The Ugly Duckling: Chipmunk Edition

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, the sun shined warmly upon four newborn baby squirrels and their mother, who sat in a tree devouring an acorn. In a land a little bit farther away, dark clouds blanketed the skies as Johnny the chipmunk was born. Unfortunately, Johnny was an only child and with the somber skies and eternal gloom of his land, Johnny often became lonely. Wanting to live a brighter and happier life, Johnny decided to leave his land in favor of a more joyful surrounding. So after a couple of restful days, Johnny decided to explore a whole new world.

Johnny began his trek the next morning and ran and ran until he saw sunlight. He reached another land and upon entering, became overwhelmed with delight at the sight of clear skies and a glowing sun.

Happy Chipmunk

Johnny being delighted by his sights.
Courtesy of http://onlypositive.net/?tag=/chipmunk

He ventured a little further when he saw another litter of animals that looked similar to him and tried to befriend them. Johnny unknowingly entered the land of squirrels and was subsequently introduced to Tom, Tim, Ted, and Tod, four of the young newborn squirrels. Over the next few days, Johnny and the squirrels became best friends as they chased each other around the trees, jumped into piles of leaves, and ate as many acorns as their stomachs would let them. In due time, however, the distinctions between Johnny and his squirrel friends became wider and more pronounced. Johnny’s friends had long bushy tails, long bodies, and beady, devilish eyes. Johnny, in contrast, developed dark and light brown stripes along his back, had a smaller and narrower body, and a skinny dark brown tail. With their physical differences, the friendship between Johnny and his friends slowly deteriorated.

“Hey Johnny! What’s that on your back?” berated Ted.

“Yeah, it looks so stupid,” said Tom, gnawing on yet another acorn.

The days passed and the insults towards Johnny became progressively worse. Since he ran away from home at an early age, Johnny never knew he was a chipmunk; upon entering the land of the squirrels, Johnny too believed that he was a squirrel. Nonetheless, Johnny could never explain his physical differences, and he knew something was wrong. Johnny had shorter legs and could never run as far or as fast as his friends. He could never climb trees as fast or as high as his friends. His stripes made him very distinct and different from his friends, earning him the title “ugly squirrel.”

“Hey! Ugly squirrel, come here and catch this acorn!” yelled Tod.

But Johnny’s arms were too short and he missed.

“You’re such a loser. You can’t do anything right,” criticized Tom, who shook his head in shame and dismay at his friend’s failed efforts.

After days of criticism, Johnny became very unhappy and resolved to run away to another land. So the next morning, Johnny packed some acorns and ran for as long as he could, when, all of a sudden, he reached College Avenue. Johnny was in awe of all the sights—the people, the stores, the restaurants, and most importantly, the chipmunks. Johnny finally recognized his own kind and reunited with the tribe. While the weather was very erratic in this new land, Johnny was nevertheless thrilled to be among his species and explore his new surroundings. Every morning, Johnny and his chipmunk friends crawled into trashcans, eating all the French fries and scrap food available, and then proceeding to jump out on nearly all the people nearby, terrifying them much so. Johnny was no longer called the “ugly squirrel” (which meant a lot to a chipmunk with an identity crisis). He, along with his fellow chipmunks, lived happily ever after.

3 responses to “The Ugly Duckling: Chipmunk Edition

  1. Pingback: "Slut Shaming" and Anti-Bullying Laws |

  2. This post is very comical. I enjoyed your transformation of the original story into one involving squirrels. I thought it was cute and definitely memorable. This story reminded me so much of all the squirrels running around campus. Who knows, maybe there is “the ugly squirrel” somewhere on campus!

  3. “the ugly squirrel”. I like it. This is funny.

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