Old Henry and the Pumpkin Festival

In Goomeri, we all love the Pumpkin Festival and everyone helps make sure there's something different each year.

One morning not long before the festival, three people were collecting their mail at the post office at the same time.

Mrs Toffee, the owner of the lolly shop, was picking up another parcel of new lollies and she saw the manager of the Pumpkin Festival with a big smile on his face.

'What are you so happy about Blue?' she asked him.

'This letter here is the insurance for the festival. Now the festival can go ahead. Nothing can stop it now.'

'Look. Here's old Henry. He's ridden his bicycle all the way in from Tansey to pick up his mail. I don't know how he does it.'

'What have you got there Henry,' asked Blue as Henry carried his heavy little parcel out of the Post Office.

'None of your business. It's mine,' said Old Henry as he walked back to his bicycle and started to ride back to his farm.

No one knew what Old Henry took back to his farm that day but another day he was seen to park his bicycle in front of Mrs Toffee's Lolly Shop. He came out with a parcel and a smile and he rode back to his farm.

Well on the day of the Festival everyone in town was there. There were lots of tourists buying pumpkin scones and getting ready for the pumpkin roll down Policeman's Hill.

'Hey look who's coming. It's Old Henry.' shouted some kids.

Everyone looked and, sure enough, there he was puffing up the hill on his bicycle and on the back there was a big pumpkin.

He waited till everyone had had a go rolling and then stepped forward. 'Ladies and Gentlemen. I have the best pumpkin of all. All children must hold out their hands and open their mouths.'

He put his pumpkin down on the start line, lit the fuse sticking out of the pumpkin and gave it a shove and it went rolling down the hill.

'Ahh! It's a bomb. Duck for cover!' But before anyone could move, the pumpkin went off like a giant firework.

Bang! Ziiiiii. Ziiiii. Ziiii. Zup-zup-zup-zup-zup.

Fireworks went zipping everywhere over Policeman's Hill and out of them flew lots and lots of bright colourful pumpkin shaped lollies.

'Hooray!' Kids ran here and there scooping them up and when they tasted them they fizzed and zipped in their mouths like yummy, sweet fireworks.

'That's what was in that parcel at the post office,' said Blue. 'The Pumpkin Festival will get another tourism award for sure this year. Thanks old Henry. That was the best.'

Old Henry had his photo taken with the festival committee and Mrs Toffee from the Lolly Shop and all the happy smiling children before he hopped on his bike and rode back to his farm.

Created by Daryll Bellingham and the students from years 3, 4 & 5 at Goomeri State School.

No pumpkins were hurt in the production of this story.

© 2010

Old Henry and the Pumpkin Festival

Daryll's podcast

Echuca is A-Mazing

One day in Echuca a group of young people were exploring the Oz Maze. The wind was blowing through the gum trees and the kookaburras were laughing wildly.

Picture by Austen

As they were lining up to pay for the tickets the attendant said: "All the maze is open but that area over there, you musn't go there. Whatever you do don't pass through it." The young people said: "Oooh."

No sooner were they in the maze when one of the boys said: "I wonder where that place is he's talking about?"

Suddenly he saw an orange construction fence. Beyond the orange construction fence there was something bright and shiny. It was a time portal. Matthew took off, jumping into the time portal. Grace and Gabi were a bit scared and wondered where he'd gone to.

In the ticket office the security guard glimpsed the video and saw what was happening. He leapt up and started running through the maze. "What's going on here?" he shouted.

The young people saw him coming. Janelle called out: "Oh no, he's after us, let's go!"

In an instant the young people were in the portal. They fell and landed on something really hard. "Where are we?" they cried out.

Matthew, the eldest of the group, rubbed his head and said: "It's a paddlesteamer."

And sure enough it was. It was an 1800's paddlesteamer.

Matthew looked at everyone. "Hey! we've slipped back in time. That portal worked!"

As the paddlesteamer came into the port of Echuca they heard a scream. It was the security guard. He'd come through the portal too but he didn't land on the paddlesteamer, he fell with a huge splash right in the middle of the Murray!

The young people said: "Hey, let's go! Let's get away."

Drawing by Gabi

They jumped onto a Cobb and Co coach. "He'll never get us now!" But that security guard was quick. He jumped on the back of the coach as they sped through the main street of Echuca.

One of the girls, Chelsea saw a strange door. "Come on everybody!" she yelled out. "Jump!" And they all jumped and followed Chelsea through that strange old door.

Chelsea must have guessed that it was another portal. But she could never have guessed where they'd end up.

"Wow!" said Austen. "This is sick! I love bowling!" And sure enough they were at the bowling alley.

He looked at the other kids and smiled. He was just thinking about a game when he saw that the security guard was in the bowling alley too! "Oh, no!" they all called out. All the young people started to run across the alleys.

Just at that moment a really heavy and very fast ball came down the lane and hit the security guard. The guard was knocked down, disappeared behind the bowling lanes and was swept down the portal.

Luke and Gabi reached for their mobile phones. "Let's ring our Mums!"

When the young people's parents arrived they all had a bit of explaining to do about how come they were at the bowling alley and not at the maze but they sure had a good story to share with their friends when they headed back to school. All their friends said: "That's amazing!" even though they didn't believe them.

© This was created by Daryll Bellingham and young library users at the Echuca Branch Library of the Campaspe Regional Library Service, 14th January, 2009.

The following map includes the locations of the story settings.


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