The Blocked Gate

The Blocked Gate

On Monday morning, Priya and Sam pulled a trolley of seedlings towards the school garden. The gate would not open. During the night, strong wind had snapped a thick branch, and it was wedged between the gate and the ground.

Sam wanted to squeeze through the narrow gap, but Priya noticed sharp twigs beside his face. They stepped back, warned the others and told Mr Evans, the caretaker. He put cones around the area, then wore gloves and cut the fallen branch into smaller pieces with his tools.

Once he had checked the gate for damage, it swung freely. Priya and Sam rolled the trolley inside without losing a single seedling. At lunchtime, tiny green rows stood neatly in the soil, and the empty trolley waited by the open gate.