Badir and the Beaver Read online

  “He probably won’t be.” Mr. George laughed. “Beavers like to make families. They are monogamous, meaning they have the same partner for life. And they raise their kits, or baby beavers, until they are two years old. I bet your beaver will have his hands full soon enough.”

  Chapter

  SIX

  Anis met Badir after school. They walked down Main Street together, but before going home, Badir wanted to stop in the park to see if the beaver was awake.

  The boys stood at the railing of the bridge by the pond and looked into the water. They saw two geese and their seven goslings. And they saw a seagull perched on a birdhouse sticking out of the water. But no beaver.

  “He must be in his home,” said Badir, pointing to the lodge.

  “It’s not a home—it’s a mess!” said an angry voice behind them.

  Badir and Anis turned around to see a tall man wearing rubber boots hammering a sign into the ground.

  It read:

  “Why do you call him a pest?” Anis asked the man.

  The man pointed to a broken tree near the pond. It looked like it had been stuck into a giant pencil sharpener.

  “Look!” he said. “The beaver did this! The beaver is eating the park trees and then using the logs to make his lodge.”

  They looked, and it was true. An animal with strong teeth had chewed the tree trunk. All that was left was a gnawed stump.

  “Beavers eat everything they can get their mouths around,” said the man. “Bushes, saplings, trees. Nothing is safe. With a beaver in this pond, soon we won’t have any park left!”

  “It’s a big park,” said Badir. “There must be room for a little beaver.”

  The man looked at Badir. He looked him up. He looked him down.

  “What do you know about beavers?” he asked.

  “I know a lot about beavers,” said Badir. “I know they are monogamous, and they take very good care of their children.”

  The man scowled. “Sorry, kid, but beavers do not belong in city parks. I plan on trapping this beaver and moving him somewhere else.”

  “Trapping him!” Badir imagined a metal cage snapping shut on his beaver. “This beaver chose this park for his home. You can’t just get rid of him!”

  “Of course we can,” said the man. “And you should stay out of it! You’re too young to understand the problems a beaver brings to a city park.”

  The man squelched away in his rubber boots, holding his clipboard, off to get more people to sign their names to his petition.

  Badir couldn’t believe it. The man was going to trap the beaver, just like what Mr. George said had happened during the fur trade.

  A woman walked up to the sign, holding her small white dog in her arms. “What a good idea!” she said and stooped to sign her name on the paper.

  “Why are you signing this?” asked Badir.

  “Because I’m afraid to walk Snowball in the park.”

  “Why?” asked Badir.

  “Why?! She might get eaten by the beaver, of course!”

  Badir laughed. “No, that’s impossible! Beavers don’t eat animals. They’re herbivores! They eat grass and bark and pond weeds.”

  “Have you seen this beaver?” cried the woman. “He’s a large, vicious rodent!” Snowball squirmed in her arms as she hugged her tightly.

  “I think the kid knows more about beavers than you do,” said a voice behind them. Everyone turned to see the girl from the elevator standing by the BEAVERS BEGONE sign. She was holding Oscar on a leash and wearing a new T-shirt that said, Don’t grow up. It’s a trap!

  “Beavers are rodents,” she said. “But they are not vicious. They like to chew, not bite.”

  The woman looked at the girl and snorted. Snowball growled and bared her teeth. Oscar panted loudly. He rolled over on the ground and stuck his paws up in the air.

  “I think your little dog might be more vicious than a beaver,” said the girl.

  “She most certainly is not!” said the woman, squeezing Snowball to her chest. She turned and walked away. Snowball yapped at them over her shoulder.

  Badir smiled at the girl. “Thank you,” he said.

  The girl nodded at the boys. She stared at the BEAVERS BEGONE sign.

  “Looks like this beaver is in big trouble,” she said.

  “I know,” said Badir. “We have to help him.”

  “Well,” said the girl. “For starters, we could change the sign.”

  She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a big felt-tip pen.

  “There!” she said, standing back to admire her work.

  The sign now read:

  BEAVERS BELONG

  Badir and Anis smiled.

  “That’s better!” said Anis.

  “Look!” said Badir. The tall man was coming back. He looked angry.

  “What are you kids doing?!” he shouted.

  “Run!” said the girl. The three of them ran out of the park as fast as they could go.

  Then, walking back to their apartment building, the girl told them her name was Rita.

  “I’ve seen you at school,” said Anis.

  Rita let Badir hold Oscar’s leash. Oscar pulled Badir the whole way home.

  “Who’s walking whom?” asked a police officer at the intersection.

  Badir looked back and saw Anis and Rita talking. Anis was pointing to the poster on the travel agency’s window. Rita looked interested in what he was saying.

  Anis has found a friend, thought Badir.

  Oscar peed on a fire hydrant and then pulled him into their building.

  Chapter

  SEVEN

  That evening Rita came over to share their Ramadan meal. Anis had asked his father if it was okay to bring a guest to iftar.

  “Of course,” he said. “Friends are always welcome.”

  Badir’s father laughed when he saw Rita’s T-shirt.

  “I agree 100 percent!” he said. “Growing up is a trap!”

  They drank glasses of milk, ate dates and then had their iftar dinner of lamb and rice. Badir told his parents about the petition to get rid of the beaver in the park. He told them about the ruined tree and the man with rubber boots.

  Badir’s mother nodded thoughtfully. “It is a small park for a beaver,” she said.

  “But a large-enough park for a man with a petition,” said Badir’s father.

  Rita was quiet during dinner, but she finished everything on her plate.

  “Does your mother cook lamb?” asked Badir’s mother.

  “I live with my father,” said Rita. “He works until late, so this is nice. I don’t usually eat with anyone,” she added.

  “We are happy to share with you,” said Badir’s mother.

  For dessert, Badir’s father had made his famous lemon pie with pistachios.

  Rita ate it slowly and carefully, licking her spoon after each bite.

  “This is so much better than instant noodles and broccoli,” she said. “Thank you.”

  Before Badir and his family went to mosque, Rita’s father knocked on their door. Rita had left a note telling him she had been invited to dinner. Badir’s father gave him a leftover piece of pie.

  “Can I go to Rita’s apartment?” asked Badir. “We need to make signs for the park, to tell people the truth about the beaver.”

  His parents looked at each other. Usually they went together as a family to mosque.

  “Helping the beaver is a good deed!” Badir said.

  “It’s okay with me,” said Rita’s father.

  “Okay,” said Badir’s mother. “That beaver is lucky to have you. Anis will come and get you after mosque.”

  Oscar was waiting at the door of Rita’s apartment. He slobbered over Badir’s leg when he came in. Badir heard a scrabbling sound in the corner of the living room. He looked over and saw a cage. A soft white rabbit stared out at him.

  “What’s its name?” he asked.

  “White Rabbit,” said Rita. She tossed markers and pieces o
f cardboard to Badir.

  “Let’s get busy,” she said. “If people learn about the beaver, they’ll start to care about him. We can put the signs up in the park tomorrow after school.”

  Badir worked on a sign with Rita. They wrote, Beaver at work. Leave him alone! “You’re really good at printing,” said Badir.

  “I have had lots of practice,” said Rita, pointing to a pile of T-shirts on a chair. Each one had a different slogan written on it.

  Nope. Not today.

  I’d rather be hanging out with my rabbit.

  I always YAWN when I’m paying attention.

  Badir thought about the beaver’s amazing lodge. He wrote, Beavers are people too! on his own sign.

  “Beavers aren’t people,” Rita said.

  “They are like little people,” explained Badir. “They build dams and ponds and canals. So do we. They can cut down trees. So can we. Their beaver lodge has a front door, a mudroom and a bedroom. Like ours. And in winter, if it’s cold, steam comes out of the top of their lodge like smoke from a chimney. What other animal does that?”

  “Cool,” said Rita. “How do you know so much about beavers?”

  “I’ve done my research,” said Badir.

  He walked over to White Rabbit’s cage. She was chewing on some lettuce. Badir stuck his finger into the cage, and White Rabbit hopped over to sniff it. She licked his finger. Then she nibbled his finger. Then she bit his finger.

  “Ouch!” said Badir, pulling away. The rabbit nibbled on the cage, eyeing him.

  Badir stared at the cage. “Rita, what is this cage made from?”

  “Chicken wire,” said Rita.

  “And this makes a good cage for rabbits?”

  “She doesn’t like to chew on the wire,” explained Rita.

  “Interesting,” said Badir. “Very, very interesting. Maybe chicken wire can work with other animals too.”

  Rita smiled at Badir. “I think I know what you’re thinking, Badir!”

  When Anis came to pick him up, Badir told him they were going to put up signs in the park the next day.

  Before bed, Badir sat down at the computer.

  Deer Mr. George,

  This is Badir. I need your help. The fur trade is happening again! A man wants to trap the park beaver becuz he is eating the park trees.

  I have a plan! Maybe we can save the trees with chiken wire!

  Good nite.

  Anis read Badir’s email before he sent it. “Chicken wire?” he asked. “Do you really think that will work?”

  Badir shrugged. “I know what I know,” he said.

  “I don’t think you know so much,” said Anis.

  “I know a lot of things,” said Badir, getting into his pajamas.

  “I know beavers’ teeth never stop growing,” said Badir. “That’s why they can chew on trees. If you chewed on a tree, Anis, you wouldn’t have any teeth left!”

  Anis smiled as he got into his pajamas.

  “And I know beavers have orange teeth! That is because they have iron in their teeth, which makes them very strong and sharp.”

  “Go to sleep, Badir,” said Anis.

  “And they have a second set of eyelids, like goggles, that let them see underwater.”

  Anis threw a pillow at Badir.

  “And they are amazing engineers,” said Badir dreamily. “No other animal can change the world like a beaver can…”

  Badir fell asleep, dreaming of swimming underwater with a branch between his teeth. He was swimming toward his home.

  Chapter

  EIGHT

  “He said he wanted to trap the beaver!” said Badir, showing his friends one of the signs he had made with Rita.

  “That’s terrible!” Nate gasped. “The beaver has a right to make his home in the park, doesn’t he?”

  “He does,” said Mr. George. “And there’s nowhere to relocate him to anyway. Other ponds and lakes have their own beavers. He needs his own space to raise a family.”

  “But there is no girl beaver.”

  “Female beaver,” said Marlene.

  “Not yet,” said Mr. George. “But eventually our beaver friend will find a mate and have kits.”

  “With his beaver family, even more trees will be eaten!” Badir said.

  Mr. George nodded. He drew a tree on the whiteboard with his marker, and a funny-looking beaver beside it.

  “I think Badir is right. If we want to help our beaver, we need to protect the trees in the park. Does anyone have any ideas?”

  Badir waved his arm in air. “I do! I do! I do!” he shouted.

  But Mr. George asked Nate, who was sitting quietly with his hand raised.

  “What about giving the beaver other trees from forests that have more trees?” suggested Nate.

  Mr. George wrote on the board:

  Solution 1: PROVIDE OTHER TREES

  “That’s a lot of work,” said Samantha. “Someone would have to cut down the trees and bring them to Hinge Park.”

  “It’s an interesting idea though,” said Mr. George.

  “Ask me! Ask me!” said Badir.

  Mr. George did not seem to hear Badir.

  “What about sprinkling something on the trees that beavers don’t like to eat, like cayenne pepper?” suggested Marlene.

  Mr. George wrote on the board:

  Solution 2: CAYENNE PEPPER

  “That could make the beaver sick,” said Yayo.

  “Mr. George! Mr. George!” Badir waved his hand again.

  But Mr. George asked Max on the other side of the classroom.

  “I was thinking we could wrap something around the trees, like blankets,” said Max.

  Mr. George wrote on the board:

  Solution 3: BLANKET WRAP

  “But a beaver could chew them up, couldn’t they?” asked Amany.

  “Still, it’s an interesting idea,” said Mr. George.

  “What about spikes?” asked Isabelle. “We use them to stop pigeons from roosting on our roof.”

  “Spikes?” said Ryan. “That’s mean!”

  Mr. George wrote on the board:

  Solution 4: SPIKES

  “Oh! Oh! Oh!” said Badir.

  Mr. George looked at Badir. “Okay, Badir. Your turn.”

  Badir gasped for air and rubbed his stretched-out shoulder.

  “Chicken wire!” he shouted. “We can put chicken wire on the trees!”

  Mr. George wrote on the board:

  Solution 5: CHICKEN WIRE

  He pointed to the board. “Five solutions,” he said. “Let’s see if we can make one work.”

  “I think all these ideas are good,” said Jasminder, a quiet student who sat in the corner of the classroom. “But some of them are better than others. And if we combine our ideas, maybe we can find the best way to help the beaver.”

  Everyone stared at the five possible solutions.

  “We could wrap chicken wire around the trees like a blanket,” said Max.

  “That would work,” said Nate. “But would chicken wire stop a beaver?”

  “Beavers have very sharp teeth,” said Badir. “But chicken wire is made from metal. I don’t think a beaver would want to chew on metal.”

  “I think it could work,” said Mr. George. “Wrapping trees in chicken wire could protect them.”

  “But where would we get chicken wire?” asked Nate.

  “I have some!” Marlene said. “We were just using rolls of it to puppy-proof our garden. We still have some in our backyard.”

  “We have to hurry,” said Badir. “The man was asking people to write their names down. If too many people want the beaver gone…” Badir couldn’t finish his sentence. The class fell silent.

  “It’s very difficult to leave your home,” Badir said. And then he put his head down on his desk.

  “Don’t worry, Badir,” said Nate. “We’ll help your beaver.”

  That afternoon Mr. George gave the class time to make some more beaver signs.

  “If
you are going to wrap trees in chicken wire, you had better let people know what you are doing,” he said.

  As the rest of the class made signs, Badir and Marlene used Mr. George’s computer to do some research. Badir learned that beaver-destroyed trees could become bushier trees the following year, as new branches grew out from the stumps. Those branches became new places for birds to sing and perch. Marlene found out that beaver dams worked like giant water filters, keeping the waterways clean and healthy.

  “Beavers are what you call a keystone species,” Mr. George said. “Having beavers around makes it possible for other species to live there too.”

  “My beaver is the best,” Badir stated. He smiled at Marlene.

  “And that’s not bragging. That’s the truth!”

  Chapter

  NINE

  After school Badir and Nate and Marlene waited at the front of the school for Anis. Badir grinned when he saw that Anis was walking with Rita. She was wearing a bright-purple T-shirt that said Not a people person. She was carrying the signs they had made the night before.

  “This is my brother, Anis,” said Badir. “And this is Rita. They go to the same high school.”

  “Ramadan mubarak!” said Nate and Marlene. Badir had taught them how to say “Happy Ramadan!” in Arabic.

  Anis smiled. Rita pointed to Nate’s backpack, which was full of sticks and poster paper. “What are those?” she asked.

  “More signs!” said Badir. “Mr. George wants us to make sure people in the park know what we are doing.”

  Rita unrolled one of the signs:

  SAVE A BEAVER

  WRAP A TREE

  “Cool,” she said. Together they walked down Main Street and stopped at Marlene’s house for the chicken wire. Marlene’s mom gave them some gloves, a pair of pliers and a bag of cookies.

  Rita frowned when she saw the chicken wire. “That’s not a lot of wire,” she said.

  “It’s a start,” said Badir.

  Rita handed her signs to Anis. “I have to get home and walk Oscar,” she explained. “I’ll meet you at the park later.”