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Once upon a time in the Sub-Saharan portion of Africa, lived a family of lions.  Daddy lion, Bravo, and Mama lion, Ginger had 3 lion cubs—Perry, Pugget, and Paden.  Bravo was a brave lion who expected his cubs to be independent and brave warriors.  As all daddy lions do, Bravo prepared his lions to be independent and strong by learning to conserve their energy during the day and hunt at night.  Ginger, taught her cubs how to hunt and have fun, as lions love to relax and enjoy family.

As the cubs got older, it was time for them to become more independent and do things for themselves.  Perry, Pugget and Paden decided to stick together, as lions are accustomed to doing, and agreed to try their first hunt alone.  One cool evening, the cubs told Bravo and Ginger they were heading into the forest for their first hunt.  The cubs, were excited to experience this new adventure and prove they were ready to be independent.  Perry and Pugget decided the best plan of action was for Perry and Pugget to go deeper into the forest while Paden kept a watchful eye on predators.  The plan was for Paden to roar when she heard or saw something that could be dangerous which would signal to Perry and Pugget that it was time to get ready to attack.

Paden was a playful cub, more playful than her brother Perry and her sister Pugget.  Paden figured she could keep a watchful eye but have a little fun while doing it; after all, how hard is it to watch for predators.  She decided to frolic in the woods because it wasn’t often she had time alone to play.  However, within about 2 hours, she was playing deeper in the woods and forgot she was supposed to be watching out for hyenas. Just then, a large, hungry hyena spotted Paden and decided this was his opportunity to eat dinner.  The hyena crept up slowly behind Paden watching her intently as she continued to roll around.  The hyena pounced on Paden, much to Paden’s surprise.

Meanwhile, her brother and sister were still hunting, looking for prey in the woods.  They were ready to show everyone what they were made of.  So far, everything had gone so well.  This moment had been made for them!  While Paden was fighting for her life, trying to free herself from the hyena’s strong grasp, Perry and Pugget believed they were free from danger because they hadn’t heard any roars from Paden.

A few minutes after Paden was captured by the hyena, a band of hyenas spotted Perry and Pugget.  They knew they could take Perry and Pugget down because there were 8 hyenas in their pack and only 2 lions.  Perry and Pugget looked around and saw the band of hyenas.  They looked at each other wondering why they hadn’t heard Paden’s roar of warning.  Now was not the time to figure that out…they had to fight the hyenas!   They had to devise a plan of how they could attack the group since they were clearly outnumbered–and quick!  Perry and Pugget tried to remember all the hunting strategies they had learned from their mama and the observations that had seen but fear was creeping in quickly.  Their thoughts were becoming a blur but they knew they only had minutes before they would be dead.

Putting everything on the line, they decided to work together and outsmart the ferocious hyenas by running away from them and heading out of the forest when they heard a LOUD roar!  It was Paden sending the warning signal.  The roar was so loud it startled the hyenas long enough to provide Perry and Pugget with time to get away.  Perry and Pugget were not fast runners but they ran as fast as they could, following the sound of the roar so they could thank Paden for saving them and go home to tell their story.  They reached Paden, huffing and puffing because they hadn’t run that far, that fast EVER.  They thought they would die from lack of oxygen until they saw Paden.  Paden was bleeding all over and managed to wimper a small, pitiful cry.  She was hurt badly but she had gotten free from the hyena.  Perry and Pugget couldn’t figure out what had happened to their little sister.  They knew they had to act quickly if Paden was going to live so Perry picked her up with his mouth and together they tried to carry her the one mile home.

As they continued out of the forest, they were all tired and Paden was still bleeding.  It wasn’t clear how long she could make it before losing too much blood.  Those sobering facts gave Perry and Pugget the hope and inspiration they needed to pick up the pace and get Paden home to Hopeville.  Finally, after an exhausting journey home, they saw their parents who were waiting with eager ears to hear of the cubs’ adventure.  One look at the cubs told them things had not gone as well as planned and something was terribly wrong.  Ginger’s motherly instincts kicked in and she licked the blood off Paden assuring her everything would be alright.  Bravo was trying to figure out what happened but decided now was not the time to ask questions.  He hugged his cubs and let them know he was proud of them for making it home and taking care of their sister.  He considered them brave cubs.  Paden survived the attack but learned a valuable lesson.

A month later, the siblings decided to go for another hunt hoping it would not be as adventurous as their first experience.  However, even it was, they had learned valuable lessons and were the bravest and smartest lions around!

Paden learned there’s a time to play and a time to work.  Focus is necessary to get the job done.

Perry and Pugget learned the value of teamwork and intuition.  Determination will get you a lot further than sheer strength and prowess.

Bravo and Ginger learned sometimes you have to release children into their “hunting experiences” because often they will learn far more from those than any amount of teaching or shielding them from life’s experiences.  They also learned encouragement and support help children develop into their fullest potential. 

~Coletta Jones Patterson