The Middle-Makers and the Last Pumpkin

At the end of autumn on Hollow Hill, there was a pumpkin patch. And on the very last day of the harvest, there was only one pumpkin left. One big, round, orange pumpkin.

Two young mice wanted it. Both of them. They were standing on either side, holding on, and their faces were getting very red.

“It’s MINE!”

“No, it’s MINE! You ALWAYS get the best things!”

The four middle-makers heard the shouting and came running. Toggle the goat. Halfpenny the hedgehog. Swapsy the magpie. And Lindy the lamb.

“Whoa, whoa,” said Toggle. “Let’s not pull. Let’s find a middle.”

“A middle?” said one mouse. “There’s no middle. There’s only one pumpkin!”

The middle-makers grinned at each other. That’s what everyone said, at first.

“There’s almost always more than one middle,” said Halfpenny. “Let’s see how many we can find.”

Toggle went first. “You could take turns. One of you takes it home this week, the other takes it home next week.”

“Hmm,” said the mice. That was one.

Halfpenny went next. “Or you could cut it in half. One of you cuts, the other picks. Then you each have half a pumpkin.”

“Two!” said Swapsy, counting on her wing.

Swapsy went next. “Or a trade! One of you gets the pumpkin, and the other gets to choose something else - like the first apple from the tree.”

“Three!” said Lindy.

Then Lindy went. “Or you could wait, and then both. What were you going to do with it?”

“Make a jack-o’-lantern,” said one mouse.

“Me too,” said the other.

“Then why not make ONE jack-o’-lantern, together?” said Lindy. “You could each carve one side. One side happy, one side spooky.”

The two mice looked at each other. Their red faces went back to their normal colour.

“Four middles,” said Toggle. “Which one would you like?”

The mice thought about it. Then they both said, at exactly the same time, “Lindy’s!”

So they carved the pumpkin together. One side had a big grin. The other side had spooky eyebrows. And when they put a candle inside, it glowed happy on one side and spooky on the other.

The middle-makers watched, glowing too, warm and proud. It doesn’t matter which middle you choose. What matters is knowing there’s more than one.

Take turns. Cut in half. Make a trade. Or wait, then both. There’s almost always a fair middle, if you look.