Author: rgsind

Real Freedom

Anisa the Butterfly was in an elated mood. She was enjoying the pleasant weather and flying through the park.

Suddenly, a bumble bee appeared in front of Anisa. Anisa got afraid, and changed her way. She turned around and saw that some more bumble bees were following her.

She tried to fly faster, however the bumble bees reached her.

Two of them blocked her way. “Why are they following me? What do they want from me? Have I ever done any wrong to them that they are here to take revenge?” Millions of such thoughts started crossing her mind.

She remembered her friends complaining of the troubles caused to them by those bumble bees. They were suffering because of the harm caused by the bumble bees. She slowed down as the bumble bees approached her.

The bumble bees surrounded Anisa. She was startled and couldn’t speak a word. One of the bumble bees went ahead and caught hold of her wing. Anisa found it difficult to move. All she did was look at the bees with helpless eyes and wonder what they were going to do with her. She looked around but there was no one who could rescue her. The bumble bees made fun of Anisa and laughed at her. Anisa was on the verge of crying.

After troubling Anisa by surrounding her and blocking her path for a while, the bumble bees flew away.

Anisa breathed a sigh of relief. She was no more in danger, however she kept thinking about the incident over and over again. She also kept brooding over the fact that the other butterflies were facing the same situation daily.

She thought, “Why is it that we do not have the freedom to be safe like others? Why can’t we fly wherever we want without anyone harassing us? Is this what the society is made for?

Why can’t our society think of taking appropriate steps to curb these practices?”

Anisa was weeping inconsolably. She had intended to enjoy the pleasant climate but ended up spoiling her day instead.

There was a tiny rose plant who had witnessed the entire episode. He looked at Anisa and called out to her, “Why are you weeping? Come here. Sit on the rose petal.”

Anisa sat on one of the petals. She immediately fluttered her wings and got up from there.

Real-Freedom

“Why did you get up?” asked the plant.

“These thorns hurt me,” replied Anisa.

The plant smiled and asked, “How are my flowers?”

“Very beautiful! Very soft! Very delicate!” replied Anisa.

The plant said, “So when these delicate flowers can protect themselves, then why can’t you?”

“What do you mean?” asked Anisa.

“You have to change with circumstances,” replied the plant, “These buds were as delicate as you are. They too were troubled by others. They learnt to defend themselves with the thorns. One should change according to the need of the hour. You are delicate, beautiful and soft, but you should become strong when someone tries to take advantage of your innocence.

You will have to fight your battle alone. Don’t depend on others to come to your rescue every time. Be strong and courageous. You cannot live a helpless and a dependent life. The wind changes its direction, the climate keeps changing, time too changes continuously. Similarly, you have to adapt to changing circumstances. Have strength and courage to fight the injustice. And that will enable you to experience real freedom.”

Anisa realised that she had to help herself and find solutions to her problems.

Real-Freedom

She said to the plant, “Thank you, friend. You have shown me the right path. I have no complaints against anyone now.”

Anisa said this and flew high in the air with happiness and cheer. Her flight indicated that she was confident enough to defend herself and had no worries. She was indeed free!

 

 

The Escape Plan

It was time for Munnu, the mouse to start for school. But he was worried. The previous day, he had seen Billu, the cat prowling along the path to school, looking for a prey.

Since most kids travelled together by school bus, Billu could not catch them. But Munnu usually rode his bicycle to school every day alone, so Billu was sure to catch him.

Just as he had anticipated, Munnu saw Billu standing by the side of the road, eyeing him greedily. Munnu pedalled as fast as he could and raced past him.

“That was close!” thought Munnu relieved.

However, on the way back from school, Billu was standing right in the middle of the road, blocking Munnu’s path.

“Munnu, my friend! How are you?” Billu greeted him with a sly smile.

“Oh no! I am done for! What will I do now?” Munnu wondered nervously.

Billu was stronger and faster than him, so there was no point in trying to run away.

“I have to stay calm and come up with an idea,” he thought.

The-esacpe-plan

At that moment, he remembered his teacher once telling him that when someone is angry, they lose their ability to think clearly. So, Munnu had an idea. He slowly got off his bicycle. “Getting ready to run away?” asked Billu, narrowing his gaze.

“Of course not! I am not scared of you. In fact, none of my friends find you scary,” Munnu taunted Billu.

Billu was taken aback. He did not expect Munnu to talk back confidently.

“Don’t my claws and teeth scare you?” Billu asked, flashing his razor-sharp teeth.

“They actually look funny!” laughed Munnu. “Moreover, I’ve seen the way you run. I can push my cycle along and walk home and still you won’t be able to catch me,” he taunted Billu, poking his tongue out at him.

“How dare you! I’ll teach you a lesson!” hissed Billu and ran towards Munnu.

This was the opportunity Munnu was waiting for. He pushed his cycle down and ran. Billu tripped on the cycle and fell down.

The-esacpe-plan

“Come on, Billu. Don’t sleep. I am waiting for you to catch me,” said Munnu, from a short distance ahead.

This made Billu angrier.

“Wait till I get my hands on you!” growled Billu. He got up and ran after Munnu.

Munnu continued to run. “What shall I do next?” he wondered while running as fast as he could.

Suddenly, Munnu spotted a deep pit, a few metres ahead of him. He had an idea. Instead of running around the pit, Munnu waited for Billu to catch up.

When Billu was just an arm’s length away Munnu swiftly stepped aside, revealing the pit before him. It was too late for Billu to stop. He fell into the pit.

Billu struggled to get out. “Please help me get out of here, Munnu. I promise not to trouble you anymore,” he cried.

Munnu wanted to walk away, but then, he remembered his mother’s words: “One must always help those in distress, irrespective of who they are.”

The-esacpe-plan

So, Munnu picked up a rope that was lying nearby, tied one end to a tree trunk and threw the other to Billu.

“Hold the rope and climb back up. I’m going home. Bye!” he waved Billu goodbye and ran home.

He was happy to have escaped unharmed.

Lazy Coco

Coco was a lazy bird who lived in Sunshine Woods. He would fool unsuspecting animals and get his work done. While some animals were aware of his ways and would stay clear of him, many fell prey to his tricks.

One day, a cyclone hit the forest. It rained heavily for days. Nobody could step out. All the animals were given a prior warning about the cyclone and were asked to stock food at home. But Coco hadn’t paid heed to the warning, so he was stuck in his nest without anything to eat.

After three days, it finally stopped raining. Coco flew out of his nest to look for some food. He was starving.

After searching for a few minutes, Coco decided it was too much effort to look for food. So, he went to meet his neighbour Becky, the cow.

“Hello, Becky! How are you?” asked Coco.

“I am okay. The cyclone was severe, wasn’t it?” said Becky.

“Yes. I was quite scared,” said Coco.

“I just met our neighbours. They were all terrified, too,” said Becky.

“I don’t care about them. I was talking about myself,” said Coco. “I haven’t eaten since the cyclone hit. I am very hungry.”

“Then what are you doing here? Hurry up, and go find some food before it starts to rain again,” said Becky.

“Where will I look for food in this slush? Why don’t you share your food with me?” suggested Coco.

“Sure. If you will eat grass, I’ll be happy to share some with you,” said Becky.

“I can’t eat grass! I’ll figure something else,” Coco said irritatedly and flew away.

“That lazy Coco always tries to reap the benefit of someone else’s hard work. He had enough time to stock food before the cyclone but he didn’t. And now he wants my food,” Becky said to herself.

Lazy-Coco

Meanwhile, Coco was in search of someone who he could fool into giving him food. Just then, he saw Billy, the goat.

“Hello, Billy! How are you, my friend?” greeted Coco.

“I am doing great!” said Billy.

Coco was surprised. “Really? Didn’t you go hungry from being stuck at home for days?” he asked.

“Not at all. The moment they issued a warning about the cyclone, I collected enough food to last me for days and stored it at home,” said Billy.

You are very smart, Billy,” appreciated Coco. “But you have overlooked an important problem.”

“What problem?” asked Billy.

“When it rains, the moisture in the air increases. This moisture will spoil stored food,” said Coco.

“Oh! I didn’t know that!” said Billy.

“You need to check your food right away. I can help you if you like,” offered Coco.

“Thank you, Coco. That would be great. Please come along,” said Billy, leading the way to his house.

At Billy’s house, the two checked the sacks of food.

“This sack is full of worms,” said Coco, inspecting a sack of grains.

“Where? I can’t see anything,” said Billy.

“Your eyesight is weak, Billy. Trust me. I’ll clean this up for you,” said Coco, quickly gobbling down fistfuls of grains.

“What are you doing?” asked Billy shocked.

“Can’t you see? I am cleaning the grains,” said Coco.

“You’ve cleaned it enough. Give it back to me!” said Billy, snatching the sack from Coco. By then, Coco had emptied half of it.

Lazy-Coco

“See? The grains have become clean,” said Coco.

“You think I don’t know what your plan is? You are lazy to find your own food, so you fooled me into giving you some. Why didn’t you just tell me so?” asked Billy.

“Where’s the fun in that? All you animals would have anyway stocked loads of food, so why should I take the effort to look for food,” replied Coco coolly.

“I should have listened to the other animals who warned me about you. Get out of my house, you sly bird!” said Billy angrily.

“Fine! Bye, Billy!” said Coco, flying away.

This time, it was Billy who had learnt a lesson about not trusting those who mean no good.

Dignity 

You get dignity,

When you stop thinking wrong

When you do what you learn right

You can live dignified,

When you live a lifestyle that,

matches your vision.

You can get dignity

when you renounce the “ego of individuality”.

and rejoice ups and downs of life.

There is dignity,

when you have good thoughts,

in your heart and mind.

-Manasvi Mehra, 13 years

Gwalior

Tittering Sniggering

Blacky Bear: When is it bad luck to be followed by  a black cat?

Foxy Fox: If you are a mouse.

_______________________________

Jokes

Henry Hen: Why are there so many types of blood group?

Franky Frog: So that mosquitoes can enjoy different flavours.

 

And They Became Friends

Rohan and Meera were close friends. One day when Meera saw Rohan sitting on the school ground looking glum, she asked what was bothering him.

“I am upset with the behaviour of Shashi and his friends. They are always troubling other children. Today they tore Gautam’s diary. I saw everything yet I could not do anything about it,” Rohan said sadly.

“Oh! So, this is the reason. You know they cannot be reformed. Why are you spoiling your mood by thinking about them?” said Meera trying to cheer him up.

Rohan agreed with her and quickly changed the subject to exam preparation.

The next day, the Principal circulated a notice to all the classes, announcing that students, who write a good essay on “Our Camp”, will be appointed as volunteers at the summer camp. Three students had to be selected from each class

All the children were very excited and quickly got down to writing the essay. However, Shashi as usual wanted to make trouble and he started disturbing other students and would not let anyone write their essay.

“If you keep troubling us like this I will complain against you to the principal. He is very strict and he will expel you from the camp,” Rohan said.

Shashi stared angrily at Rohan and reluctantly sat down in his seat.

Meanwhile Meera had gone to the washroom and when she returned she saw that the paper on which she had been writing her essay was not on her desk.

“Where is my essay?” Meera screamed. She looked for it everywhere. Hearing the commotion, their teacher entered the classroom.’

And-They-Became-Friends

“Sir, Shashi has stolen Meera’s essay,” said Sonia. And all students joined her in blaming Shashi as he was the one who was always making trouble.

The teacher angrily said, “Shashi! I have been hearing complaints against you for a long time. Stealing is not a good behaviour. As a result, I am expelling you from the camp.”

To everyone’s surprise, Rohan came to Shashi’s defense.

“Sir, Shashi has not stolen Meera’s essay.

I was watching Shashi all the time so that he does not trouble’s anyone and so, I can say that Shashi did not steal the essay,” Rohan explained.

The teacher announced that he would check everyone’s bag to solve the mystery of the missing essay. Each student was asked to step out of the classroom for the search to begin.

While the teacher was saying this, Sonia quietly tore Meera’s essay and put pieces of paper in Shashi’s bag.

During the search, as suspected, the essay papers were found in Shashi’s bag. He was called inside to explain them.

Now tell us, Shashi, do you still say that you did not steal the essay? These were found in your bag,” the teacher said showing Shashi the torn pieces.

Once again Rohan defended Shashi. “Sir, I have proof that Shashi is not the thief but Sonia is,” said Rohan.

“Sir! These are the bits of paper of the essay, that I found in Sonia’s bag. Sonia stole the essay and tore them inside her bag.”

“Then at the right moment Sonia shoved these bits of paper into Shashi’s bag. She did it so that Shashi would get caught and she would not be suspected,” continued Rohan.

And-They-Became-Friends

“If Shashi had stolen the paper, how are same bits of it in Sonia’s bag,” asked Rohan showing the bits of the essay in Sonia’s bag.

Sonia was asked to explain herself to everyone.

Sonia then said that she was jealous of Meera and stealing her essay was the only way to stop Meera from volunteering for the camp. Since Shashi had a reputation for being the troublemaker it was easier to put the blame on him.

The teacher expelled Sonia from the camp. Shashi thanked Rohan for his support and promised that from now onwards he would mend his ways. After some time, Rohan and Shashi became good friends. •

 

The Plants Started Smiling

Kiku was a notorious child and each time he entered the garden all the flowers- marigold, jasmine, gulmohar and rose felt scared and angry. They whispered to each other, “The naughty boy is here. He will pluck us and pull off our tender leaves.”

The marigold plant on the side said, “Jasmine dear, he tramples my tiny plants under his feet. It hurts me so much.”

And soon what the flower plants were saying came to be true as Kiku started plucking and breaking all the flowers one by one.

Just then his sister came into the garden and saw him plucking the flowers and shouted at him, “Kiku, you are again breaking the flowers and the plants. How many times I have said that you are not to pluck and break the flowers! What do you get by breaking them?”

Unaffected by his sister’s words he laughed loudly.

“Wait, I will teach you a lesson,” she said and ran after him. Kiku started running in the garden while his sister tried to catch him.

Suddenly, he bumped into a flowerpot and fell down with a big thud and hurt his hand against the stone fence. At the sight of his bleeding wound, Kiku got scared and started to cry in pain. On hearing the noise his mother came out of the house and looked at Kiku’s wound.

“Look, mummy, Kiku plucked all the flowers again,” his sister complained to their mother and told her everything.

“Go inside quickly and bring some cotton and antiseptic cream,” mother told the sister.

“See, Kiku, how much it pains when you get hurt! And you hurt these flowers and plants everyday. They too feel the pain as you do,” Kiku’s mother tried to explain him.

Kiku was confused by what his mother was saying about plants. He said “Mummy, how can plants feel pain? They are lifeless like my toys.”

“No son, they too have life in them like us,” said his mother.

“If they have life like us, why do they keep standing in one place? Why don’t they walk and run like us?” Kiku asked his mother.

“Kiku, they are fixed to the soil with their roots. They get their nourishment from the soil. You have seen that if we do not water the plants, they dry up and die. The green leaves become yellow or grey,” his mother explained.

“Do the plants also eat food? Who cooks food for them?” Kiku asked innocently.

His mother smiled. She replied, “The plants make their own food with the help of sun rays. They get their energy from the sun. And with the help of this energy their roots take the nourishing matter from the soil and send it to the stems. From the stems the nourishing materials go to the branches and then to the leaves, which are the food factory of the plant.”

Kiku still could not understand. So, his mother said, “Okay, tell me one thing. When you pluck flowers, then don’t new flowers grow again on the plants in a few days? This is because they have life in them. You must have seen small plants growing and becoming big. Do your toys ever grow?”

The-Plants-Started-Smiling

Kiku realized what his mother was trying to make him understand. “I had not thought about this, he said.

Meanwhile his sister brought the medicine and cotton. Kiku’s mother cleaned the wound with water and cotton and put ointment on it.

Kiku apologized to his sister and said, “Now I have realized my mistake. I will not pluck flowers or break their leaves or trample on plants. I did not realize they were living things and get hurt.”

Hearing this not only his mother and sister became happy, with them all the plants too started smiling in relief.

Character is what makes a Mouse

Mohan Mouse liked to walk home from school everyday. Often, along his way home, he would think about everything that had happened during the day in his class. He would recollect the things his friends did and said, and what his teachers taught and spoke of during the lessons.

The walk made Mohan Mouse feel good. Not only did it help him exercise but it also made him feel relaxed and at ease since the route home was surrounded by some shady green trees.

The only thing that Mohan Mouse didn’t like during his walk was his thoughts being interrupted. And today, Mohan Mouse was strolling along as usual. He was smiling as he recollected how his teacher had praised him for the assignment he had done so well when he was suddenly interrupted.

hita Mohan Mouse’s shoe hit a big rock that was lying on the sidewalk. Mohan tripped and swayed and almost fell down.

“Ow! This is ridiculous!” Mohan Mouse said furiously. “I could have fallen down and hurt myself. It was fortunate that I didn’t lose my balance. Who would be silly enough to leave a rock this big on the sidewalk?” Mohan Mouse was really very annoyed. “And what I am most upset about is that my pleasant thoughts have been interrupted because of this silly rock!” he grumbled.

Mohan Mouse lifted his foot and gave the rock a hard kick. He thought that the rock would roll and go further ahead, far away from him. But the rock didn’t move an inch.

He then gathered all his strength and gave the rock another kick. The rock flew through the air now. And to Mohan Mouse’s great horror, it hit the glass pane of a window of a nearby house.

“Yikes!” Mohan said and gasped. “I have broken someone’s window and caused them damage.”

Mohan Mouse’s knees began to shake. He was terrified. He flew like the wind, hoping no one had seen him. He knew that running away was a cowardly thing to do. But at the same time, he was scared and didn’t want anyone to come out of the house and scold him.

Mohan Mouse knew that he would be in big trouble if someone saw him. And so, he ran all the way and only stopped after he had entered his house. He then shut himself in his bedroom.

“Oh dear me!” Mohan Mouse muttered to himself. “Maybe I should tell someone about what I’ve done? Maybe I should tell Ma and Pa?” But he then decided against it. “They might punish me for being careless and for damaging someone’s property,” he thought. “I better keep quiet about it. It will be my little secret, that’s all!” Mohan Mouse began to feel relaxed. He was sure that he would get away scot free since he was sure that no one had seen him. “No one knows I was responsible for breaking the window,” he thought confidently. “I have no reason to fear.”

But then something happened that surprised Mohan no end. He found that he could think of nothing else but the incident. “I have done something wrong,” he thought and sighed every now and then. “I should own up and tell someone the truth.”

Soon, Mohan Mouse started feeling guilty. He found that he couldn’t sleep a wink at night. He sat up in bed, wondering what to do.

“I am very ashamed of myself,” Mohan Mouse whispered to himself. “I will go to the house tomorrow and apologise to the owner for breaking the window.”

The next morning, he told his parents about what had happened. “I have money saved in my piggy bank,” he said. “I am going to offer to pay for the damage I’ve caused.”

Mohan’s parents felt very proud of him. “Since you have been so honest and told us the truth, we will help you and pay for the damages. You can keep your money in the piggy bank and use it another day. We appreciate your truthfulness and this will be your reward, Mohan.”

Mohan Mouse felt happy that he had such supportive parents. He then scampered towards the house. He rang the door bell and waited, his heart thumping like a drum. A man opened the door. “Can I help you?” he asked Mohan Mouse, looking slightly surprised. “Er…I broke your window pane accidentally yesterday,” Mohan Mouse said politely, even though he was feeling very nervous. “I have come to apologise. I am really very sorry.”

Ah!” the man said. “So, it was you who broke my window?”

“Yes,” Mohan Mouse said softly. He then gave the man an envelope which contained the money his parents had given him. The man opened the envelope and looked puzzled. “I’d like to pay for the damages,” Mohan Mouse said bravely.

Character-is-what-makes-a-mouse

The man smiled at Mohan and patted his little head. “It was very brave of you to come back and offer money for the repairs,” he said. “I’m sorry once again,” Mohan Mouse replied sincerely.

“You coming back here and owning up shows that you have character,” the man said. “Your parents must be very proud of you.”

Mohan Mouse smiled. He felt much better. He realised that even though he had made a mistake, he had set it right, by doing the right thing.

“I am glad I have character,” he said to himself as he walked away. “After all, it is character that makes a mouse!”

Newlook Beauty Parlour

Hank hippo was passing by, when he stopped in his tracks to see two strangers walking into Rainbow forest. They were dressed in trendy outfits and had rather stylish hair styles.

“Hello! My name is Hank. What brings you to Rainbow forest?” greeted Hank and asked them.

“Hello Hank. This is Beauty fox. She is a beautician. And I am Rancho jackal, her assistant,” introduced Rancho.

“Are you here on a holiday?” asked Hank further.

“No. We are here to open a beauty parlour so that we can introduce new styles to you. But for that we will need permission and a place to set up our parlour,” answered Beauty

Hank was delighted to hear this. He told them, “There is an unoccupied cave near the old mound. But you will need to take our King Eddie elephant’s permission to open your parlour there.”

“Thank you for your suggestion Hank. We will meet you there in a while. Will you get all the other animals near the cave?” asked Beauty.

The news about the beauty parlour spread like wild fire all over the forest and everyone assembled near the old mound to meet Beauty and Rancho, who had also come there.

Beauty said, “Hello everyone! We are really delighted to come to Rainbow forest. I have checked the inside of the cave. It is quite spacious and if his highness, King Eddie agrees, then we can set up our “New Look” beauty parlour here.”

Sif Just then King Eddie reached the spot and said, “I don’t have any issues if all the animals of my forest are happy with the parlour being opened. Both of you can stay in the cave and run your beauty parlour.”

“Thank you so much King Eddie. If each one of you could come and design your look with us, then we could get the products that are required from the city. You will have to pay an advance to us to start the parlour,” said Beauty

None of the animals had a problem with this. Hank was the first one to come forward. He said, “I have a very hard, rough and dry skin. I want a smooth skin instead.”

“That can be easily done,” said Beauty. “You will have to undergo a deep cream massage treatment for a long time. You need to deposit Rs.3000 with us, and we will take the remaining amount once the treatment is over,” said Beauty. Hank immediately left to get the money.

New-Look-beauty-parlour

Then, Harry crane came in next. He said, “I am so handsome, but my long legs spoil my beauty. I want to have my legs shortened.”

“We will need to call a doctor from the city and perform a small operation on your legs to shorten them. You need to deposit Rs.5000 with us,” said Beauty

Then, Harry crane came in next. He said, “I am so handsome, but my long legs spoil my beauty. I want to have my legs shortened.”

Harry too hurried to arrange the money.

Blacky bear was waiting for his turn desperately. He rushed in and said, “I am bored with my long black hair. I want to cut my hair and have my body designed like that of a giraffe.”

“It can be done. We can remove your hair and make permanent tattoos on your body using herbal colours. You will need to deposit Rs. 10,000 for this,” answered Beauty.

Blacky agreed immediately.

Similarly, most of the birds and animals wanted to undergo a change in their looks. King Eddie spoke in the end, “I too want my outer teeth, the tusks pushed inside. Can you do this job in your parlour?”

New-Look-beauty-parlour

“Of course, your majesty! You will have to put on some springs called braces on your tusks for a few years. We will get these from the city for you,” said Beauty.

“How much will it cost?” asked King Eddie.

“Your highness, you have given us the permission and a place to setup this parlour. How can we charge anything from you?” said Beauty with a smile.

“No. I can’t use the cave for my personal needs. You must tell me the cost for the braces,” King Eddie said.

“If you insist, your majesty. You need to deposit Rs.10,000 with us,” Beauty said immediately

“Okay,” said King Eddie nodding and left from there with a smile on his face.

The next day, all the animals of Rainbow forest, came to Beauty and Rancho with the money. King Eddie was also there.

Just then, Inspector Jeetu wolf and Tony cheetah arrested Beauty and Rancho and brought them out of the cave.

New-Look-beauty-parlour

King Eddie shouted, “Throw both the goons behind bars.” Everybody was shocked. If these two were to go to jail, then who would give them their new look!

“Reveal the identity of Beauty and Rancho before everyone. They will decide for themselves whether these two are really capable of giving them a new look,” said King Eddie.

Tony immediately removed the wig and goggles from Beauty and Rancho’s faces.

“Hey, this is Chamko fox and Jagoo jackal,” all shouted in surprise.

“Yes, these two thieves ran away from the jail, a few days ago. They came back in disguise to cheat us,” explained King Eddie.

New-Look-beauty-parlour

“Ellen eagle, the forest detective keeps an eye on all the strangers coming into the forest. When she told me that these two reached the cave near the old mound without asking for directions from anyone, I grew suspicious. I asked them on purpose to bend my tusks inside though I like them being outside. Only an orthodontist can set your teeth inside your mouth,” said King Eddie.

“But, these two started talking about using a wire to tie my teeth and push them inside. Then, I understood that these two were trying to cheat me. I asked Ellen to hide inside the cave and listen to their conversations. She told me that, these were two were Chamko and Jagoo. They were planning to escape after collecting the money,” explained King Eddie.

Further, King Eddie said, “Nature has blessed us with a beautiful body based on our environment and eating habits. Why do you want to undergo a change by imitating others? Blacky, when you go to the hive to extract honey, this long black hair of yours protects you from honey bees.”

New-Look-beauty-parlour

“And you Harry, your long legs help you to stand in the pond and catch fish. Hank, your thick, hard skin protects you from enemies,” explained King Eddie to all of them.

They realised their mistake. This was an eye opener for them. And everyone thanked King Eddie for saving them from being cheated.

Rancho’s Challenge

Ever since Barry, the buffalo had won the National Forest Boxing Championship, he was on cloud nine. Having proved that he was the strongest, he began to consider himself better than the rest of the animals. He especially did not think that smaller animals were even worth talking to.

“Move out my way or else I’ll throw you aside!” Barry threatened Rancho, the porcupine, one day.

“Watch how you speak, Barry. I am not scared of you,” retorted Rancho.

“Really? Let me teach you a lesson,” said Barry, lifting Rancho and tossing him afar.

Fortunately, Rancho landed on a soft bed of grass, and was uninjured.

“Whew! That was a close shave!” said Rancho, massaging his waist.

A few days later, some animals gathered at Polly, the peacock’s tea stall to discuss Barry’s behaviour.

“Barry’s bullying is intolerable,” said Frodo, the frog. “Yesterday, he tried to trample me under his feet for talking to him. He said, being a small creature, I shouldn’t even dare to look at him.”

“That is outrageous! He thinks he is superior to all of us,” said Gina, the squirrel, enraged.

“We should do something about his behaviour,” said Misu, the mouse.

“I complained about him to our king Leo, the lion. He said that since he has just become the king, he doesn’t want to cause a rift between animals by taking a stand. Moreover, most of the larger animals respect Barry, so he doesn’t want to anger them and lose their support,” said Rancho.

“What about our support? Don’t we matter to King Leo? We have rights too,” said Polly. “We live in this forest and work as hard as any of them.”

“You are right, but who’s going to support us? Who will take a stand to protect us?” asked Anto, the ant.

Suddenly, there was a commotion. Barry had come out of nowhere and was charging towards them. All the animals who had gathered at the tea stall, ran helter-skelter. Rancho tried to stop them, but no one listened to him. Rancho was left to face Barry alone.

Rancho's-Challenge

“So, you are the leader of these animals! How dare you rally them against me?” fumed Barry.

“We were discussing how your behaviour has got out of hand. We, the smaller animals, have decided to not tolerate your bullying anymore,” said Rancho.

“Oh, really? What do you plan to do? Fight me?” Barry laughed.

“Yes! Let’s meet at the ground tomorrow in the presence of all the animals and fight. If I win, you should apologise to all of us and stop bullying us,” said Rancho.

“I accept. But if I win, you should accept you are inferior to me and do my bidding,” said Barry.

Rancho agreed much to the shock of his friends who had gathered around by then.

“See you tomorrow, loser. Get ready to serve me,” said Barry, walking away.

“What have you done, Rancho? How will you fight him?” asked Gina worried.

“If it takes a fight to win back our dignity and respect, then so be it. But I will need all your support,” said Rancho.

“You’ve taken such a big risk for our sake; we will definitely support you!” all the animals assured him.

Next day, everyone, including King Leo, gathered at the ground to witness the fight. They all felt sorry for Rancho.

“How will this tiny porcupine defeat the strong and mighty Barry?” they wondered.

“Are you ready to lose, you tiny creature?” Barry taunted Rancho.

“Wait and see who is really going to lose,” said Rancho. He swiftly landed a punch on Barry’s stomach and ran.

“Come back, you coward! Let me teach you a lesson,” Barry shouted and ran after him.

As soon as Barry started to run, his feet sank into the ground. He struggled to move.

Rancho's-Challenge

“What is the matter, you big bully? Can’t you run?” teased Rancho.

This enraged Barry even more. But the more he struggled to get out, the more he seemed to sink into the ground. He was helpless. The spectators laughed at Barry.

“Look at our boxing champ struggling to even walk!” said one of them.

“He let a small porcupine get the better of him,” laughed another.

Barry was embarrassed.

Rancho walked up to him and said, “You are indeed stronger than all of us, but you should use your strength to help those who are weaker than you; not bully them.”

Barry felt bad for the way he had treated the smaller animals. “Forgive me, Rancho. My arrogance blinded me. I apologise to everyone.”

Rancho and his friends accepted Barry’s apology, and helped him get out.

Rancho's-Challenge

Later that day, King Leo invited Rancho to the palace to applaud him for his win over Barry. “How did Barry sink into the ground and you didn’t?” he asked Rancho.

“Last night, I got the help of my mole friends who dug several tunnels under the ground and made it loose. It was done in such a way that if any large or heavy animal walked or ran on it, the ground would cave in, trapping the animal,” said Rancho.

King Leo appreciated Rancho’s smartness.

Lattu Gets Fooled

Bhola, the donkey worked at Kaalu, the elephant’s sweet shop.

One day, Bhola came into work looking upset.

“What is the matter, Bhola? Why do you look worried?” asked Kaalu.

“I am worried about my son Lattu,” replied Bhola.

“What happened to him? Is he unwell?” asked Kaalu concerned.

“He is fine. I am worried because he does not show any interest in studying. I am tired of trying to make him understand that going to school is important. But he does not listen to me,” said Bhola.

“We have to think of some other way to make him understand. Bring him to meet me tomorrow. And don’t worry, everything will turn out alright,” said Kaalu.

Next day, Bhola brought Lattu to the sweet shop to meet Kaalu.

“Hello, Lattu. Your father tells me that you are not interested in going to school. Why is that so?” asked Kaalu.

“I don’t like studying, Uncle Kaalu. I want to start working right away and earn some money like my father,” said Lattu.

“Alright, you can start working in my shop. What sweets and snacks can you make?” asked Kaalu.

“I don’t know how to make any sweet or snack,” replied Lattu.

“In that case, why don’t you sell some papads? You can carry some with you and sell them to the animals you meet along the way,” said Kaalu.

“Yes! I can do that,” said Lattu.

Kaalu gave him 20 papads in a basket and said, “Sell each papad for Rs.10. After you’ve sold them all, come back to the store to collect your payment for the work done. Just remember: Don’t give the papad to anyone without taking Rs.10 first.”

“Okay, Uncle Kaalu,” replied Lattu and went out to sell the papads.

Lattu met his school friend Munnu, the fox on the way.

“Hey, Lattu. What do you have in the basket?” asked Munnu.

“These are papads from Uncle Kaalu’s shop.

One papad is Rs.10. Do you want to eat one?” asked Lattu.

“Uncle Kaalu’s papads are famous. I do want to eat one. But I have only Rs.5. Will you give me half?” asked Munnu. “No. If someone does not buy the other half, it will go waste. Uncle Kaalu has asked me to sell all the papads,” said Lattu.

“You’re right, Lattu,” said Munnu. He had an idea. “Do you have Rs.5?” he asked.

“Yes, I do. My father gave it to me before we left home this morning,” said Lattu.

“Why don’t we pool our money to buy one papad and eat a half each?” suggested Munnu.

“This does not seem like a bad idea,” thought Lattu and agreed.

Lattu collected Rs.5 from Munnu and put it in his pocket along with his money. Then, the two shared a papad.

Lattu-Gets-Fooled

“That was yummy! I feel like eating some more,” said Munnu.

“So do I!” said Lattu.

“Then let’s share another,” said Munnu.

“But we don’t have any money,” said Lattu.

“Yes, you do. Didn’t we just pool in our money to buy one?” asked Munnu.

“Yes, but that’s the money I made from selling the papad we just ate,” said Lattu.

“Half of that money is mine. So, take our money again and buy another papad,” said Munnu.

“That seems logical.Uncle Kaalu did ask me to take money before selling a papad. So I am taking our money with which we bought one papad and buying another one,” said Lattu, considering the idea. “You are right, Munnu. Let’s buy another papad with the money I made from selling the first.”

Lattu-Gets-Fooled

Lattu “took” the money from his right pocket and shifted it to his left, after which the two shared another papad. The two applied the same logic and ate up all the 20 papads. Finally, Munnu bid Lattu goodbye and continued on his way to school, while Lattu returned to the shop.

“Uncle Kaalu, I sold all the papads!” Lattu announced proudly.

“That’s great. Can you give me the money?” asked Kaalu.

“Sure,” said Lattu, handing over Rs.10.

“Where is the rest of the money?” asked Kaalu.

“This is all the money I made, Uncle Kaalu. Like you said, I did not take out a papad without taking Rs.10 first,” said Lattu.

“If you had 20 papads and you sold them each for Rs.10, then how much money should you have made?” asked Kaalu.

Lattu could not answer as he did not know how to calculate.

“You should have Rs.200,” Kaalu answered for him. “Tell me what exactly happened.”

After Lattu narrated what he and Munnu had done, Kaalu laughed. He said, “So, you thought you could use the same Rs.10 to buy papads from yourself? And since you did not know that selling 20 papads would get you Rs.200, Munnu tricked you easily.”

Lattu was ashamed.

Lattu-Gets-Fooled

“This is a lesson for you to realise why going to school is important. At school, you would have learnt to calculate and Munnu couldn’t have tricked you,” said Kaalu.

“Yes, you are right, Uncle Kaalu. I will start going to school from tomorrow,” said Lattu.

Bhola was surprised to see the change that had come over his son. “Thank yousir! Because of your idea, my son has finally realised the importance of going to school.”

“You should thank Munnu, as well. He, too, was in on the plan,” said Kaalu smiling.

Ludicrous Toons

 

Sher Singh: Why are you reading the Blood Bank in class?

Cheeku: Sir, because I have my Blood test tomorrow.

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Jokes

Henry Hen: Why do bees have sticky hair?

Jumpy Monkey: Because they use a honey comb!

 

 

The Aliens Are Coming!

What was that?” asked Squiggy, the squirrel startled.

“What? Where?” asked Danny, the deer, looking around.

“There!” said Squiggy, pointing to the sky. “It flew over the tree to the other side.”

“I didn’t see anything,” said Danny, still confused. “What did you see?”

“I don’t know. It looked like a plane but there was no sound,” said Squiggy.

Danny came to the conclusion that it must have been an alien spaceship. He immediately told his friends about it and the news spread like wildfire across the forest. Even the news channels started reporting it.

“Did you really see an alien spaceship?” asked King Tammy, the tiger.

“I did see something fly past but it was unlike anything I had seen before. So, I am not sure what exactly it was,” said Squiggy, thinking hard.

“Did it make a sound?” asked Minister Monty, the monkey.

“No, it did not,” replied Squiggy.

“Hmmm…then Danny must be right. They are aliens!” declared Monty. “If aliens have come to the forest, we must welcome them. I’ve heard that they are very powerful.”

“You are right, Monty. Even I’ve read that their technology is several years ahead of ours. Let’s organise a grand welcome party for them,” said Tammy.

The entire forest prepared for the welcome party. A large open spot was chosen where balloons and banners were put up. Then, all the animals waited patiently for the aliens to show up.

Three days had passed and there was still no sign of the aliens or their spaceships.

“I don’t think the aliens are going to come,” said Tammy disappointed.

“Perhaps Squiggy lied about seeing the aliens,” said Monty.

“I think so too. Squiggy made a fool of us!” said Tammy angrily. “Bring him to me!”

Squiggy went up to Tammy and said, “I did not lie, Your Highness. I really saw something, but I did tell you that I am not sure what it was,” said Squiggy scared.

The aliens are coming

“We trusted you and made so many arrangements, and now we look like fools! It was an utter waste of our time. You will be punished for it,” roared Tammy.

“But…but…,” Squiggy tried to explain but Tammy wouldn’t listen.

“I give you a day’s time to find out what it really was or get ready to face your punishment,” said Tammy, before walking away.

“This is my fault!” thought Danny, realising what he had done. “If I had not spread the news, my friend would not have got into trouble,” he regretted.

Danny too began looking for the spaceship. He came across a clearing where he finally found the aliens!

That evening , Tammy  was taking a walk, when  all of a sudden, he saw something fly swiftly over his head.

“The aliens are here!” he screamed in joy.

Hearing  the commotion, the other animals  of the forest quickly  gathered around.

“I just saw the alien spaceship! It flew over my head,”  said Tammy excitedly.

“Squiggy was speaking the truth”,  said Monty.

“Yes.  There’s no need  to punish him now,”  said Tammy, waiting  for the aliens to show up again.

Suddenly, a small helicopter  flew over  Tammy’s head and landed before him. Everyone was puzzled.

The aliens are coming

“That’s not alien spaceship, Your Highness,” said Danny, making his way through the crowd. “While looking for the alien spaceship, I found a few kids playing with their remote-controlled toy airplanes and helicopters close to where  Squiggy and I were talking the other day. Squiggy must have seen one of these toys and got confused.”

The realisation downed Tammy. “So the aliens were actually living among us,” he said smiling. He then turned to Squiggy and said, “Please forgive me for accusing of you lying. I should have verified the rumour instead of trusting  it blindly.”

“You are right, Your Highness. This is a lesson for all of us,” said Monty.

All the animals agreed.

 

 

Donkey Golu In Space

Golu donkey felt his weight was decreasing rapidly. “Oh! What is this? Where am I? And why do I feel so light?” he wondered.

Golu tried to open the door of the aeroplane. But the door did not budge.

Golu tried harder to open the door. He gathered his full strength and tried to push the door, but it still did not move an inch.

“Why is this door not opening?” Golu shouted in panic.

“This door will not open,” a voice boomed from the loud speaker.

Golu tried to see who was speaking, but there was no one around. He asked again, “Oh brother, who are you? And where am I?” He tightly held on to the door handle because now he was completely weightless and was floating in air.

Donkey Golu in space

“Why am I not able to stand straight?” Golu shouted again, very frightened.

“Brother Golu, don’t be afraid,” said the voice.

Golu’s eyes went to one of the monitors in front of him. He was surprised to see the image of his friend, Rex rabbit there.

“Thank goodness it is you Rex.” Golu felt relieved on seeing his friend. He asked, “Where am I?”

“You are in a space-ship. By mistake you boarded this space-ship, instead of the aeroplane you had to take. But don’t be afraid and do just as I tell you. If you want to ask anything, just go ahead,” Rex informed him.

Hearing that he was on a spaceship, Golu was more frightened. He asked, “Am I really in a spaceship?”

“Yes,” replied Rex.

Golu then asked, “Why do I feel that I have no weight and why am I floating in the air?”

“Your weight has become zero because there is no gravitational force in space,” Rex explained.

More From Champak: Donkey Golu In Space

Golu did not understand what Rex had just said. “How could anyone’s weight become zero?” Golu wondered.

On Earth he was a donkey weighing 40 kilograms. And here he had become a zero kilogram donkey. His brain could not figure this out.

“Brother Rex, I cannot understand how can my weight become zero kilogram?” asked Golu.

“Golu, let me try and explain. Have you seen that our Earth pulls everything to itself. When a pebble is thrown in the sky, it comes back to the Earth, because the Earth pulls it back. This power of the Earth to pull everything to itself is called force of gravitation,” Rex explained patiently.

“Yes, I have observed that,” Golu said nodding his head.

“Our weight is a multiple of the gravitational force. In other words, if the mass of your body is 40 kilogram and if we suppose the gravitational force to be 1, then the product of 1 into 40 is 40. So, we say that your weight is 40 kilogram,” explained Rex.

“But where you are now, the gravitational force is zero. And so, when you multiply 40 into zero, what will be the product?” asked Rex.

“It will be zero. That means because of the mathematical zero my weight has also become zero and I am floating in space,” said Golu trying to understand Rex

“Well said. Since there is no gravitational force here your weight has become zero,” Rex explained.

Then Golu noticed something shining near him and said, “Oh, this water bubble is also floating.” He extended his hand towards the floating bubble, but it slipped from his hand and started growing big like a balloon.

Seeing this, Golu asked, “If I want to wash my face, what should I do?”

“Take a piece of cloth and wrap it around the water bubble. The bubble will get into the cloth, with which you can then wash your face,” Rex explained.

But you do not need to wash your face here. There is no dust or dirt here that sticks to your body and makes it dirty,” said Rex.

“Oh Yes! I had not thought about it. But why am I not able to open the door of this spaceship?” asked Golu.

Donkey Golu in space

On hearing this Rex started laughing. “You have asked a very good question. Take a look at the monitor that is showing what is outside. What do you see there?” asked Rex.

“Nothing. It is completely dark out there,” answered Golu.

“Then what will you do if you go outside? And since the space ship is flying the door will not open just now,” said Rex.

Suddenly something pricked Golu’s foot. He cried in pain, “Oh! What was that?” He got up with a jerk and sat up on his bed. “Where am I? I was in space,” Golu moaned.

His mother asked, “Were you dreaming again Golu? It seems you were travelling to space in your dream.”

“Oh yes Mom! I had a wonderful dream that I was in space,” Golu said excitedly.

“Will I ever be able to go to the space, Mom?” asked Golu after thinking for a bit.

Donkey Golu in space

“Yes, son. If you study well, then you can become an astronaut and you can go to space,” his mom answered.

Golu got up and started getting ready to go to school. After all he had to go to space one day.

Presence of Humour

Foxy Fox: What do you call a bird that stand in a row?

Jumpy Monkey:  A spar-row!

 

________________________________________________________

Jokes

Blacky Bear: If a barrel weighs 10 kilogrammes, what must you add to it to make it 5 kilogrammes?

Jumbo Elephant: Holes?

 

Summer

The warmth on my skin,

The heat on my face,

Humidity in the air,

The sweat after a race.

Longer days with fun and joy,

Is what summer brings.

The sky in a brilliant shade of blue,

And so many more things.

The cold, tingling feeling of the pool,

As our skin gives a sigh of relief.

Our minds thinking of the lazy days,

When nobody is in grief.

The sun shines merrily above the horizon,

Sharing its heat and light.

A smile on everybody’s face,

As our hearts are filled with delight!

– Harshita Das

– 11 years, Noida