Dear Lola,
My 5-year-old son recently starting asking me about the extinction of the dinosaurs. He’s been practically obsessed with these giant creatures for years, but has somehow not thought to ask this tough question… until now. I managed to satisfy him by pointing out which dinosaurs have survived and still live on Earth, but that answer isn’t holding up since he’s most enthralled with the big ones that are no longer around. I know that I can tell him about the comet/meteor that caused all of the dinosaurs to die off, but that may cause him to worry about our own survival. I might as well tell him about serial killers and let him have a whole bag of phobias to carry around each day!
Sincerely,
Dinosaurs and Donuts
Dear Dinosaurs and Donuts,
While it has been widely accepted that dinosaurs were killed off by a cataclysmic event, I have long questioned whether that is actually true. This comet or meteor would have been huge to hold up through our atmosphere and then must surely have caused massive damage wherever it hit. Yet, it wasn’t until the 1990s that scientists found even a bit of proof in the form of a crater… in the bottom of an ocean.
Tell me how Jaws survived when all the land animals died?!
I’ve been working on an alternate theory of how dinosaurs went extinct. Let me take you on a journey through times long ago.
Millions of years ago, there existed a world where all the creatures were happy. Content to munch on vegetables for their entire lives, all the dinosaurs lived in perfect harmony. This time was known as the Broccoli Period. Then one day a very special dinosaur, an Ultrasaurus, was born in a magical place called Scotland. His name was Lachlan and he had chubby cheeks and delightful green speckles all over his body.
Lachlan was not like the other dinosaurs.
He was a very hungry dinosaur, and could not seem to find any satisfaction in eating the green stuff all the other dinosaurs loved. Even his friend Rex liked to eat the trees, and wondered why Lachlan couldn’t be happy with the fauna around him. But Lachlan was not satisfied – he just couldn’t seem to find anything that fulfilled his ultra hunger.
Lachlan started to roam endlessly, looking for that one special treat that would make his belly happy. He travelled from tree to tree, plant to plant, and bush to bush, eating everything that he came across. When Scotland ran out of fauna, he moved on to the next area.
Luckily for Lachlan, the continents were still one giant land mass!
As Lachlan wandered from land to land, he continued eating all the green things he saw. None of them tasted very good, but he knew that one day he would find a delicious meal – he just had to keep trying. Surely there was a sweet treat just over on the next tree, plant, or bush in his path!
Unbeknownst to Lachlan, he was eating all the food and leaving none for his dinosaur friends. These hungry dinosaurs decided they had no choice but to become meat eaters. Rex was the first to turn, he did have the sharpest teeth after all (though his tiny forearms made him an odd sight to see running around). As Rex ate his dinosaur friends, word began to spread throughout the land. Dinosaurs were beginning to turn on each other – if you didn’t eat your friends, you were eaten by your friends.
This dark time was known was known as the Barbecue Period.
Lachlan was always one step ahead of his meat-eating dinosaur friends. He continued eating every tree, plant, and bush he came across, leaving hunger in his wake. As soon as Lachlan left an area, the other dinosaurs would start lighting up their fires in order to feed their families.
Then one day, Lachlan stumbled across a magical plant.
It was growing all across the warm lands at the bottom of the land. Lachlan tasted it, sure he would be displeased once again. Yet, the plant was not yucky. This plant tasted sweet. Lachlan was so happy! He named this treat sugar, and began to eat every plant he could find. Before he knew it, the sugar was gone.
Lachlan was finally full.
As he journeyed home to Scotland to tell Rex what he had found, Lachlan realized there were no other dinosaurs around to talk to. He walked for miles and all he came across were hot circles on the ground with ash inside of them. As he pondered what those odd piles were, Lachlan began to feel hungry once again. He could feel the rumble in his belly and he began to dream of a sugary circle treat. Each fire pit he passed made him hungrier and hungrier – until he imagined circles of sugar dancing across the night sky. By the time Lachlan returned home to Scotland, he was feeling quite famished.
Rex was the only one left to greet Lachlan upon his return…
This is the part where I stop telling you the story because your imagination can fill in the blanks. If it can’t, go watch Jurassic Park and note what the T-Rex does to all the creatures he sees. Spoiler alert: he doesn’t hug them. The moral of the story is, a world without donuts caused the dinosaurs to go extinct. Poor Lachlan just wanted a snack and none of the ones available would hit just the right spot in his belly.
Telling your Miniature Human about the comet theory doesn’t seem so bad now, does it?!
♥Lola♥
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A world without donuts. Oh the shame!
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I know, right?!
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Or maybe focus on their loss of habitat as the reason for extinction and make it into a lesson on respect and love for Creation?
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I always knew the Scots where the greediest dinosaurs. (just joking, no offence to Scots.)
#mixitup
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What a creative story! …loved it.
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Thank you!
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LOL! I am loving your donut theory! More credible than dinosaurs being fried by a meteor shower!
#GlobalBlogging
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I thought Lola’s theory seemed quite plausible 😆
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You always bring a smile to my day. I think you must have had amazing parents to stimulate such creativity in you #GlobalBlogging
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Thank you, they are quite amazing people!
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I think I like Lola’s explanation for children, much more fun than the scientific version. #GlobalBlogging
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I find science often fails to explain things to my satisfaction 🙃
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It could have happened like this. Nobody really knows do they? #GlobalBlogging
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that makes perfect sense to me, thank you for clarifying all this terrible confusion around this topic once and for all 😀 #globalblogging
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Lola, if only I had known you when I was teaching science to teenagers. I could have taught them all about the dinosaurs and donuts. Much better than the dry stuff in our science books!
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The science books certainly need to learn how to capture our imaginations a bit more!
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What a creative story and very nice drawings, too. #globalblogging
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Thank you!
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I love the theory but I have trouble catching up to the donuts when they start rolling. The whole idea of eating meat got me thinking about frankfurters. Can Lola tell me why we call them hotdogs? And what’s up with putting ketchup, mustard and relish on your beloved frank all at the same time? Who decided to have the 3 of them colored red, yellow and green? It looks like a traffic light; I don’t know if I’m supposed to stop eating, eat faster of slow down. Help please! On a roll in SC.
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In handing all these questions over to Lola for proper pondering!
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I will surely tell your story to my threenager who is also obsessed about dinosaurs! Well he has yet to ask me “what happened to them”- he actually thinks they still exist. 🙂 Lol! #globalblogging
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One day, he will ask the question. At least now you are prepared with an answer!
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I am fully prepped now on dinosaurs. Can Lola talk to me about Climate Change? puh-leaze! xoxo #globalblogging xoxo
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Lola is still learning about that subject. So many problems and so many (costly) solutions. But she does know plastic is a huge problem!
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I’m convinced dinosaurs just ran out of food and fell over and couldn’t get up with their tiny hands. Hope your 5 year old accepted your explanation without upsetting him #globalblogging
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So basically, the T-Rex ate them all. I get that actually. Especially after watching every Jurassic Park movie lol! #GlobablBlogging
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Yep. Rex wasn’t to blame, that fatty Lachlan started it all. Poor Rex.
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Haha 😂
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Actually it is true. I was watching a documentry about North American. In this rock they showed a small band of quartz in the rock from the metor. Then they explained all th fossils that they have found below the band have been reptiles and all fossils they have found above the band have been mammals. #mixitup.
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I like your theory Heather! I never believed the cataclysmic event one either!
#DreamTeam
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Surely the plot for a Jurassic Park prequel? 🙂 #dreamteam
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Definitely! But imagine the rating they’d have to put on the film after all of that mayhem!
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Loving this tale! Linking back from #DreamTeam
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I think Spielberg needs to be part of the team behind this movie 🙂 #dreamteam
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The Jurassic Park prequel we all need!
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Haha fab story X #dreamteam
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Eat your friends before they eat you! Great story #dreamteam
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Creative as always. If I had a choice between a dinosaure or a donut I would choos ea dino as I hate donuts! Not that you need to know that! #DreamTeam
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You hate donuts?! 🥺
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Might have to try this one on my dino-mad three year old. Love your Brocoli and Barbecue periods! #dreamteam
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I hope they enjoy it!
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This is brilliant! My 4 year old asks me why dinosaurs became extinct at least once a week. Now I have a new response to try out – thanks 😉 #dreamteam
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Watch how dazzled he is as you tell him the story!
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I recently heard somebody talking about a dinosaur book they only wanted if it had photographs in it. Photographs???!!! #DreamTeam
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Well, that person is going to be waiting a very long time for that book. Maybe the aliens will bring it when they come to visit us, surely one of their species have been around long enough to have caught some photographs while on holiday to Earth
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Love this Heather! Your cartoon dinosaurs are so cute. I definitely feel sorry for poor old Lachlan. Someone pass the donuts! #dreamteam
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He just needed a nibble. Little did he know he was causing the end of a species.
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A world without doughnuts – how very very upsetting! Don’t tell the child that could happen he may never get over the fear #DreamTeam
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I know, it’s just tragic!
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excellent tale of survival and tragedy but I’m sticking with the comet saga whilst stuffing a sticky donut #dreamteam
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Sounds like a plan!
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