Remember when I told you that I had not seen The Pottsworths for some time, you know, Bob and Netticia Pottsworth…

Well, as I was walking the other day, I ran into a local that happened to live near my friends… you would be surprised at how much information can be forthcoming if you have a peanut!

When I asked of the Pottsworths’ whereabouts, I was so pleased to discover that Bob and his family were not missing at all, but had actually just moved down the river a bit and on the opposite side of the trail. Of course, once I knew they had only moved, I inquired further as to the reason for the move… Why… because I am nosy, that’s why…

It was purely an accident that I ended up stumbling upon this news, and I thought I would tell you about it, in part to convince myself that it actually happened…

Apparently, there was a big to do over something Netticia said, regarding what she heard about the widow, Hazel Nuttlavios, who lived just next door to the Pottsworths. I will back up a bit, to fill you in on those involved in said kerfuffle.

In this small community, I am personally only aware of several families, so the others possible involvement is purely speculation, on my part. Obviously, I know Bob and Netty POTTsworth, and I have to admit that Netty does have a tendency to stick her nose up at others in a bit of a judgy manner. This has apparently been a problem in the past (rumors). Just next door to their tree was a small community of Squirrel folk, of which I have met several families, one of which is the Beechnuts, Henry and Barbara. Henry is often working in the meadows, and I have only met him once (seemed very kind and quit in nature). Barbara, on the other hand is a bit of a busy body… always needs to be nuts deep in everyone else’s business.

Now if you had ever met the widow, Hazel Nuttlavios, you would think it absurd that she would be involved in something as scandalous as what Netty blurted out at the Saturday Squirrel Social… I feel badly for Netty, as in truth, it was brought on by none other than the busy body Bushy Barbara Beechnut (no wonder Henry works away from home so much).

Here is what went down, to the best of my knowledge, as my informant talked with a mouth full of peanut the whole time we chatted… this cost me 6 peanuts by the way…

While Barbara was down by the river, washing her dishes, she thought that she saw the wild Rico Pistachio, sneaking out of the back door of Widow Hazel’s home, but she was not 100% sure. Instead of either minding her own business, or simply clarifying things with the widow, Barbara made the mistake of sharing her thoughts with Netty over tea, about an hour later. Yup! I think we all know where this is going…

From the time of their morning tea, Netty stewed and fretted over her neighbors shared thoughts (gossip), and by the time the social began, she wandered from group to group of other squirrels, whispering her judgement and disdain for the Widows inappropriate behavior… scandalous!

Here was the problem… Rico, happened to be the widows distant cousin. Neither Netty or Barbara knew this, but point in fact, there were a good number of other river folk that DID know…

Long story short, the uproar that occurred from words exchanged both in private, as well as at the social, destroyed not only the friendship between the two squirrel neighbors, but the trust within the small community of Squirrel folk…

Well, I am not only very nosy, but I also believe in forgiveness, and second chances, so I sent a request to the village council asking for an audience with their elders… perhaps, a little more than peanuts is called for in this situation. I am not clear, at all, as to the things I might say to the council, but I care for the families that live in this place. I know that Netticia was kicked out of her own nest as a young squirrel, through no fault of her own… she has carried the weight of feeling wrongly judged all of her life. I am also aware that Barbara’s husband, Henry, is not exactly kind or tender with her in any way… he is rarely home, and when he is there, he simply sleeps to avoid spending any time with her ( their marriage was arranged).

Of everything that I uncovered, something humorous… the widow… she thought this whole thing was an absolute riot… her family comes from a long line of nuts…

I give you my word that I will bring you up to speed as soon as I meet with the council. Oh, and by the way, in the event that you are wondering about the wedding in Acorn Valley, it has been postponed for a short bit. There was some sort of massive human gathering within the valley and there was an enormous amount of trash left over. The valley is a mess, and the decision was made to push the nuptials off by a week, in order to allow the valley to recover from all the garbage still being hauled away by the city workers.