13 . THE OPENING

 And then the big day came. All penguins were washed clean and well in time at de Dierenhuis
It was already crowded. Everyone on the street was invited. They saw the club members of senior daycentre De Lauwerkrans, the young couple with their baby from the 1970s house and also the lady of het Kanthuisje. They had not met her yet.
They never went to het Kanthuisje. It was such an elegant place with all the beautiful laces. Very distinguished customers came in expensive cars to the shop. But the lady from the lace shop was really nice.
And so they were all waiting for what was to come.

The house was beautifully decorated, but the wait was very long. Fortunately, Melvin, the administrator of de Lauwerkrans, had set up chairs for the oldies.
The dachshund from the 70s house and the little one entertained everyone.
They ran after each other and between people. Everyone laughed at them. Until ... ... they finally heard the scooter of the lady of the ASC.

There she was. She had a kind of confused story about why she was so late, which no one understood.

 After a speech that fortunately did not last very long, she declared Het Dierenhuis open and the penguins were finally allowed to view their new home.
"Let's go and have a look," said the lady. "Follow me."

"I smell fish" cried the adolescent who was suddenly completely distracted. And the other penguins also wanted to go straight to that nice fishy smell. They had not eaten fish for so long. But no, that was not allowed. "We will first look at the house," said the lady, "that fish will come soon."  That was hard.

They thought it was a beautiful room. A nice smooth floor that you could slide on. Fun! And beautiful wallpaper in the colour of the South Pole. Also nice.
And meanwhile they were right above that wonderful fishy smell. It made them restless. Could they already leave?
"Joehoe, we are also coming to see", they heard from the stairs. More people came to see their house. Now of course they could not go to the fish for the time being.

The lady from the lace shop, Melvin of de Lauwerkrans and the young couple from the seventies house came up the stairs. It is a beautiful house, but very empty, they thought. But they didn't say that. Because the penguins came from a completely different culture and they might have wanted it that way.

 "Beware, the little one is almost falling," said the lady.

And then it got really pleasant. The penguins immediately flew to the fish and soon they had eaten everything. Luckily, a lady had brought de Lauwerkrans serving rollator with tasty wine and chocolates and biscuits. A real good party!

 A woman asked to the adolescent why he wore only 1 mitten. Adolescent told the story of his grandmother and the mitten he had lost in the sand. She was very sorry for him . Fortunately, she had a sticky candy in her bag. Adolescent accepted the candy and thanked politely. But he didn't put it in his mouth. She would not notice it, he thought, much too old.

"Why do you always wear that backpack," asked a lady. The serious penguin blushed and stuttered a bit: “I'm so used to that. Actually I dare not take it off because I will feel completely naked. ”

And so they all had something to chat. The widow went to an old gentleman from the Lauwerkrans. She thought he looked a little sad and wanted to cheer him up.
But the man was so startled that he almost slipped from his chair. He was not used to refugees.

And then the party was over. Everyone went home. The little flags were removed and the food cleared away.
The penguins noticed how tired they actually were.
They walked to their room and, out of habit, gathered together. That's how they always slept. Like at the South Pole. That way they protected each other and kept each other warm.

                                                       Good night.

That was a long chapter! You can read former posts by using the "blogarchief "on the right.
My webshop  https://miniaturenannelies.nl

 

11. HET DIERENHUIS – The Animal house

"This is my story," said the lady. “So I am from the ASC and I think you are eligible for a home. It is not yet certain, I have to discuss it first with my team. But I will work hard for you. We have a meeting tomorrow. Then I will be back here in the late afternoon to report on the meeting. ” And she got on her scooter and drove away.

" Wooooow” the adolescent said with a deep sigh.
Meanwhile it was getting dark and the penguins were tired of the stories and the excitement. "Sleeping time," the widow cried. Even the adolescent did not argue.

The next day was a weird day. Everyone was restless and the little one cried a lot.
Finally it was noon and they heard the rumble of the scooter in the distance. Now they were no longer afraid. They ran to the path so they could see her coming.

There came the tough welfare worker. But what has she brought with her now? On the back is a large roll of paper and under her feet she has large orange plastic patches.
The penguins look at her in surprise.

 "Hi, here I am again" she shouts cheerfully as she takes the plastic sheeting off the scooter and puts it on the ground. She takes the paper roll from the luggage carrier and takes it to the house. “I have very good news. You may be the first residents in Het Dierenhuis. Fantastic huh ”and so she rattled on. "Aren't you happy?" she asked in surprise when she finally noticed the penguins staring at her in amazement.
"What is het Dierenhuis?" the adolescent asked

"Oh yes, I took this drawing with me." She spread the drawing on the floor and everyone stood around it. “This house is currently being built and is almost finished. Everything has yet to be painted and decorated. That will take about 14 days and then you will be the first residents to live here.

 That was fantastic news. "I want a room to myself," the adolescent said.
"We want a room on the ground floor," the bachelors said. "I am the leader, so I can choose first," said the leader. "No, no," said the lady  shocked, you will all get 1 room. And that room is at the top right. ”
That was a downer. “But then you are much better off than you are now. And you do not have to pay rent and we will take care of a large part of the interior. "Do I get a big stove for cooking?" asked the widow. "Do we get a scooter?" the bachelors asked eagerly.
"No" said the lady annoying. “I did bring plastic sheeting for you. For when it gets cold or starts to rain. Next week I will come by to discuss everything concerning the move”. And she went to the scooter and drove away. The penguins were dazed.

 "She is angry," said the adolescent, "and she is so beautiful." "You shouldn't have asked for a scooter," the leader said angrily. "We didn't even make her tea," said the widow. "We were not thankful," said the young couple, "we are all to blame." "We are refugees," the serious penguin said. That actually dawned on them. They had never thought about that.

 When the lady returned the following week, the atmosphere was very different. The penguins had used the orange patches to make a shelter, a windshield and a play area for the little one. The widow had baked cookies, the young couple had taught the little one a verse and the adolescent gave her a freshly picked rose.
The lady was very happy and said that their room in Het Dierenhuis was making great progress.They will be the first residents to move in next week.
The mayor will hand them the key.
The penguins clearly showed that they were very happy and grateful.
And when the lady asked if there were any special wishes, no one could think of anything. And really, the penguins are looking forward to it. They are fed up with wandering. Their journey has ended here .

Today I posted 2 chapters. Chapter 11 an 12 are new. You can click on the dates at the right.
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12 . MEANWHILE AT THE HOUSE

 Het Dierenhuis ( the animal house) is located in a nice street with special houses. The house had been empty for a long time because no destination could be found. And so the ASC was able to buy it for a reasonable price. But it needed a lot of updating.

 Next to the Dierenhuis is a senior daycentre called De Lauwerkrans ( The Laurels wreath)
Seniors come to chat, drink, play bridge, do needle crafts and it houses a great craft club. It is a very nice and comfortable venue. The renovation of the Dierenhuis is closely monitored by the members and is the talk of the day!

And when the members of the club heard that they were also invited to the opening, they immediately started making plans. Flags had to be made and good food and drink. "And fireworks and a drum band," someone suggested. But fireworks were too expensive and a drum band made too much noise. "Because", explained the lady from the ASC, “This is a vulnerable group of refugees. They have had a long journey and experienced a lot. We must give them peace and privacy. ”

 However, the seniors did not let themselves be taken aback and arranged a meeting to give their neighbours a nice welcome.
The craft club was going to make flags and the cooking club would provide the snacks.

 They wanted to make cakes and canapes  until someone said, "But penguins eat fish, don't they?"
" Yuck , that's true," said another.
So there was no other option than to prepare fish. 

You can read former chapters of this story by clicking on the dates at the right.
my webshop: https://miniaturenannelies.nl