It's almost time again for the annual Little Planet Olympic Games! Our friends have been practicing hard for this exciting event. Ribbit has been spotted rowing on Lunar Lake. Walleroo has been seen perfecting his mud diving form. We found Corse high-jumping over obstacles with fantastic finesse! Glowbird has been drawing crowds while practicing her gymnastics, and Beavercat's been piling on the wood, getting ready for the dam building competition. It's going to be a stellar year for all of our Little Planet Olympians! Well, all except for Baldy the Beetlebaum. He's been sitting on the sidelines, hoping to find something he can do well. "I'm just a clumsy old good-for-nothing!" said Baldy to one of the Little Planet Times reporters. "I keep tripping over my own feet! If falling down were an event, I would surely take the gold!"
His good friend Donk overheard Baldy talking. "Have you tried Boulder Climbing?" asked Donk. Baldy shook his little blue head. "But you'd be great at that!" said Donk. "All you have to do is scurry over big rocks. Your many feet will certainly come in handy."
"You mean feety!" said Baldy. The two friends laughed. "I'll give it a try!" So Baldy and Donk looked for the biggest boulder they could find. They found a great one on the way to Lunar Lake. Baldy readied himself at the foot of the giant rock, and Donk said, "GO!" Baldy grabbed onto the boulder and pulled himself up.
It was hard work! It took all the strength he had just to move a few inches. He stopped for a moment to catch his breath. Then he hunkered down and tried again. Up, up, up ... slowly he went. Finally he reached the top. Going down the other side was much easier. Baldy just braced himself from falling too fast. Whew! Finally, he was back down on solid ground. "I'll never beat anyone at that rate," thought Baldy. "I'll need to keep practicing to build up my speed!"And that is exactly what Baldy did. Every morning for two weeks, Baldy got up at the crack of dawn. He went to the boulder and climbed up and down it, over and over again. He practiced two hours in the morning, two hours in the afternoon, and two hours right before bed. Even when he wanted to be somewhere else, like snacking on leaf pudding or taking a cool dip on the surface of Lunar Lake, Baldy kept at it. He climbed morning, noon and night, rain or shine. He felt himself getting a little stronger and a little faster every day!
Well, we'll have to wait to see how Baldy fares at this year's Little Planet Olympics. But one thing is certain: Baldy will be a courageous competitor! All that tremendous effort is making a big difference in Baldy's quest for his first gold medal. It's making him feel better about his own abilities too. It seems that perseverance really pays!