A Forest of Needles

Stared past the snail horn... needed a real palisade to wall off the rear dock! Bolted headlong into the wet pine-needle drifts. Paws digging, mulch flying—struck something long and stiff! A fallen wooden ice-pop stick, weathered grey with splintered edges. Ha! Clamped my teeth around the rounded tip and dragged it back through the roots, puffing in short bursts. Planted the stick upright into the black soil right beside my terra-cotta den. Rammed it deep with both plush paws! A proper stockade timber to fortify our wild shore base!