get his fireplace back in action. 

“This sure is hard work,” said Morris.

“And I thank you two endlessly for it,” said Bullwinkle.

“You do? Or do you mean you will? Or are you thanking us right now?” Morris was a little confused.

“I am just very happy and very thankful for your help!” the big moose replied.

Gary laughed and then immediately coughed up some soot from the old chimney.

The two cats were covered in dirt. 

“Well, I can see the sky from here. I can even see a little bird’s nest in the tree above! I think your chimney is all good to go, Bullwinkle.” 

“Thank you, Gary!” said Bullwinkle.

The three animals stepped outside and brushed themselves off. As they did, something fell from the sky and landed right on top of Bullwinkle’s head. 

“What on Earth was that?!” he said. 

Gary and Morris immediately ran over to the small object. 

“It’s a nut!” said Morris. 

“Like the kind Joey the squirrel would eat?” asked Bullwinkle.

“No. Like for a nut and a bolt,” said Morris. 

“What do you mean?” asked Gary. 

“Back when I was living in the city,” said Morris. “My owners fixed up a lot of things around the house. Nuts and bolts are the little things they use to hold stuff together.”

Gary knew what he meant while Bullwinkle seemed a bit confused. He would have been scratching his head if his hooves were physically capable of reaching it. 

Morris grabbed the nut and carried it into the cabin where the three could better examine it. 

“So, if this is some sort of human tool, why did it fall from the sky?” asked Bullwinkle.

“Good question,” said Gary.

Just then, Morris called over to the three from his perch at one of the windows.

“Guys! I think I might have figured out what is going on,” he said. 

Bullwinkle and Gary went over to the window with Morris and saw a big ol’ crow standing outside, looking at the ground very carefully. 

“I remember my previous owners telling me about crows. They are smart birds and they like to collect things,” said Morris.

Bullwinkle got excited and burst out the door.

“Is this your nut?” he shouted.

The crow flew away instantly. 

“Shoot,” he said. “I must have scared him.”

The cats laughed and sat outside with Bullwinkle.

“Well, what can you do? Right?” said Gary.

“You guys wanna go for a walk by the water?” the big moose asked.

“Yeah, let’s go see if Terrance is home!” Morris replied.

The animals trotted off into the bush to go find their beaver friend Terrance.

After hanging out by Terrance’s dam for about 45 minutes, the animals all returned to Bullwinkle’s cabin. As they approached the building, they saw a big brass button sitting on the ground near the entrance.

“What is this?” asked Gary.

“I wonder if that’s from the crow that was here earlier!” added Morris. 

Just then, a tiny little spoon fell from the sky, right in between them. This time, the sound of the item landing on the ground was followed by a loud noise from above. 

“Caw. Caw.”

It was the crow! 

Bullwinkle shouted up to the crow, “Hey buddy! I think you dropped something! Don’t worry, we are friendly!”

The crow flew over to the roof of the cabin and perched itself on the edge. 

“Hello there,” said the crow.

“Hi! My name is Gary and this is Morris.”

“My name is Gilbert,” said the crow.

“I’m Bullwinkle,” said Bullwinkle.

“It looks like we might have received a few gifts from you today!” said Gary.

“I’m sorry,” said Gilbert. “I keep trying to bring shiny objects back to my nest, but my beak is a bit small and they keep falling out of my grip.”

“Ohhh okay,” said Morris. “That makes sense. We thought it was raining human tools!”

“I suppose you could say that it was,” Gilbert said with a laugh.

“What’s the deal with all that stuff?” asked Bullwinkle.

“It’s hard to explain, but I just love to collect certain things,” said Gilbert. “I have a collection of shiny things back at my nest!”

The cats looked confused at the idea of wanting to collect anything. 

“I just love the way shiny things reflect in the sunlight,” Gilbert added. “It gives me energy and excitement.”

“Oh yeah?” asked Morris.

“It also helps attract a mate,” Gilbert added.

“So let me get this straight,” said Gary. “You collect shiny objects because you like them and hope another crow will come along who also likes them?”

“That’s right,” said Gilbert. “Crows love shiny things.”

Bullwinkle and the cats laughed with Gilbert. It all sounded so silly to them, but they found him to be polite and he made them laugh, so they offered their help when Gilbert mentioned he had a bunch more to move to his nest. 

“I’m so grateful for your help!” said Gilbert.

“Where are you finding these things?” said Gary.

“All over the place. If I am out flying and something catches my eye, I’ll come down and pick it up. Most of it comes from the city garbage dump though,” Gilbert replied. He then added that he had a pile of stuff at the dump and that was where they were headed.

The four of them made their way there through the forest, all sitting atop Bullwinkle’s back. At one point, they had to walk past the highway for a moment and a car went by. The humans in the car were sitting with their jaws dropped as they couldn’t believe what they were seeing – a moose with a crow and two cats riding on its back!

After a short jaunt next to the highway they had finally arrived at their destination. 

Here we are!” said the friendly crow.

The dump was full of old garbage bags full of trash, broken appliances, barbecues, and other random items. While the cats were fascinated by everything, Bullwinkle was less curious.

“Should we just grab something and head back?” said Bullwinkle.

Gilbert motioned them over a spot where he had been collecting the shiny objects to get them ready for transport. Almost like a staging area.

“All this stuff here can go,” said Gilbert. “Take whatever you can and let’s all ride back to my nest – which is just above your cabin.”

The cats had become quite distracted and were now climbing the giant piles of garbage.

Eventually, Bullwinkle and Gilbert got the cats back on track and over to the pile of goods. Bullwinkle agreed to stand still while Gary, Morris and Gilbert loaded a bunch of shiny objects onto his back. 

Once finished, they took their spots on Bullwinkle’s back, and strode off again, first next to the highway, and then into the forest. 

“I feel like we just pulled off a big heist!” said Bullwinkle.

“Well, on the plus side, this was all thrown out by the humans,” Gilbert explained. “Nobody wanted any of this stuff anymore, so it was free to take!”

“Oh okay. I get it,” said Bullwinkle.

“I may love my shiny objects, but one thing I won’t do is take them from people who might still need them.”

“Didn’t you say you found things all over the place though?” said Morris.

“Yes, but usually that is on the ground in an empty park, or by a busy street where cars are going by.”

Gilbert was a good crow, and the other animals could sense it. 

After about 15 minutes of gliding over the bush, Bullwinkle had brought them all back to his cabin.

“Here we are gang!” he said.

The cats jumped off his back with a few items each and Gilbert immediately grabbed something and flew up to his nest.

“Up here fellas!” he shouted down.

“Oh okay! There it is!” said Gary. “That’s the nest I saw earlier through the chimney!”

“That must be where the other stuff was either headed to or came from,” said Morris with a laugh.

Gilbert flew back down to the animals, who had made a little pile of all his shiny things from the garbage dump.

“Thanks for your help today!” said Gilbert. “It can be so hard to find good friends in the wild.”

“You will be very pleased to learn that you are setting up your nest in a very friendly area. This forest is full of wonderful creatures,” said Bullwinkle.

“Absolutely! We have a ton of friends throughout this place, and we love to get together and have fun!” said Gary.

“Next time we do something, you should join us,” Morris suggested.

“We like to have little parties, game nights, sometimes we go on adventures together and just last week we did a scavenger hunt!” Gary added. 

Gilbert had a look on his face that made the cats confused. He looked sad.

“What’s wrong Gilbert?” asked Gary.

“I’ve just been so lonely. As a crow, sometimes we see other crows, but most of the time everyone else runs away from me.” 

“Oh, Gilbert!” Morris said as he put his arm around him. “You’ve got friends in us!”

“Thank you,” he said. “This means so much to me.”

“You’ll never be alone, buddy. We are neighbours now!” said Bullwinkle. “You’re right above my cabin and if you ever need anything, just… well… crow!” 

Gilbert laughed a bit and wiped his face with his big wings. 

The animals sat around and chatted for a bit more while Gilbert finished bringing his items up to his nest. They all had a few more laughs, thanked each other again, then promised to see each other again soon.

Gary and Morris had to get back to the shelter as the sun was going down and Gilbert suggested coming on the walk with them. 

“Of course, you can walk with us,” said Morris. 

“Let’s roll! Mama’s going to wonder where we are. It’s getting dark,” said Gary.

The cats took off with Gilbert in the air just above them. They darted in and out of the trees and bush, while Gilbert would swoop down low then shoot way up high into the air and circle back. 

When they arrived at the shelter, Marjorie was standing on the porch calling their names to come in before bed. 

“There you two are!” she said when they arrived.

Gilbert then swept down and sat beside them.

“Oh my goodness! Who is this? A crow? Are you three friends?” 

The cats meowed at Marjorie, then Gilbert let out a crow sound before touching his beak to their noises and flying off into the sky. 

Marjorie stood there in awe of her two friendly cats.

“You two are like the mayor of the forest, aren’t you?” 

She then picked them up in her arms and headed back inside for the night. Both cats purred loudly. 

“What’s that smell?” asked Marjorie. “Where were you boys?”