Gary the Goose

Sarah Humphrey and Kaylan Devreax

The strong winds blew against Gary’s white feathers as he soared high above the world. It was a beautiful, blustery day and the sun had a twinkle in its eyes, casting a warm glow on the world below. Gary flew alongside his flock in V-formation in the sky, but to Gary it wasn’t freedom to fly in such an orderly manner. It was a constricting and boring routine they took each year, though this was his first year migrating south for the winter. Gary had been born in the Spring and was still a child. However, he had heard the older geese discuss their past experiences migrating and when his chance had finally come to fly the route his kind had taken for centuries, he had been thrilled. Unfortunately, his excitement was short lived because his flock was all about staying togeth-er and following the rules to survive. He was not to stray from the flock’s flight path, he should not be curious because that could mean danger for him, and he should stay away from hu-mans. However, Gary disregarded all of these rules. To his flock’s objection, when they took their normal rest stop at a lovely park in Gibson County, Indiana to refuel for their long journey ahead, Gary separated from them to explore the environment. He waddled away to find adventure, but found something else instead.

He explored the wonders of the park, starting with its scenery. Gary saw a beautiful pink flower blooming at the base of a wooden bench. Gary began to walk towards the flower that was dancing on the breeze, but he hesitated, hearing humming coming from the bench. Gary peered over the edge of the seat to find a little boy sitting peacefully and humming to himself. Gary’s first instinct was to run away, but found that his curiosity got the better of him. Gary now ignored the flower on the ground and crept towards the human child. He tried to get as close as he could with-out being detected, but the boy stopped humming and stared at Gary when the sound of a snapping twig startled him. Gary panicked and tried to fly away, but he found his wing was caught on the edge of the wooden bench on a splinter.

“Honk! Honk!” Gary yelled, panicking. “Hush now, it’s all right. Let me help you.” the little boy said in a calm voice. Gary started to

feel safe with this boy, but wasn’t sure whether or not he should stay with the boy or run away. “My name is Billy.” said Billy. “What’s yours?” “Honk!” was all Billy was able to understand. “I know!” shouted Billy. “I’ll give you a name. Hhmm. Hold on while I think a mo-

ment.” Think a moment he did. It took a good half an hour before Billy finally came up with the per-fect name. “Gary, Gary the Goose is your name.”

Chapter 1

“Honk! Honk!” Gary yelled, excited Billy had guessed his name right. Gary and Billy spent the afternoon playing with one another. They played tag, hide and go seek, and even duck, duck goose. Gary had never had so much fun in his life, that’s why he was sad when Billy’s mother told him it was time to go. “Coming mom!” he shouted at her before turning back towards Gary. “I’ll see you the next time you pass through here. I’ll wait on the wooden bench for you, I promise.” he whispered to Gary before joining his mother in the parking lot. Gary was sad to see him go and wore a frown on his face all the way back to his flock. They sat waiting for him and his mother looked upset. “Gary! Where have you been? I have been worried sick young man!” she scolded. “Sorry mom.” Gary apologized. “I made a new friend, he is a little boy named Billy!” “A human!” she exclaimed. “You know we aren’t supposed to be around them! I don’t want you to play with that Billy anymore, you can’t trust humans.” “But why not mom?” Gary asked. “Billy seemed so nice and I really liked him.”

Chapter 2 Billy kept his promise and each year Gary migrated through Gibson County, he would fly down and meet with Billy and they would spend the day playing together. They became the best of friends, but three years after they first met, their meetings were met with an obstacle. Gary had been flying with his flock back to Indiana, but they were unable to take a rest stop at the park like they always did because a gigantic coal mine had been built. The pollution coming from the build-ing created a thick blanket of smog in the sky. The sky was as black as night above the coal mine and as far as the eye could see. Gary and his flock wanted to make sure they would be able to fly past the coal mine and continue on their flight path, so they decided to try and fly around the coal mine smog. They headed towards the east for at least twenty minutes before giving up on their endeavor. “It’s no use,” said Gary. “We’ll have to fly through and try to make it to the other side. You won’t be able to see, it’s going to be as dark as night in there. Try to persevere and make it through if you can. However, if you can’t, your best bet it to seek refuge at the park.” “Why should we listen to you, Gary?” he heard his cousin, little Timmy, say. “You don’t have to, but who else has a better idea?” he replied. No one objected to his plan, so Gary took the initiative and was the first to plunge into the smog. The second he entered the dark cloud he found it was difficult to breath. He could not see a thing and his eyes burned from the dirt entering them. Gary doesn’t remember how he managed to find the park, perhaps some instinct or hope that Billy would be there kept him going. He had realized the second he flew through the smog that there was no way any of the geese would be able to make it across. He felt like he was suffocating, the air was so thick it seemed as if he were inhaling sand. Gary flew down to the edge of the park, barely missing the newly erected metal fence. Gary crashed onto the forest floor and stumbled onto his feet. Looking back the way he came he saw the coal mine in the distance. “This must be the edge of the coal mine property.” he said to himself. “Gary!” he heard a voices in the distance. “Gary!” Gary looked to the sky and saw dark hazes of his flock nearing the ground. They made it. Gary was so thrilled, he wanted to fly to meet them, but he was too weak and could hardly breathe. It seemed like hours, but they finally made it to the ground.

“What are we going to do?” Gary’s mother cried. “We can’t fly through it!” “For starters, let’s go down to the river and drink some water, I have a terrible taste in my

mouth.” Gary suggested to his flock. It took what seemed like ages and they moved with the speed of a snail, but eventually they

made it to the river’s edge. Gary plunged into his filthy, orange bill into the cool water and gulped, but something was off. It felt like he was drinking muddy water and it tasted like it full of chemi-cals. The air was not as thick on the ground, so Gary could see better, but when he looked at the river, it looked just like the smog cloud above. It was as dark and as dirty looking as chocolate milk and tasted like it was full of chemicals. In the dim light that could be seen through the pollution above. Gary saw a shiny line on the water, a rainbow reflected into his eyes. Gary coughed up the water and spit it out, but the taste in his mouth only worsened. He looked around, horrified by what he saw. The beautiful flowers that had grown here each year were wilted and had a layer of black dust on them. The rest of the plants were in the same condition. The grass had turned brown and was dying, the trees’ leaves were small and shriveled brown specks. The creatures that once inhabited this forest were no where to be seen. He realized that it wasn’t just the air that was pol-luted, chemicals from the coal mine had entered the ground, killing the plants and dirtying the wa-ter in the park.

“No one drink the water!” he yelled, hoping they had not. He searched each of their faces to make sure they were all right. Some spluttered the water, but many were too weak to even make it to the stream in the first place.

“We can’t survive this way!” Gary shouted. “I’m going to find Billy, I know he can help! This pollution has to end, it is harmful to the environment and to us!”

“Gary no!” his mother wheezed. “You can’t trust the humans, they’re dangerous! They’ll take you away. Besides, they caused all of this. What makes you think he will help us and end this madness?” “I trust him.” Gary replied. His mother began saying something else, but he turned and

went in search of Billy. He was determined to find a solution for the pollution.

Chapter 3 “Billy! Billy!” Gary shouted as he neared their usual meeting place. The bench where Gary

had first met Billy was covered with thick layers of black ash and the wood that held it together was crumbling.

“Gary? Gary is that you?” Billy appeared from around a group of trees, his eyes were sullen and shrunken. He coughed terribly as he approached the park bench. “Gary! I heard your quack-ing! I hoped you would be here today.” Billy saw how sick and terrible Gary looked and stomped his foot. “That is it!” he exclaimed. “I am sick and tired of this coal mine, look what it’s done to you! I am going to go straight over there and get them to stop this. Gary, will you go with me? I have to show him how the coal mine is affecting not only us, but the wildlife around here as well. So, what do you think?”

“Honk! Honk!” “Good, I’ll take that as a yes.” Billy picked up Gary and together they headed towards the coal

mine. As they approached the giant power plant factory looming overhead, Gary and Billy could see

factory employees working. Piles of coal lay about the yard and above pillars of smoke escaped through the cloud machines. They could see across the yard to the coal mine tunnel entrance, min-ers scurried in and out covered in soot, their faces dark hazes. They slowly made their way to the fac-tory building and entered through its heavy metal doors.

“Excuse me,” Billy said to the receptionist. “but could you direct me to the person in charge?”

“Sorry kid,” the lady said. “but you’d need an appointment to talk to Mr. Rogers. What’s with the goose, at least I think it’s a goose. It’s covered in soot.”

“That’s what I need to see Mr. Rogers about. The pollution from your coal mine and factory are sickening the wildlife around here.”

“Join the club kid.” she said. “Susan, I need you to cancel my appointment for this afternoon, it looks like my eleven

o'clock meeting will run later than expected.” a tall man dressed in a suit said from behind Billy and Gary.

“Right away Mr. Rogers.” Susan said. “Mr. Rogers!” Billy said with excitement. “Mr. Rogers I need to speak with you.” “Ah, what can I do for you young man?” Mr. Rogers said. “It’s about your coal mine and your factory. It’s creating terrible smog and chemicals that are

harming the wildlife here in Gibson County, and I’m sure neighboring towns as well.”

“The pollution is killing the vegetation and the animals can’t get food or clean water. Just look at Gary!” Billy held up Gary so Mr. Rogers could see him. “His flock couldn’t fly through the smog your cloud makers created because it was so thick. How will they be able to get home, or mi-grate at all for that matter? It’s not just them it’s harming either, everyone in town is becoming sick. The air is so thick no one can breathe. Won’t you please put a stop to this? You can use other resources as power, or at least emit cleaner air. Something has to be done before it’s too late.” Billy pleaded. Mr. Rogers gazed at Billy and Gary intently for a while before responding. “What is your name young man?” he asked.

“It’s Billy sir, my family lives in the town over near here.” “And I take it that Goose’s name is Gary?” “Yes, sir” “Well Billy,” Mr. Rogers said. “If I were to do any of what you suggested, then I would lose a

lot of money, and I don’t want to do that. Coal is the cheapest source of energy and the pollution has to be created because it is the result of how the coal and its energy are obtained. Sorry young man, I know it’s hard to understand, but the environment has survived this long, I don’t think a little pollution will harm it. Besides, why should I care? It doesn’t do anything for me other than make me money. What I do won’t harm it much.”

“That’s not true at all!” Billy shouted. “The environment protects you and provides you with air and everything else you need to survive. If you abuse the resources it provides you with now, eventually you will have nothing left you can use. You are not being accountable for the harm you are causing everyone. What you do now will affect the future. Already plants are dying and wildlife with them. If the animals have nothing to eat, then they can’t survive. Eventually the amount of herbivores will decrease with the plants, and the carnivores and omnivores with them. The people in Gibson County are becoming sick because they keep inhaling your toxic chemicals. The rivers and streams are so polluted with toxic waste from runoff they can no longer be drunken from. How can you do all of this and not care? Why are you so greedy?” Billy was furious. He had to convince Mr. Rogers to stop this madness so he could help Gary’s flock and everyone else.

“Sorry Billy, you’re just too young to understand. I must be going now, I have work to do.” Billy tried to get Mr. Rogers to stop, but it was no use. He was already out the door, complete-ly ignoring Billy.

“I’m so angry Gary” Billy said. “How can one man cause all this damage and not even care? We must find another way to stop this.” Gary honked in approvement. He couldn’t believe it either. He thought all humans were as kind and

generous as Billy, but he had been wrong. His flock was right about humans not being able to be

trusted, but they were wrong about another thing. It wasn’t all humans, it was just some. Each one

was different, just like geese. They weren’t as different as his flock thought they were. However,

humans could more greatly affect things. Even though Mr. Rogers was just one man, he caused all

this harm to the environment. However, if one person can start all of this, then wouldn’t that mean

one person could end it too? Gary gazed up at Billy as they exited the factory building, hope gleam-

ing in his eyes. He knew that if anyone could do it, Billy could. He had faith in him and his passion to

help others in need.

Chapter 4 Billy knocked on the door, Gary stood at his feet. They both waited patiently under a darkened sky for someone to answer the door. After their run-in with the infamous Mr. Rogers, Billy had de-vised the brilliant plan to start a petition to put regulations on the coal mining facilities. This way they would have to filter the chemicals and smog that leave the factory’s grounds. By doing this the pollu-tion would become cleaner and there would be less of it. The environment would slowly return to its former glory and the animals could return to their normal lives, including Gary. Gary was so proud of all Billy had done. Even though Billy could not understand what Gary said, he always knew what he was thinking and went out of his way to help him. Billy was Gary’s dearest and best friend. “Coming!” rang a female voice from inside. A tall blonde opened the door to see a little boy and a goose. “What can I do for you young man?” “My name is Billy and this is Gary.” Billy said, gesturing towards Gary at his feet. “We were hoping we could persuade you to sign a petition so that the Gibson county coal mine would have to filter and put regulations on the substances that leave the factory buildings. The pollution has sick-ened the environment and we need to put a stop to it before it is too late. We are all apart of this world, when something in it is affected, we all are affected because we all depend on one anoth-er. Would you be willing to sign this petition?” Billy held up the clipboard and pen in his hands. The blonde lady smiled down at Billy. “Young man, not only would I be delighted to sign your petition but I would also like to help you with your task. I am on the city council, my name is Cindy Blake. If you’d be willing to, I’d like to set up a meeting with the council and the mayor about this. I have been trying to convince people of how harmful the coal mine is since I discovered it was going to be built. If you’d be willing to, I’d like you to come to our next meeting tomorrow at 3 pm. Would you come to city hall and speak on behalf of the wildlife in Gibson County?” Billy looked down at Gary, a look of pure joy etched on his face. “Mrs. Blake, Ma’am, nothing would make me happier.” “Wonderful!” she exclaimed, clapping her hands together. “I shall see you tomorrow! But I must warn you, Mr. Rogers, the man that runs the mine, will be there to defend his case. Will you be alright with that?” “Don’t worry Mrs. Blake, I can handle him. Um, Mrs. Blake, can I bring Gary? I’d like to have him there with me.” “It shouldn’t be a problem so long as you clean any mess he makes.” “Thank you Ma’am!” Billy jumped up and down with joy. “I will see you tomorrow.”

“Looking forward to it Billy.” replied Mrs. Blake. “And you must tell everyone what makes you so passionate about all of this, I know they’d love to hear it and it would greatly support your case. You are an extraordinary young man, Billy. Few children your age would work so hard to make a differ-ence in the world.” Mrs. Blake said with a smile as she closed her door. “Until tomorrow.” Billy whispered.

Chapter 5 Billy sat in the city hall courtroom with Gary in his lap. He nervously twiddled his fingers as people entered and took their seats. They held the meeting in the courtroom because so many peo-ple were attending. The meeting was open to the public because the issue being discussed involved everyone. Billy looked up from his thumbs to see Mrs. Blake across the room, she was smiling at him. Billy waved to her and went back to twiddling his thumbs for a while. Eventually he heard the pounding of a gavel and and man’s booming voice sounded over the ruckus of the crowd. “Order! Order! The town council meeting is now in session. Would our first defendant please come forward. Billy stood up and together he and Gary made their way to the front of the courtroom. Billy felt butterflies in his stomach and his hands shook. He hoped even though he was just a kid that the people of Gibson County would heed his words. He wondered, could I really make a difference? I am just one boy. He took a deep breath and walked towards the man behind the podium. “Come here my boy. I am Mayor John Parsley. What is your name?” he asked. “I am Billy sir, Billy Meyers.” he replied. “Billy Meyers will now state his case on the issue of Mr. Rogers’ coal mine pollution. Billy stepped away from the mayor into the middle of the room, Gary was still nestled in his hand. His heart raced, but Billy knew it was now or never. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves and began his speech. “I’m sure many of you are wondering why an eight year old boy would care about what is hap-

pening to the environment. You’re probably thinking I should be home watching cartoons or playing

with action figures. Or perhaps you are here because you’re wondering why you should even

care. Well, let me tell you this. The environment provides us with our way of life. The clean water,

the weather, supplies for shelter, the animals we use as food. If any of this were to be tampered

with, the whole system would be thrown out of balance. The pollution from the coal mine is doing

exactly that. The smog coming from the cloud makers on the factory are so thick with soot and

chemicals that it is not only encasing the areas around it in thick layers of toxic dust, but it is also

blocking the sun from shining through. If the trees and other plants can’t get their source of energy,

they begin to die. If their numbers start decreasing, the animals that depend on them start having

less and less sources of food, decreasing their numbers in turn. This starts a vicious cycle until the

pollution becomes so bad no one will be left. Of those who might still survive with little sources of food, they may still not survive because of all the chemicals in the runoff. Those chemicals that pol-lute the rivers and sicken the wildlife are ones used to obtain coal. The water is as filthy and cloudy as the sky now and the animals no longer have a clean source of water. Just look at the shape Gary is in.” he said, holding up Gary for all to see. “He and his flock were trying to migrate back to their home up north, but the smog cloud created by the coal mine was so thick they couldn’t make it through. Just look at him. He used to have beautiful white feathers, but now they’re blackened from the polluted air outside. He has a cough that gets worse with each passing day.” Gary honked sadly, but that made him start coughing again. “To answer the question I’m sure you want an answer to, Gary is the reason I am so passionate about what I am doing. We have been friends for a long time. We met at the park near the coal mine and have been inseparable ever since. That park used to be beautiful, covered in flowers, green grass, and it had so much wildlife. It was a lively place. Yesterday I went back there to meet Gary at our usual meeting place, but I was devastated by what I saw. The park looked like the aftermath of a battle field, covered in ash and soot, the plants dead or dying. It was there that I saw Gary. At first I didn’t recognize him, his feathers were once such a bright white and I could always recognize his call, but I couldn’t yesterday. He looked so sick when I saw him, his once lustrous feathers were matted and covered in ash. He couldn’t honk properly because he was choking on the ash and soot lingering in the air. It was the most terrible sight I had ever seen and I knew then and there I had to help him and his flock, his family. They are defenseless against the actions of humans, they can’t speak for themselves. I knew that I had to be the one to speak for them, which is why I am in front of you today, to implore you to make a change for the better. Humans take without consequence, but eventually retribution will come. We are a part of this world too, and if we destroy it, we’ll have nothing left to salvage. I know Gibson County is only a small area compared to the rest of the world, but if take a stand now to right this wrong, we could all make a change one by one. Even one person, or one town, can make all the difference. The coal mine here can’t continue on it’s current path or there will be dire consequences. The mining affects vegetation cover, the quality of the soil, surface drainage, and groundwater. In addition, it can cause the subsidence of land, which is the sinking and caving of land. The acidic runoff from the mine contaminates streams and other water sources, leaves barren areas of vegetation, increases erosion, and soils the water of streams. All this is because of coal mining. I’m not saying to com-pletely stop mining and using coal as energy, but at least put regulations of the coal mine so that any pollution coming from it has to be clean and filtered. This way it will no longer harm the environment and the coal mine can still be fully functional. We could even try to use other sources of energy in ad-dition to the coal mine, such as renewable resources. That way we wouldn’t have to use as much coal and we wouldn’t have to dig up the ground as much to get to it. This will cost more money, but it’d be worth it to save the environment and those living in it, including ourselves. I know change can be scary, but I truly think this will be a change for the better. We all have to live in this world togeth-er, why let the damage we’re doing to it go any further than it already has. Together, I know we can make a difference.” Billy finished his speech, his heart drumming inside of his chest. The audience burst into cheers and applause as Billy took his seat once again with Gary in his arms. He felt good about what he had said, he just hoped everyone else did too. “Thank you Billy, that was very insightful.” said the mayor. “Would the next defendant please come forward and make his case. Billy watched with attention as Mr. Rogers walked up to the podium. He stared directly at Billy and Gary as he began his defense. “Ladies and gentlemen, little Billy here makes a good case, but he’s just a child. He can’t fully

understand what’s really going on here. I mean come on folks! He’s carrying a pet goose and says it’s

his best friend! Are you really going to take advice from a child with a wild imagination. The Earth has

survived for billions of years and he’s saying that what we do in this small county will affect the whole

world! Now, I don’t know about you folks, but that sounds a tad eccentric. My coal mining factory

provides us with a great source of energy and it’s so cheap! Are you really willing to listen to a kid

about this when my coal mine is just one, small problem in this great big world. Why, without my coal

mine, or any other for that matter, you wouldn’t be able to power your homes and other necessi-

ties. Are you really willing to give that up for a little boy and his friends the geese? Think about it

folks” Mr. Rogers clasped his hands together and went to take his seat. About ten minutes later a

verdict was made and the mayor announced it for the whole audience to hear.

“A verdict has been made!” he announced. “The county agrees with the boy, Billy Meyer, on

the case of the coal mine pollution. Regulations will be put in place so that only clean air and other

substances can be released from Mr. Roger’s factory and mine.”

Cheers erupted from the crowd and each person stood up to congratulate Billy and pat him on the shoulder. Billy swelled with pride and Gary felt a sense of relief, his family was saved, all thanks to Billy. Gary could go home now and tell his family the great news. Gary was startled from his thoughts when he heard a man’s deep voice. “Congratulations, Billy, you won fair and square.” said Mr. Rogers. “Your speech was very de-

tailed and insightful. Now, I may not agree with your opinion on the pollution, but I’d like to thank

you for not petitioning to completely shut down my company. What you did took guts, kid, and it was

a privilege to have met you. If only there were more kids like you, you have passion and a good

heart.” Mr. Rogers shook Billy’s hand and walked away.

Chapter 6

“Mother! Mother!” Gary shouted as he waddled towards them. They were huddled together on the river shore. “Gary! Gary! Where have you been? I have been worried sick and I told you not to go!” she scolded. “I know mother, but it was important that I go, I had to help you guys. You’ll never believe what happened though, Billy convinced The whole town to clean the pollution created by the coal mine. It was amazing! You’ll never believe what he did!” Gary spent the next half an hour explain-ing to his mother what had happened since he left the park. He didn’t spare a single detail. “So Billy persuaded the whole town to clean the pollution caused by the coal mine and he came up with the idea to put regulations on the factory? That’s amazing!” Gary’s mother shouted in awe. “Oh honey, I’m so sorry. You were right about humans, I should have listened to you.” “Us too, we’re sorry.” echoed the rest of the flock. “I guess I misjudged humans. I mean there will always be the ones that are no good, but the same goes for geese as well. It all depends on the person. They may be the cause of many prob-lems in the world, but they’re also the solution and have created many amazing things. We’ll be more understanding and trustful of you in the future, Gary. I am so sorry. It’s thanks to you we can go home now. You saved us because you were determined to solve this problem and you knew Billy would help you. Thank you, Gary. Thank you.” his mother said. “I just did what anyone else would do. I’m just glad you can appreciate humans the way I do

now. Maybe you can all be friends with Billy now too! I’m just thrilled that everything worked out

for the better and the humans hopefully learned their lesson.

The sun shone brightly down on the park in Gibson County. The morning air was cool, clean, and crisp in the sky and Gary was as happy as playful puppy. The pollution had cleared from the coal mine and the regulations were already in effect. Gary and his flock soared through the sky as merrily as can be, their honking could be heard on the ground far below. Gary felt calm and at peace, for now, all was right with the world. Gary gazed down at the Gibson County park they were flying over and saw Billy waving up to him from the bench where they usually met. Gary honked happily and flew down to meet him, only this time, his whole flock came with him.

The End

One Year Later