The story of Sue
the mouse who lived in
Southwell Minster

by
Lawrie Gimbert

Once apon a time - No ! . .Just about now , in the little town of SOUTHWELL , there is a very big church . So big it has a special name and is called a Minster . It is very very old and built of great big stones has three towers , two are pointed and the big one in the middle has the bells in it . Quite alot of people go there for sevices , weddings and to listen to music . Many of the people do not notice the church mice that hide on the furniture because they keep still and quiet but this story is about one of them called SUE .

Sue was a little mouse with slightly ginger hair and she was only young . She was not too sure of what she should do and quite often got into trouble . The mice had work to do , during the day they had to stay very still and absolutely quiet , Sue found that difficult ! That was so that the boys and girls that came to the Minster could have fun hunting for them . During the night , when all the people had gone home and the Minster was all dark and quiet , then the mice could leave their hiding places and come out to play, and play they did . They ran everywhere , from the north door to the south door and from the big west door up to the Altar at the east end . They weren't supposed to play around the Altar though. . . BUT . . .and it was a very big but too . .as soon as the sun started to shine in the big east window they MUST be back in their hiding places , quiet and still again

She forgot the game of hide and seek and started to climb the stairs , one step at a time because the steps were rather big for a little mouse, and she had to stop to get her breath back every now and then . There were lots of steps too , Sue couldn't count more steps than she had toes and there were many more steps than toes and anyway by now she was fascinated by her exploring . She came to a room and looked in , it was strange . It had carpet, Sue had never seen carpet before , the Minster's floors downstairs were all hard cold stone . She wriggled her tiny feet in the carpet and giggled when it tickled .

She ran round and round on the lovely softness squeeking with delight , then she stopped suddenly as she noticed something else strange . Hanging from the ceiling there were long ropes with coloured and furry ends to them .She scratched her head and thought but could not understand what the furry ropes were for ? Now we know Sue is a curious mouse who loves to explore so we won't be surprised that her next thing was to climb a chair and from there to jump to a furry rope . She hung on tight as it swung and a small sound came from above the ceiling . It settled down and she began to climb , one paw at a time . . carefully. . actually it was easier for a mouse than climbing the stairs .. ... so faster and faster she climbed . . . it was a long way to the ceiling but she soon got there , to where the rope disappeared through the ceiling .

Sue squeezed through and came into another room , bigger than the one she had come from , not carpeted ,not so warm and a bit dark again but she could see some very big wheels . some very big bells, as big as tables and a big machine in the corner that swung slowly too and fro making a sleepy TICK TOCK TICK TOCK TICK TOCK noise . Suddenly Sue felt tired after the hide and seek game , all those stairs , the soft carpet and the frightening rope climb . She found a small peice of cloth left up there and laid down on it to rest . She fell asleep . . zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz