Cassidy Ann and her big sister, Trixie, were waiting in the car. Grandpa had gone into the garden shop, but he wasn’t going to be long. The car park was empty, except for a big truck that was parked on the other side of the fountain. The truck was filled with plants, and men were unloading them onto trolleys for the shop.

Through the fence Cassidy Ann could see Grandpa walking along the rows of plants. He was trying to decide which
rose bush to buy.

Suddenly a cabbage fell off the truck. It bounced on the ground, and rolled past the tinkling fountain.

“Did you see that, Trixie?” Cassidy Ann asked. “That cabbage fell off the truck.”
Trixie looked up from her book. “So what?” she said. “It’s just a cabbage.”

Cassidy Ann watched, waiting for someone to see the cabbage and pick it up. But the men were so busy, they hadn’t even noticed it was gone. The cabbage rolled and rolled down the car park towards their car. It stopped right next to the car. Cassidy Ann opened the door to pick it up.

“What are you doing?” Trixie asked, turning the page. “Grandpa told us to stay inside the car.”

Cassidy Ann closed the door. She sat there in the car, worrying about the cabbage. She saw the men climbing back into the truck. “I’m just going a tiny way,” she said, opening the car door again. “Just to give the cabbage back to the men in the truck.”

The men were ready to go. They were slamming the doors and the driver had already started the engine.

“Fine,” Trixie said, “but if Grandpa comes back and finds you gone, it’s not my fault.”

So Cassidy Ann jumped out of the car, grabbed the cabbage and ran over to the truck.

But she was too late. The driver hadn’t seen her. He drove off and Cassidy Ann was left standing in the car park, holding a very big cabbage.

“What shall I do now?” she thought. “It doesn’t belong to me, but I can’t give it back. Should I leave it here? Or should I take it home for Granny to cook?”

Suddenly the cabbage began to shake! It shook so hard that Cassidy Ann could hardly hold it. It shook so hard it began to bounce around in her arms. And then Whoosh! Bang! It bounced right into the air, and Cassidy Ann went with it.

Up it flew, right up to the top of a very tall avocado tree. Then down it came again, while Cassidy Ann held on tight, and BOOOOOING! it bounced on the road and shot up again, this time onto the roof of the garden shop.
It was nice up there. Cassidy Ann could see everything – the people buying plants in the garden shop, a lady taking her dogs for a walk along the river, the water lilies in the fountain, and Trixie reading her book in the car. It was fun.