Oogo was a small cave boy. He was seven summers old. He had long tangled dark brown hair and hazel green eyes. He wore a tiger skin and walked barefoot everywhere he went.
Oogo lived with his father and mother in a large cave up on the side of a big mountain. Four other people lived in the cave with them. Oogo was the only child. Everyone helped find food and fight the big animals that came to eat them. They never let Oogo help. Everyone thought that Oogo was too young.
One warm summer morning Oogo and his parents followed the others down the mountain. They were going to find food. Wild nuts and berries grew along the banks of a stream not far away. Oogo loved to go to the stream. He liked to eat berries and nuts. He also liked to swim. He’d been swimming for two summers now. He was always careful to stay near the shore. He always made sure the water never went over his head, and he never went swimming alone.
After everyone picked the nuts and berries, the men speared fish in the river. No one ever let him spear fish, but Oogo didn’t mind. Instead he played in the water next to his mother.
Soon it began to get dark. Everyone gathered all the nuts, berries, and fish, and walked back to their cave to divide the food. Oogo’s mother handed him a piece of raw fish to eat, but Oogo didn’t want it. He hated fish. He couldn’t even stand the smell of it. Oogo sat quietly for awhile, trying to think of a good place to hide it. Somewhere his parents would never find it.
Finally Oogo decided to burn it. He stuck the chunk of fish on a long stick and hung it out over the fire. Oogo thought he'd solved his problem without anyone noticing, until everyone around him began sniffing the air and grunting. And when he looked up he saw the others walking toward the fire.
Oogo’s father looked at the fish hanging over the flames. “Ughh!” Oogo’s father grunted. He grabbed the stick, pulled it from the fire, and laid it on a rock next to Oogo. Oogo looked at the fish, then at his dad. His father shook his head in disgust. He took his spearhead knife and tried to scrape off the burned fish skin.
“Ummm?” Oogo’s father stopped for a moment and smelled the fish, then scratched his head. He tore a small piece off and chewed on it. “Ummm!” he smiled and handed some to everyone else.
“Ummm!” Everyone smiled, placed their fish on sticks, and hung them out over the fire too.
A loud terrifying growl echoed into the cave. A hungry Sabertooth tiger had smelled the cooking fish and had followed its scent. Oogo’s father and the other men grabbed their spears and ran toward the cave opening. They looked out into the darkness. They could hear the big tiger but they could not see him. Oogo wanted to help. He quickly grabbed a wooden club from the edge of the fire and raced to the opening. He stood next to his father and peered out into the darkness.
Oogo felt something stinging his hand. When he looked to see what it was, he noticed the club was on fire and tiny glowing red specks were landing on him. Oogo held the club straight out, away from his body, so the specks wouldn't hurt him anymore. That's when he saw the Sabertooth tiger nearly on top of him. Oogo's heart almost jumped out of his chest, and he froze in fear.
Instead of running Oogo closed his eyes and the huge tiger's face hit the end of the club. The flame burned his whiskers and scorched his fur. The Sabertooth jumped back in fear. He turned and ran down the mountain as fast as he could go.
Oogo could hear his father and the other men laughing and he opened his eyes. He asked where the tiger had gone, and his father pointed down the mountain. Oogo handed the club to his father. He’d learned a long time ago not to play with fire. He only liked fire inside the cave where his father and the other men put it.
Oogo’s father and mother gave him a big hug. They were very proud of their son. Not only did they learn how to cook fish (even Oogo liked the taste of cooked fish) they also learned how to use fire as a weapon.
Meet Girdy, a delightfully spooky witch with green stringy hair, a bumpy nose, and a knack for mischief! Alongside her eerie but lovable family—Momma Mummy, Daddy Gargoyle, and her mischievous brother Goblin—Girdy embraces her wonderfully weird world
