The Big Bad Wolf

I’m a big bad wolf. A super-duper bad wolf. It’s true. When I walk past, squirrels dash up trees, and birds squawk and fly away. They think I don’t notice, but I do.

They’re right to be scared. I chase cats just for fun. I dig holes in the ground, so that other animals will fall in. At night, I howl at the moon, very loudly, so not a creature in the forest gets a wink of sleep.

I wasn’t always this bad. I used to be a cute little wolf pup. I had lots of brothers and sisters. We would spend our time playfighting, or chasing sticks. At night, we’d sleep under the starlit sky. It was a good life, and were happy.

But one night, there was a forest fire. I woke up to the sound of a tree crashing to the ground. It was very hot, and there was so much howling and barking as our home went up in flames. I ran away as fast as I could. A few of my brothers and sisters tried to run with me, but in the dark and confusion we ended up running in different directions.

When I finally slowed down, caught my breath, and took a look around, I was lost. I called out for my family, but they were too far away to hear me.  It was dark out, and I was freezing, and so tired. I made myself a bed of dried leaves, and drifted off to sleep.

When I woke up, I knew right away that something had changed. I didn’t feel like the wolf pup I used to be. I had become a big bad wolf.

I stopped chatting with the other forest creatures. I gave anyone who got too close a withering glare. I was friendless by choice.

But recently, something happened. I was dragging my feet across the forest floor, on my way back home, when I saw a squirrel dragging a long branch over to my bed.

“Hey!” I called out.

“What are you doing?”

The squirrel looked at me, startled.

“I found this stick, and I thought you might like it. I was going to leave it here for you to find.” The squirrel politely explained.

“For me?” I asked, feeling very confused.

“But no one ever gives me anything. I’m the big bad wolf! Why would you be nice to me?”

“Well…” The squirrel considered thoughtfully.

“We all need to be shown a little kindness sometimes.” And with that, he scampered off into the woods.

I looked at the stick, and I thought about what the squirrel told me.

 We all need to be shown a little kindness sometimes.

I thought about all the mean things I’d done, and I felt sad about them. I hadn’t been very kind at all.

At that moment, I made  a decision. I decided that I don’t want to be a big bad wolf anymore. I want to make people happy. And, maybe, if I make people happy, I’ll be happy too.

So I’m trying. I’m trying my hardest to be good. And yeah, I’m still a little loud at night sometimes. But when I saw a hungry little fox, I was kind, and gave him some of my food. And when I saw the squirrels playing down by the river, I asked to play too. And I find seeds and give them to the birds. Not always. But sometimes.

I feel a little better each day. And hey, guess what? Birds don’t fly away anymore when I walk past. Some squirrels even smiled at me. They thought I didn’t notice. But I did.