THE LITTLE RASCALS
******My name is Stella. I'm a little tiger and I have a story to tell you.
It was very close to Christmas, just a few months ago. I was very young. I'm not sure how young, for time doesn't mean a lot when you're a little tiger. I wasn't alone though, for there were several other young tigers, just like me. All I know is, that we were in a very bad place, and no one cared for us. We didn't even have names. When the call was placed to Tippi Hedren to rescue us, we didn't know what that word meant, but now we know that the word, "rescue" means the same as "Christmas", and it turned out that we got the best gift of all.
On that chilly afternoon in December, three of us were put in the back of a truck and taken to a place called Shambala. We were told that it was a wonderful place. We would have good food, toys to play with, a warm bed, and, if we were good, maybe a little pool to play in. We decided, even before they picked us up, that we would be good, or at least, we would try.
When our truck arrived at Shambala, a lot of very happy faces peered at us through the slits in our carrying cases. We were a little afraid, but everyone seemed so happy when we had arrived, that we felt better about things. First they put us in a place away from all the other big cats because they wanted to make sure we were OK. From the very first moment, we knew we were going to be alright. Everyone who came to see us smiled, and the handlers who took care of us made sure we had everything little tigers need. We had room to play, dry hay to sleep on, and after a few weeks, they even brought in a big swimming pool, just for us. From that very first day, we knew we were going to be happy, and from that very first day, Tippi Hedren gave us something else we wanted but never had before, a name of our very own.
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She told me she was going to name me Stella, after her little granddaughter. She named my little friends, Dakota, and Alexander. When we found out that she had named all three of us after her three grand-children, we liked our names even more.
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One day, when I was playing with Alexander and Dakota, they came to get us. We didn't want to go anywhere, and we were afraid they were going to give us back to that bad place where they found us. But the best thing of all happened. I suppose we had been very good, because they build us a brand new home, with lots of room, and a new covered house, things to climb on, and bright red balls to play with. They even built our new home alongside the lake, so that we could play in the water anytime we felt like it. Our names are in big letters on the fence so that everyone who comes to Shambala knows that we are, very, very, special.
When you come to see us, we wish we could tell you just how happy we are now, but you'll be able to tell that just by watching us. Now that we're sure no one is going to take us away, we tend to be a little rambunctious. Some have even called us The Little Rascals. I guess when you feel safe, and loved, you can be yourself, and after all, we're just little tigers who are so happy that we have a home called Shambala.
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| Alexander | Dakota | Stella |