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think—from all the jabber and bills clattering I guess everybody enjoyed themselves. Except me. But I was only the guest of honor. Anyway”—he took a storytelling breath—“John and I hopped down to the willow tree, and John flew me up to Lou’s Lofty Lookout. That’s what I decided to call it. Of course I could have jumped up myself, from branch to branch—I’d have had to learn, if that was going to be my home—but I thought this first day I might as well go up on the robin elevator. And I was tired. So much has happened these past two days—I just wanted to rest, and get my bearings.”
    â€œSo how’s the location?” asked Walt. “As spectacular as Friendly Feathers said?”
    â€œIt really is, but, you know, crickets are really earth types—stumps, logs—”
    â€œFireplaces—”
    â€œYes. But not so much for heights. And Lou’s nest is high! At least on the tenth branch up. And it does overlook the whole Meadow, since it’s built way out at the end. In fact”—Chester twitched an antenna—“a little too near the end. It made me feel woozy.”
    â€œYou have acrophobia, Chester ol’ pal?”
    â€œI didn’t think so till yesterday, Walt. In New York, Lulu Pigeon took me up to the top of the Empire State Building. Of course I fell off! —that’s enough to give anyone fear of heights. But it wasn’t so much it was high, Lou’s nest, it’s that it swayed. Back and forth, back and forth— ooo-ah! ooo-ah! —I got downright queasy. And there wasn’t that much of a wind yesterday. Also”—Chester wrinkled his face in a grimace—“I may have gotten a little seasick because it still did smell of squirrel.”
    â€œI see.” Walter did an S-curve in the pool. “Are there any other charms of this place you’ve neglected to tell us?”
    â€œNot really. John and Dorothy had mended most of the holes. There was one rather big one left. But if I’d fallen out any time, I’d have had something soft to land on. The nest is so far out on the branch that it overhangs the brook. Kind of shivery, in fact, to look through that hole and see the current swirling beneath.”

    â€œUmhmm,” said Walter. “So the truth is, if you had fallen asleep one night—rocked seasick in the cradle of air—you might very well have dropped through a hole and fallen ten branches or more into the water.”
    â€œYes, more or less,” agreed Chester.
    â€œPlease proceed,” Walt invited, in a silky, sly voice.
    â€œAnyway, I didn’t have very much chance to be sick. Because right away my life got almost scared out of me. I was only just starting to look over the nest—”
    â€œPicking your way among the potholes,” Walter put in.
    â€œâ€”when from everywhere there came this tremendous shout: SURPRISE! It’s a good thing a squirrel’s nest is all safe and snug. I’d have been blown clear out otherwise.”
    â€œA surprise party!” Walt frolicked around in the water. “But I thought it was a housewarming party.”
    â€œIt was a combination surprise, housewarming, welcome-in and bring-a-little-something-you-don’t-really-want-as-a-gift party. And, Walter, you cannot imagine how many birds crashed that party! That whole willow tree was just crawling with birds. They’d been hiding—behind leaves, under branches—just everywhere! Even some in a neighboring maple. And birds are very good, I’ve found, at not being seen when they don’t want to be. But how they kept quiet I never will know. They made up for it later, that’s for sure!”
    â€œTake it from the big ‘SURPRISE!’” said Walter Water Snake.
    â€œâ€˜Surprise!’ they all shouted, and started piling into that nest and out along that branch. Within two minutes there were