My biography. By Melody Maloney. 
I’m seven years old, just like my twin brother Mallory. My Mom and Dad named me Melody because they love music, especially singing. My Grandpa loves to sing, too. He has the most beautiful voice in the world! I have another Grandpa in Colorado, and a Grandma. They are my Mom’s parents. I don’t know much about them, and don’t know if they sing. Our dog, Rufus, sings once in awhile, too. He mostly barks, though.
I like when the sun shines and it’s warm out. My Dad calls me Sunshine once in awhile because I like the sun and it makes flowers grow. My Mom likes warm weather, too, but mostly because it helps the vegetables in our garden to grow bigger. When we went to Indiana Dunes (Book 3, Sand Sack), my Mom and I climbed up a big sand dune. My brother, Mal, and my Dad wimped out and started back down the hill when we were only half way because it was too hot for them. I think they used Rufus’s black fur as an excuse to go back down. It’s probably a good thing, because Mal found a buried treasure and Rufus helped dig it out. It had a bunch of money in it, so they took it to the police station. I guess the police were happy that Dad and Mal were honest and didn’t just keep it. The sergent gave coupons for ice cream for all of us. Dad said the sergent will let him know more about the sack later. Maybe it will be Finders Keepers?
I love animals and the animals seem to know that. Mom and I went to the quaking bog and Dad and Mal went to the Tree Graveyard. We were walking along the bog and then a big hawk grabbed another squirrel. Another squirrel got really scared. I called the squirrel quietly and it came up to me, so I picked it up and started petting it. Mom and a park ranger were really surprised. Wild squirrels are supposed to stay away from people. Another time, when we were fishing in a pond (Book 6, Catch of the Day), lots of little fishies came to my fishing pole. I caught a whole bunch, but it made me sad to see them swimming so close together in the bucket instead of being able to swim all over the pond. I poured them all back in the water.
What do I want to be when I grow up? I like learning about plants and animals. Maybe I’ll be a researcher like my Dad, but I don’t know. I told Dr. Ethyl at Yellowstone (Book 1, Whoosh) that I’d like to learn more about those yellow and blue bacteria that like to live in the super-hot water.
Oh, I forgot to tell you. There was a big wind just when Old Faceful started whooshing hot water and steam from a hole in the ground. It was all around me. It seemed like a really thick, wet fog, except I saw sparkly colors and it felt SO good! It was nice and warm, not hot at all. But it made little red dots all over Mal’s bare arms, even though just a few drops fell on him. Bacteria that live in hot springs are called extremophiles, but Dr. Ethyl says people can’t be extremophiles. I don’t know.
I think Mal is an extremophile, too, except he likes it really cold. I think he already told you about getting closed up in a big, dark, COLD meat locker.We didn’t tell anybody, but I think Grandpa knows. He seems to know that both of us are extremophiles, but he doesn’t want to tell other people how to think. I like that. That’s why I tried to help his ankle when he slipped on a little rock on a small island in Door County (Book 5, A Stone’s Throw). My hands were chilly, and I wrapped them around his swollen ankle that was really hot. By the next morning, his ankle was healed. Everybody was glad, but only Grandpa and I figured out why his ankle healed so fast.