The Big Day

One morning on a sunny Spring day, a little snail named Stan woke up on a leaf. "Today's the day!" he thought, stretching his long, slimy body. "Time to find a new home!"

Stan wiggled down the tree trunk and into the tall, green grass. He smiled, imagining himself snuggled amongst lots of lovely, fresh flowers. "I know!" he said. "I'll go to the florist's shop! There are sure to be flowers there!" And off he went, leaving a little slimy trail behind him.

When Stan arrived at the florist's, he was surprised. The shop was empty! No flowers anywhere! He saw Flo the florist with an empty basket. "Where are all the flowers?" asked Stan. "Don't you know what day it is?" asked Flo. "No," said Stan sadly, and he slithered away.

Next, Stan came to a metal fence. He saw his friend Freddie the spider hanging upside down from his web, polishing eight shiny black boots. "What are you doing?" asked Stan. "Don't you know what day it is?" asked Freddie. "No," said Stan, and he went on his way.

Stan then reached a bumpy street made of cobblestones. It was hard to slither! He saw a line of ants carrying bits of rubbish. "What are you doing?" asked Stan. "We're cleaning the streets!" shouted one ant. "Why?" asked Stan. "Don't you know what day it is?" asked the ant. "No!" cried Stan. "Nobody will tell me!" "Well," said the ant, "you better get off this street. It's going to get very busy soon!"

Stan, feeling very confused, arrived at a tall, old stone wall. He saw lots of pretty flowers and bushes growing through the cracks. "Perfect!" thought Stan. But just as he was about to climb the wall, a man popped out from a little box. He wore a bright red jacket with shiny buttons, black trousers, and a tall, furry black hat. He put a big trumpet to his lips and blew it really, really loudly! "Oh no!" cried Stan, covering his ears. "Too noisy!" And he hurried away.

Stan finally arrived at some big, closed iron gates. A sign above said, "The Great Country Park." "I'm sure to find flowers and bushes in there!" Stan thought. But just as he reached the gates, a big policeman in a blue uniform stopped him. "You can't go in there," said the policeman. "It's out of bounds. Don't you know what day it is?" "No," said Stan. "Well, you better be on your way," said the policeman, and he shooed Stan away.

But when the policeman wasn't looking, Stan sneaked through a small gap in the gate and into the park. There was a long, winding path. Stan looked everywhere for flowers and bushes. A dragonfly with a sparkly pink hat flew around his head. "Where are you going?" she asked. "I'm looking for a new home," said Stan. "I think you'll find what you're looking for at the end of this path," said the dragonfly, looking Stan up and down. "Thank you!" said Stan, and he wondered why the dragonfly was wearing such a fancy hat. "Why are you wearing that pink hat?" he called after her. "Haven't you heard? It's…" But Stan couldn't hear the rest because she flew away.

After a long, long walk, Stan was tired. He stopped to drink some water from a pond. Some beautiful white swans were swimming there. "What are you doing?" asked Stan. "We're cleaning our wings," said a swan. "Why?" asked Stan. "Don't you know what day it is?" asked the swan. "No!" said Stan angrily. "Oh well," said the swan, "you'll find out soon enough."

Feeling a little better after his drink, Stan continued down the path. At last, he came to an archway covered in leaves and beautiful white roses. "Wonderful!" said Stan. "This is perfect!" He climbed up the arch and snuggled into the soft petals of a big, white rose.

Just as he was getting comfy, he heard a loud rumbling sound, like thunder. It got louder and louder! Stan peeked over the roses and saw a big black horse standing on its hind legs! The horse kicked out with its front legs and knocked Stan right off the rose! "Argh!" cried Stan as he flew through the air.

He landed with a plop on a clean white glove covering a hand. "Hey there, little fella," a voice said. Stan looked up and saw a young man with kind blue eyes, dressed in a fancy uniform. The man was riding in a beautiful carriage pulled by two black stallions. Sitting next to him was a beautiful lady in a long white dress and a veil.

"What are you doing?" the young man asked Stan. "I'm trying to find a new home," said Stan. "I've walked a long way and I'm very, very tired." "Don't worry," said the man. "I know the perfect place for you." "Really?" asked Stan. "Really," said the man.

He gently placed Stan on his shoulder, took the reins of the stallions, and the carriage zoomed through the archway.

Later that day, Stan lay comfortably in a big bed of flowers and bushes. Behind the garden was a magnificent castle! The dragonfly with the sparkly pink hat flew down to him. "So," she asked, "how do you like your new home in the Royal Garden?" "It's the best garden in the world!" said Stan. "And today was the best day ever! It was my Big Day!"