The Special Pear Tree

There once was a little girl. She was the sweetest little girl ever. She was smart and funny and sassy. She loved to do ballet and read and draw. She was 7 and loved all living creatures. Cats were her favorite. Any kind of cat. House cats, jaguars, lions, tigers, if it was a cat, she loved it. Her name was Elly.

Now Elly did love cats, but she also loved dogs. Elly's mom was allergic to cats, so Elly was always asking if she could get a dog. Her parents worked as hard as they could all of the time and they couldn't see getting a dog because they didn't have time for a pet. That still didn't stop Elly from asking.

It was close to Christmas so Elly decided she was going to ask Santa Claus for a dog. Santa would be able to get her anything, as long as she had been a real good girl, which she had been. So, she wrote a letter to Santa.

Dear Santa,

I have been a real good girl this year. I would like a dog for Christmas. I will take care of it. I will feed it. I will give it water. I will clean up its poop. This is the only thing I want.

Thank you so much, Elly

So she waited until it got closer to Christmas. She kept doing chores around the house and being really good, to show that she deserved what she asked for. Then, the day before Christmas Eve, she got a letter.

Dear Elly,

I know that you have been a really good girl this year. I am sorry though. I will not be able to bring you a puppy. I am stuck at the South Pole, with only penguins to help get my sleigh running again. I hope that you can still continue to be a good girl. Christmas may have to come late this year.

Love, Santa

Elly knew just what she had to do. She needed to help Santa at the south pole. She didn't know how she would get there though. She had just finished reading the letter, when her parents told her that they would be going to Castaway Bay for Christmas. Castaway Bay was a hotel with a huge indoor waterpark with it. It was Elly's favorite place to go, but she needed to help Santa. She couldn't figure out how to get to the South Pole, without telling her parents.

Without a way to help Santa, Elly went to Castaway Bay. It was Christmas Eve. Elly had brought some shells that she had got from a mermaid while on vacation in Florida. She took these shells to the waterpark and tried to call for a mermaid. She got a response from the mermaid in Florida by leaving her a shell, so this is what Elly did here.

A little while later Elly came back to where she left the shell, and she found a note. The note said:

Dear Elly,

There is a pear tree, not too far,

It's by the pirates, who say ARR!

And make your wish, by this pear tree,

It will come true, if you believe!

Elly got so excited. She knew exactly where the pirates were. She went to the pirate cutout. Next to him, even though she'd never seen it before, was a pear tree. It even had real pears on it. She grabbed a pear, took a bite, and tried to make a wish. She didn't know what to wish for though.

"I wish... I wish... Well I really want a dog, but I need to go to the South Pole to help Santa. What should I wish for?"

Just then, Elly heard a bark. She looked over and the most adorable yellow Labrador puppy was standing there looking at her. She started towards the puppy and it ran towards her and started licking her face. Elly realized that she had used her wish for the puppy and not to help Santa. She felt bad about this, but still felt happy to have a puppy.

"Come on," she told the dog. " You can't stay in here. They'll kick us out."

Elly took the puppy outside to find an area she could keep him in. She found a little space, between two buildings, where she could keep him until they left Castaway Bay. She brought him some food for dinner and fed it to him.

"Now I need to come up with a name for you." The puppy barked and lifted its head showing off a blue collar and silver dog tag. The name on the tag read Anjou. "Anjou," she said. “I like that name.” The puppy licked her face again. “Ok, I need to go back to my room now, but we’ll come get you tomorrow before we leave.”

She went back to the hotel room and fell asleep. She woke up and was really cold. She looked around and saw that she was surrounded by snow. She was still on the bed but she thought she was at the South Pole.

“Ho, ho, ho,” a voice said from behind her. She turned around and saw Santa there with some penguins, trying to fix his sleigh.

“SANTA!” Elly shouted. Santa turned around and saw Elly.

“Elly, I am so glad you are here,” Santa said. “Can you help me fix this? My hands are too big and the penguins only have flippers.”

“Of course, I was hoping to help you out.” Elly got off the bed and helped Santa fix his sleigh.

“Thank you Elly!”

“No problem. How do I get back to my family?”

“Just go back to sleep and you will wake up there.”

“Merry Christmas Santa!”

“Merry Christmas Elly.”

She went back to sleep and woke up the next morning back at Castaway Bay. She went to go see Anjou, but he was gone. Where was he? She started crying and wondering if it had all been a dream.

She was sad the whole way home. Her parents asked her what was wrong and she told them that she had found a puppy named Anjou and he wasn’t where she left him.

“Are you sure it wasn’t a dream?” Her mom asked.

“I’m sure.” She cried the rest of the way home.

When they got home though, Elly opened the door and Anjou came running to her, barking. He started to lick her face.

“ANJOU! How did you get here?” Then, Elly saw a note that said:

Merry Christmas Elly, Love Santa!

Elly was so happy that she was able to help Santa and get a new puppy. She really had been a good girl.