Georgey Giraffe s Giant Respect Elizabeth L Hamilton Character-in-Action an imprint of Quiet Impact Inc
CHARACTER CRITTER SERIES Georgey Giraffe s Giant Respect Copyright 2004 by Elizabeth L Hamilton All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided by USA copyright law. Cover design Elizabeth L Hamilton Printed in the United States of America ISBN 0-9754629-1-1 Character-in-Action books are an imprint of the publisher, Quiet Impact Inc. http://www.character-in-action.com
1 One dusty, brown afternoon, when Georgey Giraffe was trying to decide whether to taste the bright pink blossoms tucked among the green leaves of a nearby bush, he suddenly heard a noise. Georgey twisted his long spotted neck, and looked around but he did not see anyone. He turned back to the bright pink flowers. Hey, called a voice. It seemed to be coming from the other side of the leaves. Georgey Giraffe bent his neck sideways and peered into the bush. Come over and see the funny, fat old giraffes, said the voice, which was Jasmine s.
2 You should not talk that way, said Georgey. My father says that we will be old giraffes someday, so we should show respect. Respect connect correct, said little Jasmine, which made no sense but sounded somewhat like a song. Jasmine loved songs. What s respect? Come and see them, Georgey. They are sleeping with their heads on their back feet. Silly old giraffes! Georgey Giraffe pushed his neck through the green leafy bush. He was upset, and when giraffes get upset, they tip their ears forward. They raise their eyebrows. That is what Georgey did. What if they hear you? You will make them feel bad. I m going home. He
3 pulled his long, spotted neck out of the dark green bush and set off for home just across the dusty African grassland. When Georgey reached home, Father was eating juicy green leaves from the top of a big acacia tree. Georgey looked up and up and up at him. Father was so tall that his head seemed to be above the clouds. Georgey called loudly to him, Father? Father! May I ask you something? Father bent his long brown and cream neck down, down, down. He put his face close to his small son s face. What is it, Georgey? What do you want to ask?
4 Well, said Georgey, I think I know what respect means, but I m not sure and I want to show respect big respect. If you aren t busy, would you please explain? Father Giraffe turned away from the juicy leaves. Let s walk, he said. So off they went, Georgey s long legs trying to keep up to Father s longer legs. Their feet puffed tiny dust clouds with every step. Respect, began Father, is showing others that you value both them and their belongings you honor them. What others? And how do I show that I value them? asked Georgey.
5 Father Giraffe stopped at the water hole. Others, he said, includes most every giraffe in some way especially parents and teachers and older giraffes. You must be careful not to make them look as though they have no value. A good test is to ask yourself if you would want someone to treat you that way. Father spread his front legs very wide apart, bent his long, long neck, and slurped up a big drink with his pink tongue. Georgey did exactly the same, although he did not have to bend as far. The sparkly cool water washed the dust from his tongue, and made him feel cool all the way down his long throat to his tummy.
6 Georgey s cooled tongue asked, So I treat everyone the way I want to be treated? Everyone, said Father, but in different ways small and big. You will learn. Then Father ran much faster than Georgey could run, and soon he was out of sight. Georgey sighed. He knew how to show a little respect, but he wanted to show big respect. Hey, Georgey. It was Tall Tim, his best friend. Want to watch the neck wrestling? Sure, said Georgey. Only big giraffe boys neck wrestled. It was a way to chase the other boys away from the girl you liked. It
7 was dangerous to do, but fun to watch. Georgey caught up with Tall Tim, and they hurried off to watch. Oh, it was exciting! Two tall giraffes twisted their necks around each other, and then banged their heads together. What a headache they must get! Georgey was not sure any girl was worth that! A crowd gathered around the wrestlers, cheering and booing and suddenly, Tall Tim yelled a bad word. Georgey tipped his ears forward. He raised his eyebrows. Bad words, thought Georgey, do not show the neck wrestlers that we value them. Bad words make them look as though they have no value. I would not want
8 others to say bad words about me, so I will not shout bad words at the wrestlers. It was only a little act of respect, not a big one, and Georgey sighed. He knew how to show a little respect, but he wanted to show big respect. The wrestling ended suddenly, and Tall Tim turned to Georgey. Let s go and kick rocks, he said with a grin. There are some good kick-rocks over by the trees. Away they ran, but as they got near the trees, Tall Tim stopped. Red Neck! Tall Tim snorted. I m not going to play with Red Neck. Giraffes are supposed to be blond, not red.
9 Giraffes come in many colors red, brown even black and white. Father told me, said Georgey. Red Neck is lots of fun. Come on. Let s ask him to play. Tall Tim scowled and stretched his own towering blond neck as high as possible. No. Let s kick rocks at him instead, he said. Georgey did not want to be a part of that, or even be there when it happened. He tipped his ears forward. He raised his eyebrows. Kicking rocks would not show Red Neck that I value him, he thought. It would make him look as though he has no value. I would not want others to kick rocks at me, so I will not kick rocks at Red Neck.
10 It was only a little act of respect, not a big one, and Georgey sighed. He knew how to show a little respect, but he wanted to show big respect. Suddenly, Georgey had a wonderful thought. The Summer Giraffe Picnic would begin at noon. Maybe maybe he could show big respect at the picnic. He decided to nap until it was time for the picnic. He would not lie down. That was too much trouble. He would just nap standing in the cool shade of the bushes with the pink flowers. He closed his eyes, and as he napped, the sun rolled up and up to the highest part of the hot sky. The big picnic began.
11 Georgey, called Jasmine, Georgey. Come on. I ll race you to the picnic. Georgey opened his brown eyes and blinked his long black lashes. Sure. I ll race and I ll win, too. He dashed away, calling back over his shoulder, Hurry up, slow poke. Jasmine did hurry, but Georgey won. Wow! Look at the long line waiting for cold drinks, said Georgey. I m really thirsty, but that s a very long line. Oh, look. I see Lanky Franky way up near the front, said Jasmine. Come on, Georgey. Let s ask if we can cut into line ahead of him. He will let us.
12 Georgey frowned. He looked at all of the giraffes waiting in the long line. They all had value every one of them. He tipped his ears forward. He raised his eyebrows. If we cut into line, he thought, it will not show the other giraffes that we value them. Cutting in would make the whole long line of giraffes look as though they have no value. I would not want someone to cut into line ahead of me, so I will get at the end of the line. It was only a little act of respect, not a big one, and Georgey sighed. He knew how to show a little respect, but he wanted to show big respect. He saw Jasmine get in front of the line.
13 Hey! That s not fair, objected the long line of giraffes. Georgey was glad he had gone to the end, even though he was very thirsty. He decided to talk to the giraffes near him while they waited and, before too long, he was at the front, getting his drink a tall green drink with ice in it. It was so sweet, and so delicious that he forgot the long time in line. The picnic was great fun. Georgey ran races and hunted for treats hidden in trees. He was glad he was taller than last summer, but wished he was as tall as the big boys. Finally, the picnic ended, and so did the summer holidays. It was time for Georgey and his friends to go back to giraffe school.
14 Georgey liked school, and was glad to be going back. He hoped he could find a way to show big respect at school. He would try. The first week, Georgey and the other students listened to everything the teacher said. They did their lessons, and they were kind to one another on the playground. But the second week was different. It started out well enough, but things changed on Tuesday. Things changed right after the giraffes came in from recess. I had a funny dream last night, Geri said loudly. I dreamed that a strange little being was petting my long neck. The being
15 walked on only two legs. It was brown and black and red and blue. I think it was a space monster or a dinosaur. The class began to giggle. Quiet, please, said Miss Longnecker. Geri was quiet, but Tall Tim whispered loudly, I had a monster dream, too. In my dream, the monster was beige and brown and blue and purple. It climbed up a tree, and jumped onto my neck. And then it slid all the way down my neck like a sliding board. The class began to giggle again, and kept on giggling, louder and louder.
16 Children, said Miss Longnecker, I asked you to be quiet. I wish I would dream about monsters, giggled Jasmine. I dream about monsters every night, snorted Jarrod. Last night, I dreamed I was walking over a water buffalo. He was right between my legs. I could have sat on him. Miss Longnecker twisted her long neck sideways to see who was talking. Jarrod, she said, but Jarrod kept on talking. Class, said Miss Longnecker, we must get quiet, but no one listened no one, that is, except Georgey.
17 Georgey frowned. He looked at the teacher waiting for the children to get quiet. They should respect Miss Longnecker. She was a good teacher. She liked the children. She worked hard to make all of their lessons interesting. Georgey tipped his light brown ears forward. He raised his big eyebrows. Talking and laughing, he thought, do not show the teacher that we value her. Talking and laughing make the teacher look as though she has no value. I would not want someone to keep talking and laughing when I asked them to be quiet, so I will not talk or laugh. Maybe I can do more, though. What else can I do to show Miss Longnecker that I value her? How can I show her big respect?
18 Georgey looked at Tall Tim and Jarrod. They were out of their places now, laughing and joking at the back of the class. They called to him, but he did not answer. He looked at Jasmine and Geri. They were at the back of the class, too, giggling at the boys jokes. They were not listening at all to Miss Longnecker. No one was listening to Miss Longnecker. Georgey sighed. He took a deep breath. He knew now what he must do. He did not want to do it. He certainly did not want to do it. The students would not want him to do it. But if he did not do it, Miss Longnecker would not get respect.
19 Slowly, he walked to the front of the class. He did not look at Miss Longnecker. He did not look at anyone. Georgey raised his head as high as he could. He stuck his neck out, and he shouted, Quiet! Just like that, every giraffe boy stopped telling jokes. Every giraffe girl stopped her giggling. Everyone became very, very quiet. Respect, said Georgey, is showing others that you value both them and their belongings you honor them. I value Miss Longnecker. I think you do, too, but if we talk and laugh when she asks us to be quiet well, that makes her look as though she has no value. She does have value, though. She has value as
20 an adult. She has value as a teacher. She knows a lot of things that we don t know. She works hard to help us learn. She makes our classes interesting. She has value because she does so much for us. She has value for many, many reasons, but we made her look as though she has no value. She does a lot for us, but what do we do for her when she asks us to be quiet? Now Georgey felt braver. He kept his neck stuck out, and looked right at the other students as he asked, How would you feel if you were in the teacher s place and no one listened? You would feel that you had no value at all. That is not respect. We should respect others especially our teacher.
21 Georgey felt very shy then. He pulled his neck back in. He sighed. He knew how to show a little respect, but he wanted to show big respect. He hurried back to his spot in the grassy place beneath the trees, almost wishing he had not said a thing. He was glad he had, of course, but he did not like having the class stare at him. As Georgey reached his spot, the other giraffes all returned to their spots. Not one said a word. Not one told a joke. Not one giggled. Every boy and girl giraffe was quiet. Tall Tim quietly raised one hoof, and asked, May I please say something, Miss Longnecker?
22 Miss Longnecker nodded. Yes, Tall Tim, you may speak, she said. I think Georgey showed big respect for you, said Tall Tim. I m sorry I did not show respect. Thank you, said Miss Longnecker. Geri raised her hoof next. Yes, Geri? said the teacher. I think that Georgey showed very big respect for you, said Geri. I m sorry, too. Thank you, Geri, said the teacher. Does anyone else want to speak?
23 One by one, the giraffe children raised their hoofs. Jasmine said Georgey showed very, very big respect. Jarrod said Georgey showed huge respect. Finally, all had spoken all except shy little Lajila. Do you want to speak, Lajila? Miss Longnecker asked. All eyes turned to Lajila as she nodded her little head. Her tiny voice shook as she said, I think he showed giant respect. Yes, agreed the others. Georgey showed giant respect to the teacher.
24 Miss Longnecker smiled. Yes, Georgey did show giant respect, she said. First, he got quiet when I asked you to get quiet, and that showed respect. But then he showed more respect giant respect when he got everyone else to be quiet when he gave that grand speech about respect. I wonder, though. Do all of you know what respect is? Some of the older giraffes knew, but many of the younger ones did not. Miss Longnecker explained. Respect is: knowing who has value, always showing that you value them, even when nobody is watching.
25 Let s name some giraffes whom we should respect, said Miss Longnecker. How many can we name? On the black chalk board that hung from a tall tree, she wrote their list. The list looked like this. Mother giraffes Father giraffes Teacher giraffes Old giraffes Police giraffes Doctor giraffes Giraffes who are older than we are Giraffes who are different from us We need to stop there, and finish our other lessons, said Miss Longnecker. But before we do, I wonder who can tell me what respectful giraffes do.
26 They wait for others to finish speaking before they begin, said one student. They don t talk back or whine. They are patient with older giraffes, and never make fun of them. They are careful with someone else s belongings, said Georgey. They are kind to giraffes who are not the same color as they are, said Tall Tim. They obey parents and teachers even when they don t feel like it. They don t use bad words.
27 Miss Longnecker smiled. Those all are great ideas, she said. Respect is a way of telling others that they are more than just dusty old rocks or dry blades of grass. They have value we need them. Miss Longnecker smiled. Now, before we study history, let s learn a song. Let s call it Georgey s Respect Song. It s the same tune as that little song called This Old Man. Miss Longnecker sang in a high voice: Show respect every day, While you work and while you play. How do you want others to treat you? You should treat them that way, too.
28 The giraffe children all liked the song, and soon they were singing along with Miss Longnecker all except Georgey. Georgey was thinking. He was thinking that the song needed more verses. He hummed to himself until he had them right. Then he raised his hoof and said, Miss Longnecker, I have two more verses for the song. Georgey sang: Show respect in your voice, And in every word of choice. How do you want them to speak to you? Speak to them in that way, too. Long necks bobbed up and down as the giraffes kept time to Georgey s song, and he continued:
29 Show respect in what you do, Show that others have val-ue, How do you want them to act to you? You should act in that way, too. By the time Miss Longnecker finally wrote history in big letters on the chalk board, every giraffe knew the whole song. And the next week when Miss Longnecker got a terrible sore throat, every little giraffe showed her respect. They gave her a long green scarf to warm her neck. They told her how sorry they were that she felt sick. Together, they made her a raspberry gelatin dessert to lessen the pain and they named it Georgey Giraffe s Giant Respect!
30 Georgey Giraffe s Giant Respect 1 cup boiling water 1 3-ounce box raspberry gelatin 1/2 cup cold water 1 cup vanilla ice cream softened Fresh or frozen raspberries (optional) ~ Pour boiling water into medium-sized glass bowl. ~ Pour gelatin into water. ~ Stir until gelatin is dissolved. ~ Add cold water, stirring until blended well. ~ Let cool for 15 to 20 minutes. ~ Stir softened ice cream into gelatin mixture until ice cream is melted. ~ Pour gelatin mixture into 5 serving dishes. ~ Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours. ~ Decorate with raspberries. ~ Serve and enjoy.