Nobody Sits on Carl Today

8 pages · 8 min · ages 5+

▶ Watch the read-aloud on YouTube

Plop. A ripe orange dropped from the tree and bobbed in the warm pool. Carl the capybara fished it out with his teeth, tossed it up, and caught it on the flat top of his head. It fit perfectly. It always did. “Today,” said Carl, “I will sit in the warm pool with an orange on my head. By myself. All day long.” Carl knew a great many words. He just liked one of them best. He stepped into the steamy water. It was as warm as a bath. “Morning, Carl!” Pip the bird landed on the orange. Monkey swung down onto Carl's back. Tuck the turtle climbed up Carl's tail. “Budge up,” said Tuck. Carl sank until the water tickled his chin. “Hm,” said Carl.

Carl had a plan. If he lay very flat, there would be nothing to sit on. He slid down until only his nose, his eyes and his orange poked out of the water. “Where did Carl go?” asked Monkey. Pip hopped about on the orange. “Look! A little island! With a tree on it!” “I love islands,” said Monkey, and he sat on it. Tuck sat on it too. Then Reginald the crocodile paddled over and smiled his most polite smile. “Is there room on this island for a small one?” Reginald was not a small one. The island sank a little more. Blub, blub. “Hm,” bubbled Carl.

Carl climbed out, dripping. Nobody sits on a rock, Carl thought. He rolled in the mud until he was brown and lumpy all over. He stuck three leaves on his back and a bit of moss on his ear. Then he stood at the side of the path, very, very still. Monkey came skipping by. “Ooh,” said Monkey. “What a lovely warm rock.” “It is breathing,” said Tuck. “Warm rocks breathe,” said Monkey, and sat down. Pip landed on the moss. Tuck climbed on behind Monkey. Reginald bowed to the rock. “Pardon me. Is this rock taken?” Carl did not move a whisker. “Hm,” said the rock.

The next morning, before the sun was even up, Carl tiptoed away. He was going to the tiny warm pool at the top of Pebble Hill, the highest hill in the whole jungle. Nobody would climb all the way up there. Carl climbed. And climbed. Puff, puff, puff. Three hundred steps, and a very steep bit at the end. At the top, the little pool steamed in the pink morning light. Carl put a fresh orange on his head and smiled his slow smile. At last. Then he looked into the pool. “Surprise!” shouted Monkey. “We came up the stream on Reginald,” said Tuck. “It was quicker.”

“We saved you a seat,” said Monkey, patting the water. “The seat is you,” said Tuck. And up they all came. Tuck climbed on first. Monkey climbed on Tuck. Reginald rested his long chin across all of them, very politely, and Pip sat on top of Reginald's nose like a little blue hat. It was the tallest stack the jungle had ever seen. It wobbled. Carl sank to his chin, then to his nose. His orange slipped off his head, rolled over the edge of the pool, and went bump, bump, bump all the way down Pebble Hill. Nobody noticed. Carl watched it go. “Hm,” said Carl.

Carl let out the longest, slowest sigh the jungle had ever heard. “Hmmmmmmmm.” Tuck leaned down and looked into Carl's eye. “Carl,” said Tuck, “what does Hm mean?” “It means yes, please,” said Monkey. “It means hello!” chirped Pip. Reginald thought about it. “I always assumed it meant, what a splendid day.” Carl blinked. Every one of his friends had a different Hm. Not one of them had his. Carl knew a great many words. He had been saving them for years. Maybe, Carl thought, today was the day to spend a few.

Carl cleared his throat. Everyone went quiet. Carl never cleared his throat. “Friends,” said Carl. “I like you very much. I like you on my back most days. But today I would like to sit in the warm pool by myself, with an orange on my head and nobody on top. Tomorrow you may all climb on again.” Nobody moved. Pip was so surprised that Pip fell off Reginald's nose. Plip. “That is the most words Carl has ever said,” whispered Monkey. “Why didn't you say so?” asked Reginald. “I said Hm,” said Carl. “Ah,” said Reginald. And one by one, very gently, they all climbed down. Monkey ran all the way down the hill and back again with a brand-new orange. Carl put it on his head and floated. It fit perfectly.

The next morning, Carl came down to the warm pool by the river. It was full. Monkey floated with an orange on his head. Tuck floated with an orange on his shell. Pip sat in the water up to the tummy, wearing a very small orange. And Reginald lay across the whole pool like a long green log, with three oranges in a row down his back. “Today,” said Monkey, “nobody sits on us.” Carl looked around. There was only one spot left. It was on Reginald. “Pardon me,” said Carl, and he climbed up and sat on Reginald. Reginald did not move. He chewed a leaf, slowly. “Hm,” said Reginald.