Page 211 - Nuts to You - The Nutcracker Retold

their used-to-be favorite past times – putting together elaborate, chain-reaction contraptions to, say, flip an egg – or, in our case, catch a mouse.
Once explained, the Sweeties were IN. Off they scattered, dragging back gumballs and candy canes and lollipops and licorice (all on a giant, Land-of-Sweets scale) to help Franz and Clara build a giant Mouse Trap.
Mother Ginger gave the Nutcracker and Clara her hoop underskirt, and with a bit of twine, together it made a cage to catch a rat. The Teas donated a tiny shoe to kick the string, to drop the cage, to catch the rat. And a gumball was just the thing to knock the shoe, to kick the string, to drop the cage, and catch a rat! Then they added candy canes to trip the switch, to start the ball, to knock the shoe, to kick the string, to drop the cage. And catch a rat! Finally, a lemon drop that went ker-plop could push the candy canes to trip the switch, to start the ball, to knock the shoe, to kick the string, to drop the cage – and catch a rat!
Exhausted, they all stared at their amazing mousetrap with pride and admiration. If that couldn’t catch a mouse, then what could?
They were all very happy, until a wee small voice asked, “Where’s the bait?”
No bait is a big problem when you want to catch a mouse. It’s the “trap” factor of a trap. Without bait to get the mouse to even come near the trap, it’s not really a trap at all. It’s just something taking up space.
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