The teacher’s challenge was, “Pick a letter and look for things in nature that start with that letter.”
Lisa asked, “Should we all have a different letter?” The teacher answered, “Don’t tell anyone which letter you pick. That will be part of the fun when we share what we find.”

When Larry and Lisa returned home, Mrs. Lewis suggested, “Wouldn’t it be fun to select a letter from the Scrabble bag?” Larry said, “That’s a great idea.”

Lisa teased Larry, “I hope you pick a really hard letter like ‘X’ or ‘Z’.” Larry shot back, “You will probably get ‘E’ and have to find an eel!” Lisa covered her eyes and yelled, “Yuck!”

Mrs. Lewis said, “That’s enough. Pick your letter.”

Larry chose first. He looked at his letter and said in a sing-song way, “I got an L.” “Hummph!”, exclaimed Lisa.

Lisa chose a letter, then hid her face with her other hand. “What is it?”, asked Mrs. Lewis. Lisa demanded, “I need to choose another letter. There is nothing outside that starts with a ‘V’.” Lisa’s mom consoled her, “I’m sure you will find something.”

The next day was the beginning of Thanksgiving break, and the Lewis family had planned a camping trip. Larry said, “This camping trip is going to be fun. Lisa, we can look in the woods for things that start with our letter.”

Mrs. Lewis looked at Lisa and said, “You don’t look very excited. Is there something wrong?” Lisa said, “I’m still trying to figure out if there’s anything outside that starts with the letter ‘V’.”

When they arrived at the camp site, the Lewis family was reminded that they should watch for black bears. The fact sheet warned:

Bear attacks are rare; most bears are only interested in protecting food, cubs, or their space. Bears are easily frightened by loud noises and voices.

The first afternoon was surprisingly hot. The Lewis family wasn’t expecting temperatures near 80 degrees. After they checked into their cabin, Mrs. Lewis told the kids, “I will make some cold lemonade for you.”

Larry replied, “Thanks, Mom.” When their mom poured the lemonade, Larry said to Lisa, “Let’s go outside until lunch.” Lisa responded, “OK.”

Larry and Lisa walked along a path while their mom made lunch and their dad checked the fishing gear.

Larry said, “Look, Lisa. There is a lizard in this tree. I found my ‘L’ word.” Lisa said, “I’m not getting any closer. It might bite me.” Larry tried to touch the lizard, but it was quickly out of sight. Larry said, “Maybe it has a friend.”

Lisa said, “I am still looking for something that starts with my letter.” Lisa went toward what she thought might be her only ‘V’ in nature.

Lisa knelt down and said quietly, “They are so beautiful.” She picked a few of the violets to show her family and friends back home. Her attention was so locked onto the flowers that she was unaware of a black bear close by.

When Larry couldn’t find another lizard, he started looking for his sister. Larry looked down the path and saw a bear close to Lisa. Larry remembered that bears get frightened with loud noises and voices. He didn’t know how to warn Lisa from such a distance.

Lisa looked up and spied the bear. Lisa froze in fear, thinking that she would become lunch for the furry black creature. Larry prayed, “Jesus, protect my sister.”

Then, peace came upon Lisa. She put her cup of lemonade on the ground and spoke calmly to the bear like it was her pet. “You can have my lemonade. I’m not very thirsty right now.” Lisa slowly moved away from the bear toward their log cabin.

When Lisa met Larry, she said quietly, “It looks like my new friend is enjoying the lemonade. I guess it wasn’t as hungry as I thought.“. Larry said, “You need to be more careful about who you become friends with.”

Lisa showed the violets to Larry, and said, “Let’s go eat lunch.“