bedtime stories for kids Archives - Page 10 of 12

New Year’s Magic

It was a lousy morning. The sunrays were slowly scattering in all the directions. Cheeku, the Rabbit woke up when his room was entirely brightened by the glistening rays of the sun.

Cheeku’s parents entered his room and wished him a Happy New Year. He had forgotten that it was the first of January. His friends had told him that the year 2019 will be a magical year. They had said that every act done on the first day of the year 2019 would be multiplied throughout the year.

Cheeku was an eighth standard student. He woke up late because he had a holiday from school. He took a bath and had his breakfast. His mother was planting a sapling in their garden. He asked his mother about the same and learnt that she had resolved to plant a sapling every year.

Cheeku was impressed by his mother and he too wanted to take a resolution for the New Year. He started thinking about what resolution he should make. Mother suggested that Cheeku should resolve to inculcate some good habits, like getting up early in the morning and studying, doing his homework on time, eating healthy food, etc.

Cheeku liked mother’s suggestions and resolved to do all his work on time. He was lazy and also ate junk food in plenty. Thus he also decided to eat healthy food and always be active.

It was not easy for Cheeku to live up to the resolutions. The next day he managed to wake up early since he had school in the morning, but he felt lazy to study in the morning. He started doing some reading after his mother encouraged him to study.

Cheeku also found it difficult to shake off his fondness for junk food. Mother helped him this time too. Whenever he asked for junk food like pizza, burger, chopsuey, etc, she gave him carrots, cucumber, spinach and other nutritious fresh vegetables. This made Cheeku feel that his stomach was full and then he couldn’t gorge on junk food.

Mother was impressed by Cheeku’s resolutions and helped him to devote appropriate time to study as well as play. Cheeku and his friends initially created a lot of nuisance in the house, but now Cheeku had become much disciplined.

It is said that it takes 21 days to form a habit. This means that if one practices an activity for 21 days at a stretch, it automatically becomes his habit.

It was more than 21 days that Cheeku was practicing good habits. All his friends were surprised at his disciplined behavior. Cheeku too observed that by doing everything on time, he got sufficient time to play. He started excelling in his studies. Subjects like algebra and geometry which were a scare for him previously were now very interesting.

One day, Cheeku recited his self-composed poem in front of his school teacher. His teacher liked the poem and praised Cheeku. All the students also congratulated him. Everything was going well with Cheeku ever since the New Year started. He secured a rank amongst the top students in his class. He also started to enjoy studying. Cheeku was now considered as one of the clever students of the school.

Cheeku’s parents were very happy with his progress in studies. His friends started inculcating good habits as Cheeku had done. They studied and played at pre-decided timings. In the remaining time, they nurtured the plants that Cheeku’s mother had planted.

Cheeku and his friends also excelled in sports. They won medals and secured places in big tournaments. Their parents were proud of their success and showered praises on them.

Cheeku’s mother had planted saplings some time ago which had now grown into plants. In the same way, Cheeku’s resolutions had also grown into a good habit that gave him a happy life. He was now a source of inspiration for all his friends, he was a hero! It was indeed a magical year for Cheeku!

The God in the Mirror

Cheeku rabbit was very happy today, as he was carrying a plate of puja offerings and in it, there were two Rs. 500 notes as well.

Meeku mouse saw him and asked, “Where are you going with the puja plate and money?”

“My wish has been fulfilled. I have been cured now. The Baba had promised that he would solve everyone’s troubles. For something like this, I would not hesitate to offer the Baba even Rs. 5000. I was saved in the nick of time from dying. Nothing can be greater than that,” explained Cheeku and continued walking towards the temple.

Baddy fox had come to Champakvan in the guise of a new Baba a few days ago.

Baba claimed to solve the problems of people and in return, they would offer him money and sweets. Baba’s ashram was always very crowded. Some people would come to get their wishes fulfilled and some to make an offering after their wishes were granted.

“God did not listen to me. I’ve failed this time too. What should I do now?” cried Jumpy monkey, standing next to Cheeku.

“You need to work harder. When the right time comes, your problem will be solved,” said Baba while hitting Jumpy on his head with the holy broom. Saying this Baba turned to the next person. As Cheeku came out after giving his offerings, Damru donkey, came to him shouting “Jai ho! Jai ho!”

“What happened Damru? You look very happy,” asked Cheeku.

“I saw God! I found God! I saw the miracle of God,” said Damru dancing with joy and moved ahead.

Everyone was surprised to hear this.

The news that Damru saw God spread like fire in the jungle.

“How is that possible? What does God look like?” everyone was curious to know. Everyone headed to Damru’s house in a group. “If Damru can see God, then why can’t we?” some of the animals thought.

“Damru, will you not make us see God too?” asked Teetu butterfly pleadingly.

“Why not! Anyone can see God. Let me show you now,” said Damru as he put a hand in his pocket and gave a mirror to Teetu.

“You can see God in this,” said Damru.

“But this is a mirror. I can only see my own face in this. Where is God in this?” said Teetu.

Cheeku too peeked into the mirror and saw his own face instead of God.

Damru went near Cheeku so his reflection too appeared in the mirror. Damru jumped up and said, “See! See! There are two Gods now.”

“Silly! These are our own faces,” said Cheeku angrily.

“How do you know these are our own faces?” said Damru.

Everybody laughed when they heard Damru say this.

Jumpy shook his head and said, “Damru there is a scientific reason behind seeing our faces in the mirror. It happens due to the reflection of light and we can see our face in the mirror. This is not called seeing God.”

“If you understand all this then why do you go and bow down in front of the Baba?” asked Damru angrily.

Everyone was surprised to know the relationship between devotion to Baba and the reflection in the mirror.

Damru took a deep breath and said, “Friends! There was a time when people did not know about mirrors.”

“Yes,” said Cheeku in agreement.

“They did not understand that light reflection makes us see our face in the mirror. But today we know about this. Science has helped us. But why do we still believe in things like miracles by Baba?”

“For occurrences where there is a reason, we do not think of them as a miracle of God. But for things which we don’t know a scientific reason, we think them to be miracles of God,” said Damru. “Everyone runs to the Babas and temples and they trap you.

We make offerings to them saying that God should fulfil our wish. The work gets done through a scientific reason but people will think the work has been done through the miracle of a Baba. If their work does not get completed, people will think it is not time yet. Baba will get the work done when the time is right.” Listening to Damru, everybody was shocked.

It was the truth. Work or no work, everyone was running to the Baba, but why? Truly, what good can a Baba do, except being a crook.

“We should stop this foolishness,” said Meeku immediately.

“Damru is right. Thank you for making us see the truth about Babas, Damru. From today onwards, nobody will go to the Baba, and follow them blindly,” said Cheeku, loudly.

All the animals agreed and then returned to their homes.

Party Time in Champakvan

New Year was only a month away. Preparations were on in full swing for the New Year party celebrations.

The local market was full of activity and different shops and stalls were selling decorative items, delicious snacks and were open day and night.

Meeku mouse bought traditional hand-crafted cushions, Blacky bear bought some exquisite copper and brass jars filled with honey, and Teetu butterfly picked up some shiny and colourful bangles.

Meanwhile, Jumpy monkey looked very pleased bringing an expensive, embroidered carpet and scented candles.

Baddy fox was decorating his cottage with ornate lighting fixtures and mirrors.

King Shersingh was not too fond of grand celebrations and huge spending.

In the first week of December, Shersingh called for a meeting,

Shersingh said, “Dear friends! Thank you for coming on such short notice. I wanted to talk to all of you regarding the upcoming New Year celebrations. While it is great to see everyone so happy and festive, it concerns me that a lot of hard-earned money is being spent on buying harmful crackers, toys and items made from toxic plastic substances.”

“These things are dangerous to one’s health and also bad for the environment,” said Shersingh with a serious expression.

Cheeku rabbit was now puzzled. He asked, “In that case, what will we gift our friends and relatives? Most shops are selling these items.”

“You may present them fresh fruits, dry fruits, honey, flowers, and fresh saplings for their gardens,” Shersingh suggested.

“Sir, what about you? We were thinking of giving you a gift. What would you like for New Year?” asked Blacky.

“Hmm. I would prefer something environment-friendly. In fact, this is a great moment for everyone in Champakvan to come up with some really good eco-friendly ideas.”

Everyone was excited now. They all asked, “What do you want sir? Tell us!”

“I want a crystal jar full of dew, a pumpkin fitted in a surahi (a bottle-necked earthen pot), and a bright New Year night without using any electric bulbs, oil and candles. Whoever manages to accomplish this, I will declare that person to be the pride of Champakvan and also my environment minister!”

“Wow! This is unbelievable!” many animals exclaimed, surprised by the unique contest that Shersingh had announced and also the huge reward accompanying it.

“This is impossible,” said Jumpy monkey.

“I have never heard of such a thing before!” Cheeku said, scratching his head with his furry paws.

Meanwhile, Meeku mouse was excited. He was always coming up with new and unique solutions to different problems.

Days went past quickly and it was finally New Year’s Eve.

Everyone arrived in their best outfits, carrying flowers and bouquets, to Sher Singh’s palace lawns.

A grand spread of tea, coffee, muffins and other food items were laid out.

However, Meeku was nowhere to be seen. It was strange because everyone had been expecting a lot from him. The animals started whispering among themselves.

“What a shame! After so much promise, Meeku didn’t even come.”

“Meeku should have never taken upon himself such a difficult task. Now regretting, I am sure.”

It was soon night. According to Sher Singh’s orders for the contest, all artificial lights were switched off around midnight. It was pitch dark. Suddenly, the entire jungle became bright and lit.

There was Meeku mouse standing among them, with a beautiful crystal jar full of dew and an earthen mug with fresh and ripe pumpkin.

Everyone, including Shersingh, exclaimed in wonder.

“How did you manage all of this? This is a miracle!” said Shersingh.

Meeku said, “I will explain all of it step by step. It was a long process and involved a lot of mental work. So, for the first task, I took a thick layer of cotton and spread it on my terrace every night, for three weeks. In the morning, I squeezed and poured the dew from the cotton into the vase. Drop by drop, the crystal jar was filled with dew.”

Blacky bear had his doubts.

Blacky said “How do we know this water is dew? You could have simply filled it from the riverside. Show some proof!”

Meeku replied “I knew this would be asked so I got it certified from the laboratory of water testing, located in Madhuban jungle across the valley. You may confirm it with them if you like!”

“We believe you. The Madhuban jungle laboratory is well-known across the country. Now tell us about your second task!” said Shersingh, full of curiosity.

“For the second task, I placed this earthen vase near the climber of the pumpkin and put a very tender sapling inside the vase. Day by day, it became bigger and now the surahi is filled with the pumpkin,” explained Meeku.

“It didn’t take much, to be honest. Just a simple, logical puzzle,” said Meeku, humbly.

The crowd was quite impressed.

“And what about these bright lights all over? This looks like a natural glow! No electric light or candle is on right now,” said Shersingh.

“Yes, this was quite a difficult task. However, with a little brainstorming, I took phosphorus, a non-metallic element that occurs naturally in different phosphate rocks and appears luminous in the dark and applied it on thousands of small, dry twigs and requested my friends, the sparrows and the sunbirds, to carry these twigs to their nests on the occasion of New Year’s Eve.

I also requested the fireflies to come. Huge thanks to all of them. That is why this was possible!” said Meeku mouse.

“Three cheers for the birds and the fireflies and for Meeku!”, everyone applauded again.

Shersingh honoured Meeku in front of the entire jungle, pleased with his hard work, efforts and declared him as the new environment minister of Champakvan.

There were happiness and laughter everywhere.

Golu Learns to Think for Himself

Gabbru, Dhenchu and Golu were three donkeys who worked for one master.

Gabbru was the wise one. He feared no one. Dhenchu was the clever one. He worked smart, not hard. Golu, on the other hand, was the simplest of them. He would listen to anybody.

One day, all three of them were walking toward the market carrying their master’s goods. There was a river on their way, which they had to cross.

Clever Dhenchu could smell the goods and figure out what he was carrying. If the master put heavy bags on his back, he would pretend to feel dizzy. So his master would not put the heavy bags on his back.

Today, he had a sack of salt on his back.

While crossing the river, Dhenchu suddenly dipped himself in it.

“Hey, Dhenchu! What are you doing?” asked Golu, surprised. “Are you taking a bath?”

“No, no, Golu! I’m reducing my weight by taking a dip in the river,” said Dhenchu.

“Can the load become lighter by dipping in the river?” asked Golu.

Golu did not realise that by dipping in the river, the salt on Dhenchu’s back would dissolve and the weight of the bag would reduce.

“Oh yes,” said Dhenchu. “If you want, you too can take a dip and see for yourself,” said Dhenchu and laughed. He was amused by Golu’s foolishness. He had seen the empty jars packed on Golu’s back.

Gabbru cried out, “Golu! Don’t listen to him! He always makes losses for our master. And now he’s just taking you for a fool.”

“What? But how is this making a fool out of him?” said Dhenchu, angrily to Gabry. “Come on, tell me!”

“You took a dip in the river, to lessen the load on your back. Our master is clearly going to face losses,” Gabru replied.

“I don’t care. The weight on my back got reduced. I now have to carry less weight!” saying so Dhenchu turned towards Golu and said, “If you want to reduce the weight on your back, you too should take a dip.”

“Really?” asked Golu, in excitement.

“Yes, it worked for me! Ask Gabbru if you don’t trust me. When the salt dissolved away in the water, did the weight of the sack get reduced or increased?” asked Dhenchu.

But before he could finish, Golu said, “I too will take a dip in the water. Gabbru, you too should take a dip if you want to lose some weight.”

Gabbru had cotton sacks on his back, which were lightweight anyway. He did not take a dip in the river. He knew that if he did, the cotton would become wet and heavier.

He screamed at Golu, “Hey, wait! Listen to me…” But Golu had already taken a dip.

There were empty jars on Golu’s back which were now filled with water. As soon as he came out of the water, Golu realised that he was now carrying three times the weight as earlier. He began feeling dizzy.

His legs shook but somehow he managed to walk ahead.

“What’s this? I took a dip, but my weight increased!” Golu said to himself.

“That’s exactly why I was shouting. But you did not stop to listen! And now you must bear the consequences,” said Gabbru, as he walked with him.

Golu somehow reached the marketplace. His waist and legs were aching severely.

Since then, Golu stopped simply copying others without giving it a good thought.

Golu realised that unless you use your brains, merely copying others is useless. It could actually be harmful.

THE LITTLE DOVE

Little Rudra lived in a small house, with his parents, near the city garden. His parents loved him very much.

Now that he was five years old, he thought himself to be very big. Sometimes, he would not listen to them.

One day, Rudra saw a small dove in his lawn. He approached it. It was bleeding. Rudra’s mother also came out to the lawn, when she saw that it was injured. She took the baby dove inside the house. She cleaned its wounds. She gave the bird something to eat.

Rudra was very curious. So many questions came to his mind. From where had the bird come? Where were its parents? Why couldn’t it fly? How did it get hurt? He wondered.

That night, Mother made the bird sleep in a cardboard box. She fed it the next day. She took good care of it. The next day, Rudra went to school very reluctantly. At school, Rudra kept thinking about the bird.

As soon as he returned home, he went to see the dove. It seemed to be recovering. Mother had put it back into the lawn. It was walking.

Suddenly, Rudra saw a big dove approaching. The baby dove ran towards it. The mummy dove had something in her mouth. She fed her baby.

Rudra called out to his mother. Both of them were very happy to see the mummy dove feed the baby dove throughout the day. That night, his mother kept the baby dove inside the house. It still could not fly. If it was kept outside, they feared that the cat would kill it.

His mother explained to Rudra that the baby dove must have disobeyed his parents. It might have come out of the nest when its wings were not strong enough. Therefore, it must have fallen down and hurt itself.

Every day, his mother took the baby dove out and put it on the lawn. Its mummy used to come and feed it. The baby dove soon recovered.

One evening, while Rudra was watching, mummy dove fed the baby. A little later, both of them flew away. Rudra thought to himself, “Perhaps its wings become strong.”

Rudra felt sad after his friend, the baby dove, had left. He was also happy that at last the little dove would be with its family.

Rudra vowed never ever to disobey his parents. He had learnt that whatever the elders say, they say so for our good. We must follow them.

The Poem Feat

Sundarvan’s King Shaatir Lion was very fond of poems. He would reward anyone who recited even average poems.

When Bunky Monkey came to know this, she said to her husband, Beeru Monkey, “You should go and narrate a poem to get the reward from the king.”

Beeru said, “That’s fine, but the problem is I don’t know any poem. What will I say in front of the king?”

Bunky was clever. She suggested, “While going there, just narrate whatever you see on the way, in the form of a poem. Be confident. You will definitely be rewarded.”

Beeru liked her suggestion. He immediately set out for the king’s palace.

On the way, he saw a crow sitting on a rock, near the pond. He was repeatedly filling water in his beak, pouring it on the rock and rubbing it with his beak. Beeru instantly made up a poem.

“Rub, rub and rub, While pouring water, I know, O Blacky, What is there in your heart?”

After creating the poem, Beeru felt good. He went to the palace. He narrated his poem in front of the king. The king appreciated his effort. He rewarded him suitably.

The king’s minister, Lukkhu Hyena, wanted to kill the king. He wished to become king himself.

The king’s barber, Blacky Bear, was also involved in this conspiracy. Lukkhu had made a plan.

When Blacky would go to the palace to shave the king’s beard the next day, he would slit his throat with the razor.

Blacky, as per the plan, did reach the palace. However, he couldn’t muster the courage to kill King Shaatir. He kept pouring water on the slab and rubbing the razor against it.

Seeing him do so, again and again, King Shaatir remembered the poem that he had heard from Beeru the day before. He repeated that poem

“Rub, rub and rub, While pouring water, I know, O Blacky, What is there in your heart?”

Blacky was stunned when he heard these words from King Shaatir. He fell at the king’s feet. He pleaded, “Maharaj, I am innocent. Minister Lukkhu Hyena asked me to do this. Please forgive me. I am not at fault.”

The king was taken aback by Blacky’s words. Blacky revealed the entire plan. The king set him free. He ordered that Lukkhu should be arrested. He punished him for his deeds.

The king received Beeru in his palace with great respect. He told him how his poem had saved his life. The king applauded Beeru. He gave him credit for saving his life through his poem. He gave Beeru very high remuneration. This ended all of Beeru’s problems.

WE ARE FRIENDS

After searching for a long time, Minni Mynah found a grain of maize. She sat on a branch of a tree to eat it. As soon as she tried to eat it, the grain slipped out of her grip. It fell down.

Before Minni could pick it up, Ginni Sparrow flew away with the grain.

“Wait, this grain is mine,” Minni called out. However, by that time Ginni had flown away. Minni felt bad. Someone had taken her food and she couldn’t do anything. Once again, she flew in search of food.

She didn’t find a single grain. She just found a piece of a chapatti. She tried to satisfy her hunger by eating it and drinking water. Then, she flew back towards her nest.

Minni was angry with the sparrow who had taken her grain. Minni was tired. She fell asleep.

The next morning, when Minni woke up, she felt another bird’s presence on the tree that was in front of her nest. When Minni looked closely, she recognised the bird.

“You! You are the one who took my maize grain yesterday. How dare you come here?” Minni shouted in anger.

“Which maize grain?” the sparrow asked.

“Hmm, yesterday you took my grain and today you’re acting innocent.” Minni reminded the sparrow of the incident that had happened the day before.

Ginni questioned, “What’s my fault in that? I saw a grain on the ground. I picked it up. I didn’t know that the grain had fallen down from your grip.”

Minni said, “Don’t lie. I called after you but you didn’t answer.”

Ginni replied, “Did you call me by name? No… then how could I have known that somebody was calling me?”

“Well, you can’t stay here!” Minni was still furious.

“Who are you to stop me? I am not going anywhere, I will stay right here,” said Ginni.

“Don’t you dare come near my nest in this rubber plant!”

“I am not even interested,” said Ginni. She flew away.

Minni and Ginni could never see eye-to-eye. Minni wouldn’t go to the guava tree where Ginni lived. Ginni never visited Minni’s nest on the rubber plant.

A few days later, Ginni noticed that Minni had stopped coming out of her nest. She would go out only for a short while.

“Does she want to harm me?” Ginni wondered.

She became alert.

One day, Ginni could hear the chirping of birds from Minni’s nest.

“Oh, it’s the sound of babies chirping! Minni has laid eggs that have hatched. That is why she was not leaving her nest. I was unnecessarily getting worried,” thought Ginni.

She flew out to pick grain.

Ginni found some grains nearby. She returned to her nest.

Just as she sat down to eat the grains, she heard Minni’s babies crying for food.

Ginni looked towards Minni’s nest. She saw that Minni was not there. She said, “It seems as if their mother has gone to get grains for them. Meanwhile, these poor chicks are very hungry. Should I feed them? What if the mother sees me near the nest? Well, I will wait and see what happens.”

Within a few minutes, Ginni thought, “I can’t watch these chicks in distress.”

Just as she was about to go, Minni returned. This made Ginni feel a little uneasy.

Ginni said in a hesitant tone, “I am sorry, I came near your nest by mistake.”

Minni said with a choked voice, “I should be the one asking for forgiveness. I fought with you. Yet, you fed my hungry chicks. I saw you feeding them while coming.

Ginni replied, “I am happy that I was able to help you.”

“Will you be able to forget what happened earlier? Will you be friends with me?” Minni asked with hesitation in her voice.

“Yes, why not? We should live in harmony. After all, all of us need each other at some point of time,” said Ginni with a smile.

Thereafter, Minni and Ginni became good friends.

Thank you very much

Two garbage bins had been placed across a street. The street houses dumped their garbage into these bins.

The road sweepers also used the same bins to dump the waste collected from the roads. Every evening, a large dumping van came by. It emptied these bins. Thus, the two bins were empty at the end of each day.

The kind of domestic waste that was put into the bins said a lot about each household. Egg peels in the bins showed households that consumed non-vegetarian foods. The two bins used to discuss the type of waste inside them.

“Yesterday, house number 3 had cooked lady’s finger,” said the first bin.

“I am sure that number 9 had cooked kebabs,” said the second The broom that was kept nearby heard the conversation. It said, “Both of you are destined to live with dirt and garbage. How are you so happy?”

The bins replied, “We have no complaints whatsoever with our job. We gather all the waste inside us. Thus, the entire colony is clean. This gives us immense happiness and satisfaction.”

The broom had nothing to say.

One day, as usual, the garbage collector dumped the waste into one of the bins. Along with the garbage, he accidentally dropped in a diamond necklace. The bin was shocked to see this.

“Such a beautiful necklace!” exclaimed the first bin. “It must be worth a few lakhs.” …

…“True,” said the other bin. “We serve people every day. Someone must have sent this as a reward. Now, you are the owner of this beautiful necklace. Congratulations!”

The first bin happily said, “Thank you. It feels good to own something as precious as this.”

Just then, the first bin heard an inner voice speak. It said, “The person who owns this necklace must be sad right now. Think about her.”

The bin felt a sense of guilt.

“If you do not wish to keep this necklace, then give it to me. I am waiting to put it on,” said the second bin.

The first bin said, “It’s not right to keep someone else’s property. Recollect the time when you had lost one of your handles. You were so tense and upset. Right now, the owner of this necklace must be going through similar pain. I am going to return this to its owner.”

“Stop talking like a fool,” said the other bin. “Hide the necklace in a corner. The van will arrive soon. It will take the necklace along with the garbage.”

The second bin tried to convince the first one to hide the necklace. The first bin did not act. It looked around as it wanted to speak to Golu, the dog. Golu couldn’t be seen anywhere. However, his wife Julie was walking on the other side of the road. The bin called out to Julie. It put the necklace around her neck.

Julie was amazed to see such a pretty necklace. She said, “Wow! It’s so cute. Thank you. Is it for me?”

The bin said, “It’s neither mine nor yours. It belongs to someone else. We have to return it to the owner. Will you help me do so?”

“Yes. I will,” said Julie.

The bin hid Julie behind it so that no one could see her wearing the necklace.

Just then the bin saw a lady. She seemed to be searching for something. She was very tense. She was weeping. The bin understood that the lady must be the owner of the necklace. She was crying because she has lost it.

The bin told Julie, “Go and return the necklace to that lady.” |

Julie walked towards the lady. She stood in front of her. When she saw her necklace, the lady stopped crying. She was happy. She picked up the necklace from Julie’s neck.

She said, “Thank you very much.”

She hugged Julie and patted her. She also gave her biscuits to eat. She said that she would feed Julie every day.

Julie turned to the bin and said, “Thank you. You deserve the credit. The work that you have done today is praiseworthy.” The bin smiled. It said, “Good work always pays. It brings immense joy and satisfaction.”

Two Old Friends

Ring…ring…’ the doorbell was ringing. Jambu, the jackal was shaving his beard. He came out with shaving cream still on his face.

“Who is it?”

Again he heard, ‘Ring… Ring…’

“Yes, I am coming.” Opening the door, he recognised his friend.

“Bhalla! When did you come?” He hugged his close friend so tightly that Bhalla’s neck was smeared with half of the cream.

Bhalla, the bear had taken a day’s off from his job. Early that morning he had thought of meeting his old friend.

Jambu caught hold of his hand and pulled him in, saying “Are you going to stand outside? Come in. Have some snacks and tea before going home.”

Bhalla started smiling while drinking tea.

“What is the matter?”

“I am recollecting our childhood days. Leave the snacks aside. Come, let us go and kick up a racket in the forest just like the good old days.”

Both of them looked at each other and within minutes they were off.

In front of the bazaar where the four tamarind trees stood, a monkey selling icecream shouted, “Milk, frozen milk. Buy one to feel cool!”

The naughty friends looked at each other. Bhalla asked, “How much is the mango bar?” “Ten rupees!” “Oh! This is daylight robbery!” Bhalla said and sat down. Now Jambu took over and said, “Brother, have some pity on him.”

“Uncle, this is the rate,” said the monkey.

“Okay! Take this.” Jambu took out money from his pocket and handed it to the monkey and gave the ice cream bar to his friend.

Bhalla was enjoying the ice cream with closed eyes. Now Jambu nudged him and said, “Greedy old man! Will you eat alone? Give me some of it.”

Bhalla turned his face away.

“Will you not give me some?” asked Jambu facing him. This went on for quite a while. Jambu started circling Bhalla.

“Sir, you also take ice cream,” said the monkey, trying to pacify him.

“You will give me one?” Jambu acted surprised.

“Yes, why not?”

Jambu was delighted. He took the ice cream from the monkey. Then the monkey extended his hand and asked, “Sir, money. Please pay for it.”

“Money for what?” Both the friends asked slapping their chest.

“Oh! For the ice cream. What else?” The terrified monkey stammered.

Both their voices grew loud. “You gave it yourself. Did we ask you?” Jumbu shouted.

The monkey was shocked. He shouted, “You tried to trick me!”

The two mischief makers laughed and walked away. In the same way, they cheated the snacks vendor. They were playing their childhood pranks even now.

Finally, they reached the playground where the children of the hippos, wolf, rabbit, and kangaroo were playing gulli danda.

Bhalla asked his friend, “Would you like to play?”

“Why not? I am no beginner.” Jambu replied stroking his grey moustache.

“Hey, just give me the stick. Watch how we play.”

Bhalla threw the gulli. Jambu swung and hit it so hard that the children were astonished. The game progressed. Then Bhalla picked up the stick. He tossed the gulli in such a way that the children were speechless. Oh! These old men were good. They could compete with anyone.

The gulli shot like an arrow from Jambu’s hand. Bhalla struck it really hard. The gulli flew like a hawk. Far away on a mango tree there hung a honeycomb. Instantly the gulli hit it like a bullet. Within minutes an army of honeybees emerged… Booo… booo…

“Run! It’s dangerous!”

The children started to run away. The two old men also started to run. But could not run as fast. Both of them suffered from pain in their legs. They were groaning and running.

Soon they started panting. The bees were chasing them too. The news of the broken beehive spread in the forest. Everyone came running. Mr. Hippo, Mr. Wolf, Mirza, the rabbit, and Babu, the kangaroo were very angry. “Whose mischief is this? Our children were playing quietly. Who did this?”

“These two are the culprits.” All the fingers, of the children and the snacks vendor, were pointing towards Jambu and Bhalla.

“Is this your doing Uncle? What a shame!” said Mirza, the rabbit.

The monkey also chipped in saying, “Brother, they took an ice cream from me and ate it. They did not even pay for it.”

The two friends stood downcast. The other animals of the forest surrounded them.

Jambu quietly asked, “Did you hit the honeycomb on purpose?”

Bhalla said shamefacedly. “Yes. The moment I saw the honeycomb my mouth started watering. Instinctively I hit the gulli on the honeycomb.”

“You have long hair. The bees got entangled in them.

Think about me? See my state?” said Jumbu. Big rashes had appeared on his body.

“Sorry friend, but what is a bear’s child if he does not put his life at stake for the sake of honey?” said Bhalla.

They apologised to all for their behaviour and the ice-cream monkey.

All the animals walked away.

Jambu winked and said, “If the end is sweet then everything is sweet. Isn’t it true? Come friend we will soon eat honey and not create any mischief in the future.”

The Winner

Bill and Tarun were neighbours and attended the same school. Moreover, they shared similar habits too. They came from two well-to-do families and enjoyed all the comforts. They had everything a child could wish for. Too much indulgence and pampering by their parents had made them spoilt kids. For them, life was nothing, but enjoyment and fun.

Both of them went to school every morning, or at least their parents believed so. In the afternoon, when they returned home, they groaned and complained about their studies. But that was far from the truth. They hardly ever attended school and regularly bunked classes. If any teacher spoke to the Headmaster about their behaviour, it made no difference. The Headmaster called them to his office, scolded them and warned them not to do it again. It became a routine.

However, the teacher who complained against them was in for trouble, as they then teased him in class. The teachers, therefore, let them have their way. A report to their parents was ineffective too. In fact, it was their parents who were responsible for their bad behaviour.

Both of them were strong and clever. They were leaders of their groups and led their followers into all kinds of new mischief every day.

The neighbours were fed up of their activities. Sometimes they complained to their parents, but it didn’t matter.

Creating trouble was their only pastime. What fun they had!

Although they were close friends, they always wanted to prove who was more superior than the other. They thought of some new tricks to surprise each other. They bragged about their ‘brave deeds’ and tried to impress one another.

One day, as they sat together with their group, Bill said, “Tarun, our old mischievous ways does not amuse me any longer. How do we decide who is superior?” “Think of a new activity,” replied Tarun. “You always say you are more creative than I am.” Bill thought for a little while. Then his face beamed with smile.

“I have a wonderful idea,” said he. “Look here, let us start our activities tomorrow morning and meet here with our groups in the evening. We’ll then describe our day. Two members from each group will be appointed as judges. They will decide which group has performed better. The leader of the other group will have to accept the superiority over the other.”

“That’s a good idea!” shouted everybody in unison, “It would be fun.”

That the evening both the groups met at the appointed place. A big crowd had gathered there. Bill’s group was in the high spirits. His boys were shouting, howling and whistling in excitement.

On the other hand, Tarun’s group looked, confused and worried. Tarun had not arrived as yet. Nobody could understand the reason for his absence. How could he abandon his group on such an important occasion? It was a matter which involved the honour and dignity of the group.

“Where’s your great Tarun?” Asked Bill. “I think he’s here but is invisible.”

His boys burst into a loud laugh and gave various answers, “…Has turned a tail…can’t show his face…accepted his defeat…is a coward….”

All of a sudden, there was silence. Tarun was coming toward them. His eyes were downcast, his neck was bent and he looked upset.

He sat in a corner lost in deep thought.

Amidst the shrieking and whistling of his group, Bill said. “Let us hear what deeds we have done during the day and decide who’s greater. The first group, I’ll describe the achievements of my group. Here they are:

Tied crackers to a donkey’s tail and made him run. Threw stones at the madman and had great fun. Broke two nests of crows, stole ripe mangoes from Kallu’s garden, misguided a stranger who wanted to go to the railway station, snatched the biscuit packet from a child and made him cry, smeared Bholu’s newly painted wall with dirt.

“These are wonderful deeds,” shouted his group joyfully, as he completed the list. “Come on, Tarun tell us what achievement you can boast of?”

Tarun simply answered. “I’m sorry I’ve come to accept my defeat and Bill’s superiority. I can’t be his equal.”

Everyone was stunned. “At least tell us what happened to you,” asked Bill. “What have you been doing today?”

Tarun spoke with a sigh. “I left home in the morning to join my group. I wanted to begin the day with a ‘great deed. Suddenly, I saw an old blind man moving toward a deep pit dug in the middle of the road. I thought I’ll push him into the pit.”

“As I placed my hands on his shoulders, he spoke out, ‘An angel has come to support a blind man. You must be a great man who thinks about a helpless old man.” His words struck me like lightning. I felt ashamed of myself. I pulled him away from the pit. His body was burning with fever. I took him to a doctor. I paid for the medicines with my pocket money.

Then I took him to his old and broken hut where I found his wife. The old man showered me with his blessings. He said, “I wish you all the joys of life. You seem to be a noble boy; you’d be the pride of your parents. I can’t thank you enough.” His wife held my face in her hand and kissed my forehead. Bill…I take back the challenge.”

The boys shouted in joy, “Bill has defeated Tarun. Come on judges, what have you to say?”

A garland of flowers was put around Bill’s neck amidst the noise of his group. Then everyone was stunned to see what seemed unbelievable. Bill took his garland and put it around Tarun’s neck and said in a chocked voice. “Tarun you are a great leader. Lead both the groups to greater heights. I salute you.”

Blood Donation Camp

Jumbo, the elephant walked out merrily one morning. While on his way, Leelu, the kangaroo met him and asked, “What is the matter Dadu? You seem very happy. Where are you going?”

“I am going to the grounds for the camp,” told Jumbo.

“Which camp?”

“Blood donation camp,” said Jumbo, as he walked away.

“Blood donation camp!” Leelu was excited. “I will go and see for myself whether Jumbo Dadu is really donating blood or not?” Leelu skipped and hopped towards the grounds. Damru, the donkey saw her on the way and asked, “Leelu, where are you going early in the morning?”

“I am going to the blood donation camp. You can come along if you want.” As soon as he heard this, Damru joined Leelu.

When Jumpy, the monkey saw them, he inquired, “Where are both of you going this morning?”

“We are going to the blood donation camp.” Damru shared. Jumpy laughed and asked, “Are you going to take blood or give it?” Damru’s face fell.

Jumpy spread the news to his friends. Some laughed, while others made fun. When Blacky, the bear heard it, he became serious and said in anger, “When this small lanky Damru can donate blood, why can’t we?”

“Blacky is right.” Geetu, the rhinoceros said. “We should go there too,” said Geetu and both of them walked to the camp. There was a big crowd outside. All the animals, whether small, fat, thin or lean were standing in a queue.

Leelu and Damru soon got a chance to enter. Blacky and Geetu were upset about seeing them go in.

“Big animals like us are standing out, while that tiny Damru is inside.” The two charged in elbowing aside others in the queue. Inside they saw Damru and Leelu talking to Mili, a member of the camp.

“Can we donate blood too?” asked Damru.

“Yes, why not! If all tests are clear you can easily donate blood. By giving blood you maintain good health. You will also come to know how healthy your body is,” Mili explained.

“There is no problem in donating blood?” questioned a scared Damru.

“There is no need to worry if your body is healthy. Besides we take blood from a healthy person only. Blood is not taken from a weak body. We take only one unit of blood which is produced again in two days. There is no discomfort to the donor,” Mili said with a smile.

“Can the donated blood be given to anyone?” Damru inquired.

“Yes! Only to them whose blood group matches the donor,” Mili replied. “Blood group?” he asked.

“Yes. Blood also has groups. They are of four types.” Mili explained.

“I think I have heard about them. Perhaps there are four groups. ‘A’, ‘B’, ‘AB’ and ‘O”, “Damru said thoughtfully.

Mili smiled and glanced at the place where the blood tests were being conducted. A few people were waiting there. She looked at her watch and said, “Come I will show you. You are right. There are four types of groups-A’, ‘B’, AB’ and ‘O’. ‘AB’ is the only blood group which accepts blood from any group, but can give blood only to someone with “AB”. Therefore, it is called the universal acceptor.

“Like our Jumbo Dada who eats everyone’s lunch, but does not give anyone,” Leelu said and all three laughed.

Mili continued, “O’blood group is just the opposite of AB’. It can give blood to anyone, but cannot accept blood from any group. A patient with ‘O’blood group needs blood from ‘O’only.”

“Then this blood group must be very useful. It can help anyone.” They said.

“Yes! That is why it is called the ‘Universal Donor’. No special condition is required for other groups. ‘A’ blood group can take blood from ‘O’or ‘A’ and give to ‘A’ and AB”. Similarly ‘B’ blood group can take from ‘B’ or ‘O’ blood group and be given to ‘B’ or ‘AB’. Therefore the blood group is checked first. Once the blood is collected, it is stored safely and can be used anytime. Now I am taking your blood sample for the test. Do not be afraid,” said Mili and brought the needle near Damru’s finger.

As soon as she did this Blacky, immediately rushed and said, “I will donate blood first, then this tiny one.”

“Okay brother you can get it done first,” said Damru as he stepped aside.

Mili took Blacky’s blood sample. It was sent for testing

First Kanny, the tortoise put the blood sample in a liquid. Within minutes the blood went down, formed a ball and rose up.

She said, “If this comes up in the form of a ball, then the hemoglobin is alright, and if it stays at the bottom then it is less.”

Then she performed three more tests, and then said, “Everything is fine. Get your Blood Pressure checked”.

“Why do I have to check that? It must be alright too. Don’t you see how healthy and strong I am?” murmured Blacky. Then he got his BP checked.

“Your blood pressure is very high therefore you cannot donate blood. Only those who have normal blood pressure can donate blood. It should be 120-90,” Sikku, the fox, a worker at the camp explained to Blacky.

Blacky was staring at her in astonishment. He could not believe that someone as healthy and strong as he could not donate blood. He went and sat in a corner crestfallen. By now Damru’s blood sample was taken and the tests were conducted.

“Everything is normal,” informed Mili and asked for the BP checkup.

Sikku checked and said, “Your blood pressure is normal 120-90. You can donate blood.”

“What if the pressure was low?” Damru asked.

“It would be an issue, as pressure too high or low is not good,” Sikku explained.

“Then there is no problem if I donate blood.”

“No! No! There is no problem. You are absolutely healthy. Go ahead,” said Sikku.

Damru went eagerly towards the bed. Blacky was watching all this with a downcast face.

“Blacky why are you sad? Damru is absolutely fit though he is thin. If you are fat doesn’t mean you are healthy,” said Mili.

Geetu saw Blacky’s fallen face and said, “Forget it! Instead of growing fat, we should look after our health. We should become healthy and strong like Damru. Look he is donating blood. We came here for the sake of our pride, but he had come to help the needy. We should also think similarly.”

Blacky looked at Damru. He went up to Damru and said, “Friend you are doing a very noble thing. We should all come forward to do this without fear. Please forgive me. I tried to trouble you for no rhyme or reason.”

Blacky said this and went out of the camp. Damru heaved a sigh of relief. He was happy for doing a good deed, as well as for bringing about a change in Blacky’s thinking.

Deru has fun in the Snow

Winter had arrived and it started to snow. All the leaves were completely covered with snow.

Seeing this, little Deru bear was scared.

“Papa, what will happen now? It is very cold here. Where will we stay?” asked Deru.

Deru had accompanied his father, Bholu, who was visiting a friend Motu, the polar bear. They had woolen coats, scarves and gloves and were looking for Motu’s house.

“Deru, we will reach there soon,” Deru’s father tried to comfort him.

“But Papa my feet are sinking in this snow, and I can’t walk. My shoes are full of snow. I am feeling hungry, too. I am unable to see any pond where I can catch some fish,” Deru cried.

Suddenly, his eyes fell on a frozen pond. There was a small hole on the surface and some fish were swimming there.

Deru, without a second thought, jumped. Although there were fishes in the water, they were swimming beneath the frozen layer, causing Deru to get hurt.

“Son, be careful. Our destination is close. Look Uncle Motu is coming,” said Bholu pointing to the big, white bear running towards them. Motu patted Deru on his back, but Deru did not smile. He was in a sour mood, as he had hurt himself on the ice.

“Where will we stay? There’s so much snow.” Deru whined.

“In a snow house called the igloo,” said Motu laughing and the three walked off.

“Won’t we shiver in the cold?” Deru asked tearfully. They had reached around the house made from snow, which had a small door. The three entered the house.

“Oh! It is not cold here!” Deru was surprised. “Why is this house not cold even though it is made of snow?”

“Son, because the construction of this house is like the concave lens. The heat from the lamps inside strike the walls.

The warmth is trapped inside instead of going out. This keeps the house warm,” Motu explained.

Deru was relieved. He was happy to finally find a warm house.

“Uncle, I am very hungry,” Deru said.

“Come, let’s catch fish,” said Motu said taking his snow cart.

“There is no pond here. The fishes are swimming in the water that is covered with a layer of ice. How will we catch the fish?” Deru asked Uncle.

Motu explained. “Come with me. I will show you how we can catch the fish.”

Deru was about to leave but suddenly stopped.

“No, Uncle! I will not come, my feet will sink in the snow. I am unable to walk,” Deru said sadly.

Motu took out his sledge and said, “You can sit on this. Now, let’s go.”

“But it has no wheels.”

“Don’t worry son! My friends will move it. You need not to walk.” Then they got out.

Motu’s friends helped pull the cart. Soon they reached a pond where they found many fish swimming beneath the ice. Motu kicked the ice and it broke after a tries, causing the fish to jump out.

“Oh! This is how the fishes are caught!” Deru said surprised.

Deru caught many fish and everyone had a hearty meal. Now he was enjoying himself. After eating the fish, they went for a drive. The snow cart raced along the ice. They saw many spots, snow-covered trees, houses and even an apple orchard. All the houses were igloos. They came home after seeing many beautiful sites.

“Uncle you catch fish every day in this cold after so much work,” said Deru, removing his shoes.

“We don’t work the entire year. We polar bears eat and roam for most of the year. The rest of the year we sleep,” said Motu.

“Why?” Deru was surprised.

“We spend some months sleeping to escape from the cold. It is called hibernation,” Motu said.

“The long hair on our body protects us from the cold. In the summer months, we store enough fat in our body so that we do not have to worry about the winter months. We sleep most of the time to conserve energy. This is the lifestyle of polar bears,” Deru was listening carefully to Uncle Motu.

Though both were bears there was a vast difference between the two.

“It seems that both are created to suit the environment they live in. My friends will be very surprised when I tell them about all that I have learnt,” Deru said.

The next day, Deru wanted to go for a drive again and wouldn’t sleep, as he was enjoying listening to Uncle Motu talk.

“Son, won’t you sleep?” asked Motu.

“Uncle, I will sleep soundly once I return home. At the moment let me enjoy talking with you,” laughed Deru.

Motu also laughed. The three of them continued to exchange stories.

Roshni’s Greedy Lesson

Roshni, the rabbit saw some jars outside a house on her way back from school. She opened one and saw mango pickle in it. “Mango pickle is kept in the sun to dry,” she said to herself. Seeing that no one was around, she picked one piece and went home sucking it.

The next day Roshni did the same too. On the third day when she got up in the morning she had a sore throat. She did not listen to her mother and went to school. She had severe pain in her throat. When her teacher asked her a question, she could not answer. Roshni went to the blackboard and wrote the answer. “I am unable to speak,” she explained to the teacher.

The teacher sent Roshni back to her seat. Roshni’s throat was dry because she had eaten sour pickles. When she went home, her mother saw that Roshni had high fever.

Roshni’s mother took her to the doctor. With great effort Roshni told the doctor the truth. She took the perscribed medicines and lay on bed. She had to take three days leave from school. She stayed in bed the whole day.

That night Roshni remembered that there was a competition in school. She could not take part in it because of the fever. The next day Roshni’s fever was less. Some of her school friends visited her to enquire about her health.

“Do you know there is a race in school tomorrow?” asked her friends.

“My body is weak. I will not be able to take part in it,” Roshni replied tearfully.

“It is my fault. I could have taken part if I had not been greedy.”

She told her friends the whole story. At that moment her mother came in. She touched her lovingly and said, “That is why they say children should not eat pickle. The spices in pickles are bad for their tender throats.”

“You should have told me. I would have made sweet mango chutney for you,” Ma said, as she stroked her lovingly.

“It would have been shameful if someone had seen you stealing the pickle. You would have got into trouble.”

“It is truly said that greed is bad. It always creates problems.” All her friends agreed with her mother.

Roshni’s eyes became moist with tears. “Last year I won a prize in the 100 metres race. Now I have to miss out because of my mistake.”

Roshni promised her mom that she will never steal and eat. Her mother explained to all the children, “Always ask grown ups before eating anything, whether it should be eaten or not. This will keep you away from trouble.”

The Importance of Reading

The teachers of Champs School were upset. The students were good at studies, but they did not read anything besides their textbooks. They were not interested in any books that were there in the library.

If they had any free period they would play in the ground. If any project was given, they would just quickly search the internet for information and not go into details. The teachers had tried explaining the benefits of reading, but they never understood this. The children said, “Internet is the best.” Rest of the time they played games on the net or used social websites.

The children felt bored, as they had to study the whole time. They began their day in school and then tuitions. They felt that there should be some play time too.

Their parents were worried as their children were not interested in reading. The parents and the teachers held meetings. They came up with a plan.

The next day the Principal made an announcement. She said the student who gave 50 interesting facts would be given an award. The children were thrilled to hear this. They thought it would be easy, as they would search online and the work would be over in minutes.

However, she clarified that no one could take the help of the internet for this. They could only use the books in the library. They would have to write the names of the books they referred too.

The information had to be on different subjects. They were given a month’s time to complete the work. The children were astonished to hear this. They whispered to each other, “Now what will happen?”

Each child wanted to win. Therefore, they started going to the library every day. The library remained packed with children whether it was lunch time or a free period. Surfing social sites on the internet had also reduced. They would issue books from the library and read them at home.

They gathered a lot of information on language, mathematics, astronomy, chemistry and physics. No subject was left untouched. The parents and teachers were very happy to see their diligence. All the children submitted their papers within a month.

They eagerly waited for the results. They were feeling anxious.

In the meantime, everyone noticed a change in the children’s behavior. They were still borrowing books from the library and reading them. Besides this, the children were borrowing books from other kids and reading them. They read many stories, essays, poems and biographies.

After a week the day of the results arrived. The intelligent children were sure they would definitely get the award. The children were surprised when the Principal Madam announced Deepika’s name as the first prize. How can she get the first prize?

But it was true. Though she was not bright in studies, reading was her hobby. She had read more books than anyone else and thus provided interesting information on every subject. The information given by other children was nearly the same. Their Principal told the children that it was Deepika’s interest in books that had got her this prize. If the other children formed the habit of reading then they too would get good information.

As an outcome of this competition, the children thus learnt the importance of reading. They said in unison, “Thank you Madam” and clapped their hands.

Now the children frequently visited the library. They had opened a book club near their house and exchanged books amongst themselves to read. Books had become their true friends.

Sara’s New Mom

Christmas was around the corner. Almost everyone in the neighbourhood was busy getting ready to celebrate the festival.

But Sara was upset and was in no mood to celebrate. Sara used to celebrate Christmas with her mother every year and enjoyed helping her mom bake cakes for their family and friends. Her mom had passed away about six months ago and the festival only reminded her of her mother more than ever.

Every year, Sara would ask for something or the other from Santa Claus. Sara’s grandpa would buy whatever Sara wished for and would keep it for her under the Christmas tree a few days before Christmas.

Sara would think that Santa himself had dropped by and left those gifts for her.

Sara sat on the sofa with her teddy bear looking sad.

Grandpa saw her sitting there and came to her and asked, “What’s the matter, Sara? Why do you look so sad?”

Sara burst into tears and said, “I keep thinking about mom. And I heard that dad is getting a step-mom for me now. But I want my own mom. I am going to ask for my own mom from Santa this year. I want to meet Santa Claus.”

Sara’s grandpa felt sorry for her. He hugged her and wiped away her tears.

Grandpa decided that on Christmas day, he himself would dress up as Santa Claus and talk to Sara about her step-mom.

Next day was Christmas. In the evening, Sara sat under the Christmas tree, waiting for Santa Claus. She had a feeling that Santa would indeed turn up.

Soon, Sara’s grandpa, dressed up like Santa Claus, arrived at their home.

She was overjoyed to see him.

Sara ran towards him and asked, “I was sure that you would come. But where’s my mom?”

Santa said, “Sara, I can’t bring your mom. But you’re going to get a new mom. And you will find your own mom in her too.”

“But I’ve heard that step-moms are bad. My friends told me the story of Cinderella, and even in that, the stepmom was such a bad person,” said Sara.

“No, Sara, not all step-moms are bad. I have met your new mom. She’s a kind person. You can teach her your favourite dishes and play games with her. You may want to know what she likes and do those things with her too. Give her a chance and see,” said Santa, before leaving.

Sara took Santa’s words to heart. When Sara’s new mom came, Sara and she took their time to know each other.

Over time, Sara accepted her as her own mother. Not a step-mom; she became like her real mom.

Sara’s grandpa was overjoyed to see Sara’s bonding with her step-mom. He felt that the family was complete.

The New Santa Claus

The residents of Silver Forest were eagerly awaiting their king, Leo, the lion’s announcement that came a few days before Christmas every year.

Next day, the king called everyone and said, “As you all know, every year we select one animal among us to be Santa Claus. So please start preparations, as only two days are left for us to decide who will be the Santa this year.”

For the animals, being Santa Claus was a matter of honour. Everyone began preparing for the competition. Some started decorating their houses, while others started dressing up smartly.

Piku, the peacock, was drying his feathers after taking a bath. Suddenly, he heard a voice.

“Help me! I can’t carry this bag alone!”

Piku looked out to see who it was. An old and dark animal was carrying a heavy bag on his shoulders and was saying, “Please help me! I can’t carry this bag by myself.”

“Help? I’m sorry, but please ask someone else. This bag is so heavy and dirty as well. I have just taken a bath. I don’t want to get dirty again,” said Piku, declining to help him.

“My house isn’t far. Please help me. I’m too old to take this bag,” pleaded the animal.

“I just said no. Can’t you hear me?” said Piku, losing his temper. “Now get moving from here. I’m preparing for the competition to become Santa Claus. Don’t disturb me!”

The animal walked away sorrowfully. Some distance away, he came across Hinni, the deer.

“Please help me! I can’t carry this bag anymore,” the animal cried out. Hinni saw that an old animal was asking for help, but declined. “Please ask someone else. Can’t you see I’m busy preparing for the Santa Claus competition? I’ve just applied the cream on my body. If I help you now, the cream will get dirty and my skin will not shine anymore,” said Hinni, and turned away.

Suddenly, Dabbu, the donkey arrived at the scene. He was passing by and stopped on hearing the old animal’s cry for help.

“Let me help you,” he said. Dabbu took the bag from the old animal.

“Yes, please help him out,” said Hinni, laughing. “Anyway, who’ll choose you to be Santa Claus?”

Dabbu did feel bad, but he chose to ignore her.

“Careful! The bag’s quite heavy!” said the old animal to Dabbu.

“Not a problem,” said Dabbu.

“And it’s dirty as well.”

“Don’t worry! I will wash it afterwards,” said Dabbu, smiling at him. “Where is your house?”

“It’s quite far. You can put the bag down if you want. I’ll ask someone else for help,” said the old animal.

“Don’t worry at all. Let’s go,” said Dabbu, and started walking behind him.

After walking some distance, they arrived near an old house.

“Please keep the bag down here,” said the old animal. “Thank you so much!”

As Dabbu was about to leave, the old animal called out, “Haven’t you prepared for the Santa Claus competition?”

“Who will make me Santa Claus? Neither am I good looking nor do I have any special skill,” saying that Dabbu left.

Dabbu then went and cleaned his house and set up a Christmas tree.

That night, all the animals, including Dabbu, gathered on the ground to hear the results of the competition.

“This time I’ll surely be Santa,” said Piku, spreading his feathers. “Who’s more beautiful than me?”

Everyone admired Piku’s beautiful and colourful feathers.

“You’re really handsome,” some of the animals complimented him.

“Oh, but wait till you’ve seen me! Look how fair I look,” said Hinni, the deer. Everyone turned to her.

“Yes, yes, you too could be Santa Claus,” said the other animals. Hinni was elated.

“Hey, even Dabbu has come! You’ve come just as you are, Dabbu. You should at least have dressed up,” said Piku, laughing at him.

“He’ll never change!” said Hinni, laughing as well.

“Friends!” said Leo, their king from the stage. “The results this year can come as a shock to all of you. This time our Santa Claus is…”

Piku and Hinni both were ready to go on to the stage.

“…Dabbu!” Leo announced.

“What?” everyone at the gathering, including Dabbu himself, was shocked. Leo knew that all the animals were asking why.

“Please Dabbu,” Leo said. “Come up to the stage.”

“All of you must be wondering why Dabbu and no one else can be a better Santa than him. He is kind and helpful. He helped a weak and old animal who was refused help by many others.” Saying this, Leo narrated the whole story.

“But how can you be so sure that Dabbu actually helped out that old animal? It sounds like a made-up story,” said Romy, the squirrel.

“He’s right! He’s right!” said a few others in support.

“No, it’s not a story. Because that animal was me,” said Leo.

Everyone was quiet.

“Yes,” said Leo. “I had set out in disguise to search for this year’s Santa Claus.”

All the animals praised king Leo for his smart decision.

“We’re sorry for being rude, Dabbu,” said Piku and Hinni. “You truly deserve to be Santa Claus.”

“Yes, Dabbu, I wish we realised our mistake sooner,” said Hinni.

“Forget it, friends,” said Dabbu. “Come, let’s celebrate Christmas together!”

Everyone cried out in joy, “Merry Christmas!”

MERRY CHRISTMAS

All the animals in the forest were preparing to celebrate Christmas. Everyone was happy and cheerful.

Except Coco, the crow who was perched on a tree with his friend, Minnie, the squirrel. He was sad, and was thinking, “Neither do I have any gift to give anyone nor does anyone like my continuous cawing.”

“What’s the matter?” Minnie asked. “Why are you sad?”

Coco told how he felt.

Minnie said, “No, you’re wrong! Everyone likes you.”

Coco said, “No, you don’t understand. All the other birds are colourful. They sing sweetly. But both my colour and voice are bad.”

Minnie started thinking about Coco’s words. The trees in the forest were beautifully decorated for Christmas.

Coco was so lost in thought about himself that he did not see the beauty around him. Minnie wished that Coco could see the beauty around him and forget his worries.

Coco was thinking, “I wish I wasn’t so black and ugly, and I too had a sweet voice like the other birds.”

Minnie tried explaining again, “You are so young. All the elderly crows are considered to be wise. Your nests are so clean and beautiful. And you eat up all the insects in the fields and help the farmers too.”

Coco waved his wings and said, “What’s so special about that?”

“Not for you maybe, but it is very helpful for the farmers,” said Minnie as she jumped up and sat on a higher branch.

“All right,” said Coco and went and sat beside her.

Minnie said, “Don’t overthink about your colour and your voice. They are not as important as you think.”

“Even I don’t like sitting in despair during the holiday season. I can hear nice music playing all around. I really wish I could sing!” said Coco.

Minnie replied, “Why are you so afraid of your own voice? Everyone knows how your voice sounds since you were born.”

“In Brazil, they cook chicken and rice during Christmas. The songs and music make even the turkeys dance in joy. In France, they decorate the Christmas trees with balloons, ribbons and lights. All the animals celebrate and enjoy themselves in the moonlight. In Germany, the party is kick-started by piglets and then by the opening of gifts. There is happiness everywhere,” said Minnie.

“How do you know all this?” Coco asked Minnie.

Minnie continued, “Christmas is the time to dance, sing, eat, make merry and have fun. It’s not for being sad like this.”

Coco was beginning to understand Minnie’s words. It was true that Christmas was time to be happy.

He too should mingle with all and enjoy himself.

“You’re right, Minnie,” he said. “I too shall celebrate Christmas with everyone and have a lot of fun.”

“That’s the spirit!” smiled Minnie. “Ticktock, tick-tock… Soon it’ll be Christmas day. Come, let’s enjoy ourselves!”

Coco spread his wings, looked to his left and to his right, and tried crying out in a sweet voice. But instead of his horrible cawing, he indeed cried out in a sweet voice, “Merry Christmas!”

Soon, the whole forest was celebrating the festival. They began singing, dancing and greeting each other. Merry Christmas to all!

Enjoying Christmas

The month of December was on and it was very cold in the forest. The animals and birds were worried. Winter seemed to be very severe this year. There were only a few days left for Christmas and preparations had to begin.

Tilu, the starling sitting on the tree asked, “Brother Goru, how is the preparation for the Christmas coming along?”

“It has not started as yet. Owing to the severe cold nothing could be arranged,” said Goru, the bear.

“It is always cold during Christmas, why are we afraid of it? We should start preparing for it,” said Tilu.

“It’s true. Christmas is a winter festival, then why are we afraid of the cold? Come let us start its preparation from today. Spread the news to everyone in the forest,” said Goru.

“Good, I will inform everyone,” said Tilu and flew off. She conveyed Goru’s message to most of the animals. The mere mention of Christmas spread a wave of happiness.

Harshilvan was known for it’s unique Christmas celebrations. Everyone helped and the idea was always new. The food and drinks were of different varieties and that is why Goru had informed everyone in advance. The plan was discussed in everyone’s house in the forest.

Tina, the doe was expert in making cakes, while Peelu, the peacock was good in making a Christmas tree. Every year they would decorate the tree in a new way and provide delicious cakes to eat. Some would sing and others dance.

As the festival approached the winter became more severe. Everyone was finding it difficult to work and was worried how they would celebrate Christmas this year.

Peelu made all arrangements to decorate the Christmas tree. He also chose the tree. It had to be fixed in the ground in front of the house. Everyone’s eyes were focused on the season. It was becoming colder.

Peelu and Goru fixed the Christmas tree two days before the festival. It was snowing on Christmas morning. No one went out in the snow. The birds sought shelter in their nests.

A thick blanket of snow was spread out everywhere. The plants and trees were covered with snow. Goru did not like to sit at home on a festival. He came out of his house as he could not stay in any longer and called out to all his friends. They wished each other a Merry Christmas. “How will we celebrate Christmas this year?” Teju, the monkey asked. “The Christmas tree is completely covered with snow,” said Tinku, the jackal. “What difference does it make? Are you all ready to celebrate Christmas?” Goru asked.

“Yes! All of us are ready.” Everyone replied in unison.

“You know we celebrate Christmas in a different way every year. This time the snow has given us this opportunity to do something unique,” said

“We have not understood what you said? they asked.”

“Together we will make a Christmas tree of snow,” explained Goru.

“That is a good idea,” said Tinku.

“But how will a tree be made out of snow? We can gather snow and make a mound but not a tree,” said Teju.

“You make a mound and we will change it into a tree,” Goru said. The others could not understand anything that has been told. The branch that had been fixed for the Christmas tree two days ago was now completely covered with snow, and it was still snowing. Everyone helped in gathering the snow and heaped it up to form a mound.

“Make it as high as possible,” said Goru.

All of them made it as high as they could. Meanwhile, all the animals came there. On the instructions of Goru, Teju brought Honey, the horse. Goru explained something which made Teju happy. He climbed up a branch and shaped the mound into a Christmas tree. He cut the pile of snow and gave it the shape of a tree.

“Wow! This is a beautiful snow tree,” exclaimed Chutki, the doe.

“But how will we decorate it?” asked Tinku.

“It can be decorated with plastic flowers and toys,” said Goru.

“Come let us tell Peelu,” said Teju.

“But he cannot come here,” Honey said.

“But why?”

“His feathers will get wet”.

“Their feathers get wet in the rain, not in snow,” explained Goru. Besides their feathers are so slippery that neither snow nor rain can stay on them…”

Peelu joined them within a few moments. Following his example, many birds came out of their nests. All of them decorated the tree with great enthusiasm. The bright white Christmas tree looked very beautiful.

The animals of the forest assembled to celebrate Christmas even in the snow. Everyone was happy. They had not imagined celebrating Christmas in this manner. By then Tina had also come there with the cake.

“Tina, what have you made this time?”

“Look at it!” said Tina and opened the box. It was filled with cakes in the form of small round white balls. Everyone enjoyed eating them. Then all of them made snowballs and hit each other with them. They had never enjoyed so much in the snow before.

Everyone celebrated Christmas together, sang songs and danced. No one felt the cold, but they were filled with the warmth of the festivities. Christmas was being celebrated by all.

A Merry Ride

It was very cold outside, but everyone’s face was lit with happiness. It was Christmas!

There was a lot of hustle and bustle at Lucy’s house. Lucy had a box full of toys. At night everyone at home wished each other ‘Merry Christmas.

At midnight there were a few soft whispers from the toy box. A red coloured toy train came out and said, “I am going out for a trip around the house for Christmas. If anyone wants a ride, he can take a ticket and get into the compartment.” Mickey, the puppy became the conductor of the train. He wore a black coat and stood outside the compartment blowing his whistle.

Sweety, the sparrow came out from the midst of the toys and said, “A ride through the house on the Christmas train! This is a good idea.” She flew over and settled near Mickey.

“Mickey, give me a ticket,” she said.

She took the ticket and took her seat.

Rob, the elephant’s sleep was disturbed on hearing the chatter. “Are you all going somewhere?”

“Yes, we are taking a ride on the Christmas train. But you will need two tickets, in order to get on the train.” Sweety laughed and said.

“Sweety you should not say such things. My compartments are so big that Rob can easily fit in them,” the train boasted.

Rob was happy to hear this. He immediately adjusted his specs and went to Mickey. The puppy felt like teasing Rob. He said, “If the train does not start then you will have to get down and push it.”

“Hey! Why will I have to push it alone? Everyone will get down and push it,” he said. He entered the train and took the back seat. He felt very sleepy.

Harsha, the cow, Soni, the ant, Pia, the squirrel, Cherry, the mouse, Bantu, the monkey all boarded the train the same way. The train had just started when Lottu, the fox boarded the train.

Everyone was frightened when they saw him because he was wicked.

“Eh Sweety! Move from here, otherwise, beware” he said.

“Why should I move? I have a ticket and I sat here first, therefore no one can move me from here” said Sweety.

“How dare you defy me!” Lottu said angrily, he pulled Sweety’s feather. She cried out in pain.

“That is hooliganism Lottu. You should be ashamed.” Harsha, the cow said in anger. “Since you came in last, you get the last remaining seat.”

The fox, however, did not listen.

Baring his teeth, he said, “You stop your nonsense or I will bite off your tail.” The animals sat down quietly. The speed of the train increased. It was going to the garden through the kitchen. All the animals had got into the train comfortably, but their fun was ruined because of the fox. Rob was sleeping snugly, unaware of all that was going.

Suddenly Bantu had an idea. He went to Lottu.

“Leave this seat. This is my friend’s place. He will crush you if he gets angry,” threatened the monkey.

The fox was angry. “Let him come! Where is he?” asked the fox.

“He is sleeping in the back seat.”

It was dark at the back. Agitated Lottu went there and without seeing Rob he sank his teeth in his body. However, due to the elephant’s thick skin, his teeth broke. Rob woke up from his deep slumber. He was very angry at being roused from his sleep. Before Lottu realised anything, he wrapped the fox with his snout and threw him out of the train.

There was a pool in the garden filled with water. Lottu fell in it.

“This was fun.” All the animals shouted together. There was a Christmas tree in the garden with colourful lights on its leaves.

“What a sight,” Rob uttered unexpectedly. “I slept off in vain.”

“How would we have gotten rid of the fox if you had not slept?” Bantu said, and all the animals started laughing celebrating the Christmas spirit.

King Potato

A tiny potato emerged out from the soil. It beamed with happiness.

It thought, “Wow, what a world! I have heard a lot about the world. Fortunately, I can now see it. I am going to have fun.”

While it was looking around, it spotted a green coloured round thing, clinging on to a climber. It asked, “Hey, who are you?”

“I am a young tomato.”

“You came out before me?” the potato questioned.

The tomato replied, “I have always been out since I was born.”

The little potato felt bad. However, it soon forgot everything. It was a jolly thing. It got back to its original fun-filled mood.

It thought, “I will see the entire world.”

While it was still thinking, it saw a long, green thing hanging from a straight standing plant.

“Who are you?” it asked.

“I am chilli.”

“You also came out before me!”

The chilli replied, “I have always been out, soaking in the sunlight, breathing in fresh air.”

The potato’s face fell. There were other plants in the garden, on which tiny fruits were swaying in happiness.

The potato asked the little pea, “Have you always been out as well?”

The pea was naughty. It sensed the potato’s restlessness.

It said, “Is this a question to ask? Not only I, but everyone out here hasn’t been buried under the ground. We breathe in fresh air. All of us sleep under the moonlit sky. We wake up with the golden rays of the sun. It’s fun swaying in the breeze.”

“Hmm, this means that I am the only one who has to stay underground. How unlucky we potatoes are! Look at the others. They are all so shiny and beautiful. They live in fresh air. I look so filthy and ugly! Nobody will even notice me.”

The potato felt sad. After talking to the other vegetables, it kept quiet.

A few days later, it was kept in a basket.

It was taken to the vegetable market. All the other vegetables also went along.

“Look, the king of vegetables has been kept near me!” the brinjal exclaimed excitedly.

The potato asked, “Where? Who is it? Please tell me.”

The potato was curious. The brinjal became silent for a while.

He asked the brinjal, “Why are you looking at me like that? Am I that ugly?”

With some hesitation, the brinjal replied, “You are the king, the king of vegetables.”

“Why are you making fun of me? I am an ugly vegetable, who lives underground. How can I be the king?” the potato questioned.

The brinjal replied, “You really are the king. You have all the qualities needed to be a king. Most vegetable preparations are made with you. When there is no other vegetable you alone are sufficient. People can have a satisfying meal by just eating you.”

The pumpkin was lying close by. It said, “You are healthy. How can you not be king? You have Carbohydrates, Vitamin C, Iron, Calcium, Phosphorus, Riboflavin, Carotene and Niacin.

You are enriched with so many nutrients. You are available in every season, every day. We may be here today but gone tomorrow. You are available throughout the year.”

The little potato was pleasantly surprised. It was finding it difficult to believe that it was the king of vegetables!

It thought, “Inner qualities and usefulness are more important than outer appearances. I might be ugly on the surface but my other qualities make me stand apart from others, so much so that I am their king!”

The little potato now understood its self-worth. It regretted its earlier thinking. It felt satisfied, not because it was the king, but because it knew the reason why it was the king.

Chintu’s Astuteness

Chintu Monkey and his friends studied in a school in the jungle. The school was located far away from where the animals lived. The young animals would have to walk a long distance to reach the school everyday.

Chintu Monkey didn’t like walking even though he was very adventurous by nature.

There were big trees on both sides of the path that led to the school.

One day, Chintu noticed them and had an idea.

“Hey!” he thought. “I can go to school by swinging from one tree to another tree. If I do that, I won’t have to walk to school like the others do.”

So, Chintu Monkey began swinging on the trees. It saved him a lot of time and also saved him the trouble of walking.

All the other animals watched Chintu Monkey with awe.

One day, Tiny Tortoise saw Chintu swinging on the trees and said, “Look at Chintu! He is bold and fearless. He reaches school in just a few minutes by swinging on the trees. Isn’t he lucky? We have a long distance to walk! It takes all our time!”

All the animals applauded Chintu’s decision of swinging to school. They would whistle and clap and cheer for him when they saw him swinging from tree to tree.

But Chintu Monkey had grown very proud of himself and his clever thinking. He would often make fun of his friends and bully them.

It rained very heavily one morning. There was a strong wind blowing too. Like every day, Chintu Monkey and his friends left their homes to go to school.

“My, the wind is really strong today!” Chotu Rat said. “It will surely blow me away. It’s even blowing the leaves and twigs away from the trees!”

Chotu Rat then turned to Chintu Monkey and said, “Chintu, why don’t you walk with us today? The wind is strong and it’s raining heavily.

It will be safer if you walk.”

Chintu Monkey ignored Chotu Rat’s suggestion. “I am an expert swinger!” he boasted and continued swinging on the trees.

“Ah! This wind is so pleasant,” Chintu thought. “The branches are swaying with it! I’m enjoying the raindrops too! Chotu Rat was silly to suggest that I should walk with them to school today!”

But when Chintu Monkey tried to hold the branch of the next tree, he was in for a rude shock. The branch had bent with the force of the wind and grown weak. It snapped as soon as Chintu caught it and broke into two.

Unfortunately, this branch was right above the river and Chintu Monkey found himself falling into the water below.

Fortunately, Chintu was a good swimmer. He managed to save himself from drowning and swam to the river bank.

But he was soaking wet. His books and school bag were drenched too.

“What shall I do now?” Chintu thought worriedly. “I am as wet as a sponge! If my friends see me in this condition, they will surely laugh at me. We are having a school test today so I really can’t turn around and go home!”

Chintu Monkey panicked and looked around, wondering what to do.

He spotted Tiny Tortoise walking slowly and had an idea.

“Tiny, come here!” Chintu ordered. “I want your help!”

Tiny Tortoise ignored Chintu and continued walking. It took him a very long time to reach school and he couldn’t waste even a precious moment by stopping.

Besides, Chintu had made fun of him and bullied him so many times.

“Come here, Tiny!” Chintu Monkey commanded. “If you don’t, I will tell the teacher that you haven’t studied for the test.”

Tiny Tortoise was startled. He knew that Chintu Monkey was capable of doing such things.

“Please, don’t do that!” Tiny Tortoise said and stopped. “I will do as you say.”

“Good,” Chintu Monkey said. “Now listen carefully, Tiny. I am going to tell all our friends that you were drowning in the river. I will also tell them that I got wet because I jumped in to save you. You have to nod when I tell them that. I do not want anyone to know that I had fallen into the river because of a broken tree branch. Is that understood?”Chintu said sternly.

“But…but we tortoises live in water,” Tiny Tortoise said.

“We feel very safe in the water. In fact, we can swim very well. Everyone knows that!”

“Don’t worry, Tiny!” Chintu said with a laugh. “Our friends are quite stupid. They will believe my story!”

Soon, Chintu Monkey’s friends came along. They were shocked to see how drenched Chintu was.

“Chintu, what happened to you? How did you fall in the river? Did you fall from the tree?” Chotu Rat asked, looking very shocked.

“Oh! I can’t fall off a tree!” Chintu lied. “I am an expert swinger! I saw Tiny Tortoise falling in the river. He was drowning. I jumped into the water to save him. That’s how I got wet.”

Tiny Tortoise nodded as he had promised.

All the young animals began to clap. “Oh Chintu! You are a hero!” they said. “You saved Tiny Tortoise’s life! Come on! We will tell the teacher about your brave deed. You should be rewarded in front of the entire school.”

Chintu’s friends then ran to school and told Teacher Dumbo Donkey all that they had heard.

“Well done, Chintu!” Teacher Dumbo Donkey said lazily.

“As a reward for saving your friend’s life, I am giving you a holiday today. I will even exempt you from the test. Go home and play.”

Chintu Monkey ran out of the school gates happily. “Ha Ha! I fooled everyone! They think I’m a hero! And guess what? I don’t even have to appear for the test!” he said and laughed.

He then began swinging on the trees again. •

BLOW HORN

Riya and Manya had gone to their grandparents with their parents. Their car was left alone in the garage.

‘All of them have gone for a vacation but have left me alone here. Now for 20 days, I will be stuck in this darkness. Riya was telling Manya that they are going for 20 days to the grandparents,’ the car thought and felt sad.

The car looked around in the garage to see if there was somebody to talk so that it could pass time. It spotted a rat who was busy eating something.

“Brother Rat, how are you?” When the car called, the rat got terrified and hid inside a box.

“Why are you getting frightened? This is me, the car. You are getting so scared hearing my voice as if I am a cat,” the car laughed, “Anyway leave all these things. For 20 days its just the 2 of us in the house. Everyone has gone out.

Will you play something with me?”

“Later, right now I am going to the kitchen. I won’t get a better opportunity to eat to my heart’s content in the kitchen. I will rule the kitchen for the next 20 days,” the rat said overjoyed and ran out of the garage.

‘I shouldn’t have told him about everybody is out. Now he will not come to the garage,’ the car thought.

It was 12 at night. The car too was trying to sleep. Just then the rat came back running to the garage. “Phew, life saved

“Phew, life saved,” he was panting.

“What happened?” the car was startled.

“You had told me that there is nobody in the house and all will come after 20 days, so I was sleeping in the kitchen. But now 2 people came inside the kitchen. I was about to be crushed under their feet.”

“That’s very nice.”

What? I was about to get killed and you are saying that it is nice.”

“No Brother, the man must be Riya and Manya’s father. I am feeling happy thinking that I won’t have to stay locked in the garage for 20 days,” the car said joyfully.

“But none of them was Riya and Manya’s father.”

“Then they must be the neighbours whom they must have asked to keep a check on the house.”

“Might be possible,” the rat said. The garage opened at that time and 2 people entered inside.

“Appu, there is a car in the garage. Instead of taking 10 small things from the house, it’s better that we take the car itself,” One man said to the other.

“Pappu, in that case, get inside the car. Let us take the car.”

“Stupid, if we start the car then the neighbours will come to know that there is somebody in the house. This can put us in a loop. We will have to push the car and take it away,” Appu hit Pappu’s head with his hand and said.

“They are thieves,” the car panicked.

“Raise an alarm to chase them away,” the rat said and started shouting loudly saying ‘Thief, thief.

“Stop it. Your voice is so soft that nobody will be able to hear you and even if they do, no human would understand you. It’s anyway good that they are not able to understand you, otherwise, these thieves would have beaten you dead.”

“So what shall we do now?”

“Till they don’t start the car, I can’t do anything, but you can do something.”

“What?”

“You blow the horn which will cause a loud sound and the neighbours will wake up. Then these thieves will have to run away,” when the car said this, the rat went inside and stood on the horn but it didn’t blow. By that time Appu and Pappu had pushed the car outside the garage.

“Brother Rat, do something.”

“What should I do? I am standing on the horn but it is not blowing,” the rat said.

Appu and Pappu were taking the car towards the gate. When the rat couldn’t think of anything, he bit Appu’s hand and again stood on the horn. Appu saw the rat inside the car and wanted to punch him.

The rat moved from the horn and Appu’s hand touched the horn which started blowing loudly.

“What are you doing, you stupid? If you will blow the horn at this hour, the neighbours will wake up,” Pappu shouted furiously.

“A rat bit me and I was hitting him.”

“Appu, leave the rat and quickly get out from here,” Pappu said, pushing the car. As soon as they reached the gate, they found the police waiting for them.

“How did the police come here?” Appu was shocked.

“We are here because of your stupid behaviour. We were taking rounds over here when we heard the sound of the horn. We came here wondering who was the horn at this hour and found you two,” the policeman said, putting handcuffs in their hands.

“That means we got caught just because of a rat,” Appu-Pappu said, holding their heads.

By that time, the neighbours also came over. They put the car back in the garage and put new locks to the garage and the house.

“Thank you, Brother Rat. You saved me from those thieves.’

“That was my duty, Sister Car. Now you take rest and I will also leave.”

“Where are you going at this hour?”

“In the kitchen! When else will I get the opportunity to live and eat in the kitchen,” the rat laughed and said. The car too started laughing.

Brave Baby Rabbit

Baby Rabbit was sitting under a tree. He couldn’t concentrate on anything. It was time for him to return home from school. But Baby Rabbit didn’t feel like going back home. His school bag and lunch box were in front of him. He stared at them blankly and remembered the incident that had occurred just a few days ago…

Baby Rabbit had been strolling in Nandanvan. His favourite grass had grown there after the rains. Baby Rabbit was nibbling on the grass when a ripe mango had suddenly fallen from a tree. Baby Rabbit had been startled. But when he had realized that it was just a mango, his mouth had watered. He had picked the mango up and washed it carefully. Baby Rabbit had just started to suck on the mango when a vixen had leaped on him.

Baby Rabbit had thrown the mango aside and hidden inside bush. Well, who doesn’t love their life? He had then watched with baited breath from inside the bush. The vixen had sat down to eat the mango.

Baby Rabbit’s eyes had filled with tears. He had wanted to scream and tell the vixen that the mango belonged to him. But he had not been able to utter a word. The vixen had gone away after eating the mango. She had sucked the kernel fully too and not left a morsel or a drop of juice.

Baby Rabbit had come home and wept. He had narrated the incident to his mother. Baby Rabbit’s Mother had listened patiently. “Son,” she had then said lovingly. “There is no need to cry so much for a mango. I will go to the market and buy a crateful of mangoes for you. You can eat them to your heart’s content.” Baby Rabbit had not been consoled.

“Mother, I’m not upset because I didn’t get to eat the mango,” he said softly. “I’m upset because the vixen took something that was rightfully mine. What if I took away something that the vixen was eating? Would that be right?”

“You are not wicked,” Baby Rabbit’s Mother had said. “You are a brave child, Baby Rabbit. Why would you do something so mean?”

Baby Rabbit sighed. “That’s not the truth, Mother,” he said sadly. “The truth is that I’m weak. I’m even scared to go to school. There is no justice in this jungle. Please don’t call me brave. Everyone fears brave creatures. But no one fears me. If I was brave, no one would have dared to bother me and everyone would have feared me.”

Baby Rabbit’s Mother shook her head sadly. She had no answer for her son. The very same day, Baby Rabbit saw his best friend Snehi Deer running for his life. A tiger was chasing him. Baby Rabbit had hidden behind a tree and watched. Snehi Deer had managed to save himself but had fallen sick after that. The fear of the tiger had given him a high fever.

Like Baby Rabbit, Snehi Deer too thought he was a weak animal and had to struggle to save himself.

Both these incidents had disturbed Baby Rabbit no end. He had not been able to study or play games after that. The fear of being attacked by a vixen or a tiger at any time had shaken him up badly. He often thought of going to King Sher Singh with his fears but was too afraid to do so.

Baby Rabbit began to believe that he was very weak. “I am a coward!” he would cry and say. “I am weak. I am afraid of everyone.” Baby Rabbit picked up his school bag and lunch box and stood up. He slowly walked towards his house. He was still very upset.

There was a pond on the way to Baby Rabbit’s house. He decided to stroll along it just to divert his mind. It was a peaceful and brightly lit spot. Moreover, no wild animals ever came to the pond. So, there was no danger there.

Baby Rabbit saw some frogs in the pond. They were sitting on the lily pads and croaking happily. A cool wind started to blow. It made Baby Rabbit feel like running. He hung his school bag on a tree branch and started to run.

As soon as Baby Rabbit began running, he heard splashing sounds coming from the water. He turned around and saw that all the frogs in the pond had noticed him. They looked very scared of him and were leaping and jumping into the safety of the water.

Baby Rabbit was astonished. He stopped to watch. “What?” he said. “There’s no one else here but me! Are those frogs afraid of me?”. Baby Rabbit smiled. He couldn’t believe that there were creatures who were afraid of him too. He took his things and ran back home. He rang the bell continuously till his mother answered the door. “Mother!” he said happily as soon he saw his mother. “I have something to tell you!”

“What is it, Baby Rabbit?” Baby Rabbit’s Mother asked. “You’ve rung the bell so many times. Good children ring the bell only once.” Baby Rabbit hugged his mother and said, “Guess what, Mother? I am brave! I am very brave!”

“Yes, Baby Rabbit! I know that. But what has suddenly made you realise that?” Baby Rabbit’s Mother asked, looking surprised. “All the frogs in the pond dived into the water when they saw me!” Baby Rabbit said and laughed. “I was all by myself but there were at least a dozen frogs. They looked terrified of me!”

“Son, you now know that there are creatures who think they are weaker than you,” Baby Rabbit’s Mother said softly. “Will you stop calling yourself weak now?”

“I will never call myself weak again!” Baby Rabbit said with a smile.

“Very good,” Baby Rabbit’s Mother said. “You are a brave and strong child. But don’t scare the frogs just like the vixen scared you. Being strong and brave doesn’t mean that you should scare others. It means protecting those who are weaker than you. Go back to the pond now and make friends with the frogs. They will stop fearing you and come to play with you.”

“I will do that, Mother!” Baby Rabbit said, running out of the house.

Baby Rabbit then went to the pond and made friends with the frogs who stopped being afraid of him.

Flashing Fireflies

There was no electricity in Satpudavan. Darkness gripped the whole forest as soon as the sun went down. There was nothing but pitch blackness after sunset. The animals that lived in the forest faced a lot of trouble during the nights without any light.

One day, Makalu Fox went up to King Sher Singh of Satpudavan. “Maharaj,” he said. “I saw a huge colony of fireflies near a swamp outside the forest last night. They made such a bright sight. I think these fireflies have a lot of electricity. If they come to our forest and give us their electricity, we won’t have any trouble seeing at nights.”

King Sher Singh sent his messengers to call the fireflies to his palace. The fireflies were humble and came as soon as they received the message.

“Please give us whatever electricity you have,” King Sher Singh said to the fireflies. “We will pay you whatever you ask for. We want to utilize your electricity to light up our forest at nights.”

“I am sorry, Maharaj. But this cannot be done. We have inherited the light. It is part of our bodies. We cannot just give it away,” Jagmag Firefly said. He was the leader of the colony of fireflies.

“How dare you decline our King’s request? Makalu Fox said in a threatening voice. “Give us your electricity or you will be punished!”

“Please don’t get angry,” Jagmag Firefly pleaded. “You must understand. Even if we give you the electricity we have within us, it won’t be of any use to you. It won’t work without us. We will perish if we give it to you.”

Minister Gajju Elephant heard the commotion and came to see what was happening.

He greeted the King and then said, “Maharaj, the fireflies are right. It is true. The light fireflies have is made by a biological action. They can’t give it away.”

“Is that so? King Sher Singh said. “I don’t understand. Please tell me more.”

“Maharaj, the fireflies belong to the arthropods community,” Gajju Elephant explained. “I read about them in an encyclopedia. They have a special element coming out of their bodies which can be seen at night. It is because of this element that they appear to flashlight at night.”

“That is why I have called them here. I want them to illuminate our forest with their light,” King Sher Singh said. “They must share their element with us.”

“Maharaj, the fireflies can’t give you their element even if they wanted to,” Gajju Elephant explained patiently. “The fireflies’ light is known as ‘bioluminescence’. It means ‘organism light’ which is emitted because of a special kind of chemical product found in the fireflies’ bodies.”

“I will tell you more about this, Maharaj,” the leader of the fireflies said respectfully.

“That’s a good idea, Jagmag,” Gajju Elephant said. “It will be best if you explain.”

“The chemical element in our bodies is called ‘Luciferin’ It is present in our cells. We can use it as many times as we want. It doesn’t get over.”

“So, the Luciferin stays constant and doesn’t get over?” Sher Singh asked, looking very surprised.

“That’s correct, Maharaj! The Luciferin supply in our cells remains even after we make light.” Jagmag Firefly explained.

“Okay, but how does the light go on and off?” King Sher Singh said.

“Maharaj, this entire process is governed by our nervous system. Luciferin is present in the inner surface of our respiratory tracts.” Jagmag Firefly continued. “When we breathe in and out, our nerves let the air go out with gaps. And so, it seems like our light is flashing or going on and off.”

“I think I understand now,” King Sher Singh said.

“Maharaj, please understand our problem. If we give this chemical substance of ours to you, it will be of no use. We will perish instead,” Jagmag Firefly folded his hands and said.

“I won’t let you perish, Jagmag,” King Sher Singh said kindly. “But can you and your friends do me a favour?”

“Of course, Maharaj!” Jagmag said. “Please tell us what we can do for you?”

“Spread out in our forest instead of staying together in one place during the nights. The whole forest will be lit up that way.” King Sher Singh requested.

“Yes Maharaj, we will do that,” all the fireflies said together.

From that day onwards, the fireflies scattered themselves throughout the forest at nights. The whole forest was illuminated with little sparks of light.

All the other animals thanked the fireflies and rejoiced.

Greater Happiness

Chulbuli Squirrel considered herself very lucky. She had a big banyan tree for a house. She lived there by herself in great comfort.

There were lush green pastures and fields near the banyan tree. The crops would sway in the fields when the wind blew. And grains scattered and fell on the grass every single day.

This made things very easy for Chulbuli Squirrel. All she had to do was to climb down the tree whenever she was hungry and help herself to the grains.

There was a small pond near Chulbuli’s tree too. It never went dry. In fact, the pond was full of cool and clear water throughout the year. Chulbuli Squirrel had to simply skip to the pond and drink its water whenever she was thirsty.

The weather too was always pleasant. The skies above the tree were covered with soft, white clouds. And a cool and gentle breeze always blew around the tree.

Chulbuli Squirrel would run up and down the tree and enjoy herself thoroughly. She didn’t have a care in the world. “I am so happy!” Chulbuli Squirrel would often say to herself. “Nothing can make me happier!”

A short distance from Chulbuli’s tree was a field with a barn. Babloo Rabbit and the barn owner’s dog who was called Tommy Watchdog lived there. They were Chulbuli’s friends and often played with her.

Tommy Watchdog worked very hard during the day. He was also very alert during the night. If he ever saw anyone coming near the field or barn, he would start barking loudly and alert the barn owner.

One day, Chulbuli Squirrel met Tommy Watchdog near the field. He hadn’t slept too well the previous night and looked very tired.

“I feel very sorry for you, Tommy,” Chulbuli Squirrel said. “You guard the field all day and night. You have to bark all the time. Your jaws must be aching with all the barking you do. Its hard work, isn’t it?”

Tommy Watchdog kept quiet. He listened as the little squirrel went on. “Look at me! I am so happy!” Chulbuli Squirrel went on cheerfully. “There’s no happiness greater than mine. There’s nothing that can make one happier than living in a comfortable house and having an easy life.”

Tommy Watchdog who had been listening patiently all this while finally said, “You are wrong, Chulbuli. A day will come when you will know there are other things that can make you happier. You will realise that there are other things that can warm your heart besides living in a comfortable house and having an easy life.”

The Boring Day of Pickly Wibble the Hedgehog

Chulbuli Squirrel didn’t understand what the dog meant. “Er… Tommy, my friend,” she said. “Let’s discuss this some other day. It’s lunchtime now. I must go to the field. There are golden grains of corn waiting for me.”

The grains of corn lying on the field was soft and sweet. Chulbuli Squirrel ate them all and then rested on the grass below her tree.

She looked up at the sky and saw that there were soft, clouds above her. The breeze too was cool and refreshing. Chulbuli Squirrel felt very happy.

“Ah! What beautiful weather! My life is perfect!” she thought. “There is nothing else that can make me happier!” She closed her eyes and fell asleep on the grass.

Suddenly, the sound of screaming pierced Chulbuli Squirrel’s ears. She opened her eyes at once and looked around. She quickly hopped towards the direction where the sound was coming from.

Chulbuli Squirrel hopped further and stopped. “Oh no!” she cried as she spotted her friend Babloo Rabbit.

He was wincing and groaning in pain. Chulbuli saw that a big thorn had pricked Babloo Rabbit’s paw. It was bleeding and Babloo Rabbit looked very distressed. There was nobody around to help pull the thorn out of his paw.

Chulbuli Squirrel quickly hopped towards Babloo Rabbit and tried to pull the thorn out with her teeth. But the thorn was thrust deeply and did not come out easily.

Chulbuli tried harder. But the thorn still didn’t come out. In fact, it pricked Chulbuli’s mouth. “Ouch!” Chulbuli Squirrel cried in pain. The thorn had stung and scratched her mouth badly but she decided to ignore it. She was more concerned about helping Babloo Rabbit. She couldn’t bear to see her friend in such great agony.

Chulbuli Squirrel tried to console Babloo Rabbit. “Don’t worry, my friend!” she said in a reassuring tone. “I know that I am small but I will try my best to help you.”

Chulbuli Squirrel then held the thorn tightly with her teeth. She loosened it at first by pulling it from all sides. She then pulled as hard as she could. To Babloo Rabbit’s great relief, the thorn now came out in one go. But Chulbuli Squirrel lost her balance in the bargain. She fell against a rock and injured her little back.

Babloo Rabbit felt relieved as soon as the thorn came out of his paw. He stopped groaning and smiled. Chulbuli’s mouth was still stinging. And her back was badly injured too. But the moment she saw Babloo Rabbit smiling, she forgot all about her pain and watched her friend.

Tommy Watchdog, who had heard the commotion, came along.

He saw his two friends and immediately understood what had happened.

“Chulbuli, you are hurt.” Tommy Watchdog told the little squirrel with concern. “Let me apply some medicine on your wounds.”

“Forget about my wounds, Tommy!” Chulbuli Squirrel smiled and said. “They really aren’t bothering me. I’m feeling very happy now. I helped remove a thorn from Babloo Rabbit’s paw. It was causing him great discomfort.”

Tommy Watchdog smiled. “I’m sure you’re feeling very happy now, Chulbuli,” he said.

“But is this happiness greater than the one you get from living on your comfortable tree?”

Chulbuli Squirrel thought for a moment and then said, “No, Tommy! This happiness is far greater. I am happier to have helped a friend in need than living the same old comfortable life. I now understand what you tried to tell me. The greatest happiness comes from helping a troubled friend.”

Tommy Watchdog smiled. Chulbuli Squirrel had finally understood what he meant.

Indeed, the greatest happiness comes from helping a troubled friend.

BEST STUDENT

Mehak and Sakshi were going to school on their bicycles. They I had barely reached the school gate when Akshay pushed their bicycles.

Both of them fell down. Brushing their clothes with their hands, they got up.

“I will complain about you to the Principal,” Mehak said in anger.

“Do that he won’t believe you. Don’t you know that I am going to receive this year’s ‘Best Student’s award?” Akshay said proudly and ran away, laughing.

“He is right, Mehak. He never misbehaves in front of teachers or Principal. Just acts to be a good student,” Sakshi said, “You are a more deserving candidate for this award. You are equivalent to Akshay in both studies and sports. But you are not wicked like him.”

“I know but still I will complain about him.” When Mehak complained, the Principal said, “I have heard that Akshay is a very good boy. All the teachers too say so. Then why are you complaining about him?”

“I knew, Sir, that you won’t believe me but this is the truth. The teachers don’t know how much Akshay bosses around in the school.”

“Okay, if you bring even a single witness against him, I will cancel his award.”

Mehak tried a lot but nobody came forward to support her out of fear.

Buntu told her, “Are you seeing my swollen cheek, Mehak? Akshay had hit ! me. If I complain, he will hit me on the other cheek too.” At the end, Mehak gave up. Everyone was terrified of Akshay.

Very soon Winter Dale High Schools Annual day came close by. Many sports and programs were held in the school. That day the ‘Best Student’ award was also to be given.

Akshay got dressed up very smartly and was singing happily riding his bicycle, “Today I will get the Best Student award. La..la..la..”

Just then his bicycle got punctured. Chandu’s repair shop was nearby. Akshay took his cycle there.

“Chandu, leave everything else and repair my bicycle. I have to reach school soon.”

“You will have to wait, Akshay. I am repairing Shunty’s bicycle. He came before you,” Chandu said.

“Who Shunty? What Shunty? First repair my bicycle,” Akshay said furiously. Shunty, who was standing close by, said, “You are not doing the right thing…”

“Shunty, wait, I will teach you a lesson. How dare you argue with me,” Akshay caught hold of his collar and punched him twice. Suddenly somebody caught hold of his collar and punched him twice.

Suddenly somebody caught hold of his hand from behind. He looked a middle aged rich man. He scolded Akshay, “I have heard everything. You have no right to hit anybody.”

“No, first my work will be done. You mind your business. There is no need to interfere.”

“Oh, so you are bad mannered too. If you don’t stop bullying, I will take you to the police station.”

Now Akshay became mum and waited for his turn. Soon he reached school. Walking towards the function hall, he met Mehak and Sakshi. Akshay took his tongue out and teased them. Then Sakshi said, “I am sad that this year’s ‘Best Student award is going to the worst student.”

All the guests were sitting with the Principal on the stage. He got up and said, “Now I put forward Akshay’s name for the ‘Best Student award for this year.

He is not only good in studies and sports, but also helps everyone and respects elders.

“I request our school’s chairman Mr. Brajesh Mehta to give this award to Akshay.”

The entire hall echoed with the sound of applause. Akshay came to the stage very proudly.

But as soon as he saw the chairman’s face, he started sweating. He was the same man who had caught his hand at Chandu’s shop.

“What are you doing, Principal Sir? You are giving the Best Student’ award to him? He should get the Biggest FoulMouth award,” Mr. Mehta said and narrated the whole incident.

Principal Sir cancelled Akshay’s name glowering at him furiously. Then the award for the ‘Best student’ went to Mehak.

Akshay came back with wet eyes and heavy heart. He had never felt so much insulted. This incident completely changed Akshay for the good.

He stopped bullying and began living with everybody very cordially. He got a good result for that. His dream was fulfilled when he got the ‘Best Student award the next year.

WHY AM I LIKE THIS?

That day Chunky Rat was very sad when Cheelu Eagle came there.

“Why are you sad, Brother Chunky?” Cheelu asked.

“What shall I say? Everybody wants to kill me. Crows and the other birds or snakes and cats, all frighten me as I am small in size. If I was big, they couldn’t have done so,” Chunky said in a dejected voice.

“Okay, tell me what would you have done if you were big?” Cheelu smiled.

“If I was big, I would have bitten the cats, caught the tails of snakes and threw them in the air and I would have been so bad with the crows, hawks and the eagles that they would have never forgotten,” Chunky said overzealously.

“Oh, so along with other birds, you are thinking of making bad state of eagles too. Now I will show you how to make a bad state of somebody,” When Cheelu ran behind Chunky, he hid inside his hole.

Chunky didn’t come out of his hole for a long time. Only when Cheelu went away, did he come out.

He saw a giraffe coming.

“Wow Brother Giraffe, you have an amazing height. I wish I was as tall as you, and then I wouldn’t have to be afraid of anyone. On the contrary, others would have been scared of me.

“You think being tall is good? Do you know that because of my height I can’t hide and my enemies spot me easily? If I was small like you, I could have hidden anywhere,” giraffe said in an unhappy tone.

“So you are not happy with your height?”

“Not at all,” giraffe said. Just then he heard the roar of a lion and got frightened.

“It seems the lion is coming here,” giraffe said and ran away.

‘Wow, a lion must be the strongest. A big animal like a giraffe is also scared of him,’ Chunky thought. When the lion came there, Chunky hid inside his hole.

“You are looking anxious. What’s the matter?” Chunky asked from inside his hole.

“Hide me somewhere. Hunters have arrived in the jungle and they are looking for me.”

“You are the king of the jungle, but still you are scared of humans?” Chunky was surprised.

“If the humans catch me, I will be no king,” the lion said and started looking for a place to hide. When he didn’t find a suitable place, he left.

“How’s that, the animal who is the king of the jungle and so strong is petrified of ordinary humans, even I am not scared of humans,’ Chunky thought.

Chunky came out from his hole and reached the riverside. He saw an elephant in the river.

“Why are you roaming about so carelessly? Don’t you know that there are hunters in the jungle?” Chunky said.

“I am not scared of hunters,” the elephant said unconcerned. “What? You are not afraid of the hunters? Even the king of the jungle lion is scared of them. Okay, you must be definitely scared of the lion?”

“I will wrap my trunk around the lion and throw him away. Why should I be scared of him?”

“That means you are not scared of anyone?”

“It’s not like that. I am very scared of ants,” Chunky was astonished to hear this.

‘This elephant is scared of those ants of which even I am not scared. That means I am stronger than him,’ Chunky thought and came back to his hole.

“But I am afraid of Cheelu. That means Cheelu is the strongest. She is not scared of anyone and she can fly high in the sky without any fear. I wish I could be like Cheelu,’ Chunky was thinking when he heard somebody whimpering in pain. He came out of his hole and saw. Cheelu was sitting on a tree branch and moaning. She was badly hurt.

“Cheelu, what happened, how did you get hurt? You are so strong that everyone is scared of you, then who did this to you?”

“I got hurt by a kite string while flying,” Chunky began laughing when Cheelu said this.

“I am injured and you are laughing?” Cheelu said angrily.

“I am not laughing on you, but on thinking that the animals that I thought to be very strong are weaker than even me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Lion is afraid of hunter, elephant of ant and you got hurt by a mere string. That means I am stronger than all of you because I am not scared of hunters or ants. Tearing threads is a daily thing for me. So whether its sky or the earth, I am strong both up and down. I was unnecessarily thinking myself as weak,” Chunky said happily and went back to his hole, leaving Cheelu perplexed.

Tikki Tikki Tambo

In a remote village of China, there lived 2 friends. One was named Sam and the other was, Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako.

Oh, such a long name! Yes, that was his name. People in China used to have such long names in the past. Sam’s ancestors were from a different country; therefore he had a short name.

One day both friends were playing near a well in the garden. All of a sudden Sam fell down the well. Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako ran towards his mother and shouted, “Mom, come soon, my friend Sam has fallen down the well.”

“What? Your friend Sam has fallen down the well? Let’s go and tell your father,” Mom panicked and said.

Both ran and approached Dad, “Come soon, Sam has fallen down the well. We should do something.”

“What? Sam has fallen down the well?” Dad asked, alarmed.

All three of them ran towards the gardener.

“Gardener, Sam has fallen down the well. Pull him out,” They shouted.

The gardener quickly brought a ladder and pulled Sam out of the well. Sam was shivering with cold, but they were all pleased that they had managed to save him.

After a few days, both friends were again playing near the well. This time Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako fell down the well.

Panicking, Sam ran to his mother and shouted, “Mom, My friend Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako has fallen down the well.”

“What? Your friend Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako has fallen down the well? Let’s go and inform your father.”

Both ran towards his Dad and shrieked, “Run fast. Do something. Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako has fallen down the well.”

“What? Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako has fallen in the water?

Run fast, we’ll tell the gardener. He will pull him out with the help of a ladder,” Dad said.

All of them ran towards the gardener.

“Gardener, Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako has fallen down the well. Quickly take him out,” they shouted.

“What? Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako has fallen down the well?” The gardener ran and brought a ladder.

All of them rushed towards the well to save Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako.

Don’t you think so that because of such a long name, it might have taken them more time to reach him?

Yes, this is true but Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako was a very brave child.

He didn’t get frightened even after falling in the water. He kept swimming in the water and shouted for help.

The passersby heard him and took him out of the well.

By the time his parents and the gardener reached the spot, he was already out of the well. Thus a big mishap was averted.

This incident was discussed a lot in entire China. After that, short names were kept for children in China.

Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako’s parents too realized their mistake and shortened his name to just Tikki.
And yes, since then the practice of calling children with their pet names actually became prevalent.

Tikki Tikki Tambo No Saribo Hari Kari Bushki Peri Pem Do Hai Kai Nikki No Meeno Dom Barako. Memorize this name and tell your friends. Then ask them to repeat it.

This name has appeared in the story 12 times. Read this story with your friends and say this strange name loudly. See who learns this name first. Isn’t it an interesting game?

The Ride

One day Tuffy Elephant’s son Golu went to Chunchun Rat’s house early morning itself and called him out. Chunchun had got up from sleep at that time and came out, rubbing his eyes.

“What is the matter, Brother Golu? Everything is all right?” he asked.

“Yes, everything is fine. I just came to tell you that from today onwards I will ride on you and roam everywhere.”

At first, Chunchun thought that he was still not completely awake, so he might have heard it wrong. But then he understood everything.

Actually, from the past few days, the schools were having summer vacations. Most of the children watched television in their homes. Golu too was fond of watching television. Ever since he had seen the people of cities driving fast cars, he wanted to ride on Chunchun who would run very fast. So he came early morning to Chunchun’s house to tell him about his thoughts.

Chunchun was very small, but he had a very sharp brain. So without getting petrified, he told Golu, “Brother Golu, today I am not well. You come after 3-4 days.”

“All right,” Golu said and left.

Chunchun delayed the problem for 3-4 days, but he knew that Golu will come again and he will have to be prepared beforehand.

Chunchun was wondering on whom to ask for help when he remembered Peelu Monkey. Peelu was his good friend and they would help each other.

He got ready and went to Peelu’s house and told him everything.

After hearing the whole story, Peelu laughed and said, “You don’t worry, Chunchun, I have a solution to this.”

Then Peelu told Chunchun about his plan and they both started working on it. After 3 days of hard work, they were ready to deal with Golu.

When Golu came to Chunchun’s house on the fourth day, he found Chunchun to be very happy. Golu asked, “Chunchun, are you ready?”.

“Yes, of course,” Chunchun said, “I will just come in a minute.”

Then Chunchun went inside the house and came out with something the size of a rat.

“What is this?” Golu asked.

Chunchun said, “Brother Golu, these days I am not keeping good health. That is why I have called my cousin from Sundervan to take you for a ride. Its name is ‘Skate Board’. You climb on it and kick. Then it will take you everywhere.”

Golu liked Chunchun’s idea. He enjoyed the ride on the ‘Skate Board’ so much that he forgot Chunchun.

Chunchun took a breath of relief and went towards Peelu’s house to thank him.

We Won’t Fight

That little garden had something special about it. Various kinds of flowers were always smiling on the branches of plants.

Their fragrance always pervaded the garden. People would be astounded on coming over there. Everyone would lavishly praise the beauty of the flowers.

Queen Honeybee, Beauty Butterfly and Gungun Bumblebee were friends with each other. All three would work together in the garden.

Queen Honeybee would collect nectar from the flowers and make honey.

When Beauty Butterfly would flap her beautiful wings and talk to the flowers, they would start swaying joyfully. Gungun Bumblebee was different than everybody.

When he would sing, the garden’s flowers would forget everything.

One day they all had an argument on who was the best among them. The argument turned into a fight and each started claiming to be the best.

“You both don’t do any work, just roam around. I am better than both of you because I work hard and make delicious honey,” Queen Honeybee said, praising herself.

“So what if you make honey? You only eat it. Have you ever given us honey to eat? Selfish bee,” Beauty Butterfly said angrily to Queen.

“In my opinion, I am better than both of you. Neither do I sting like Queen nor do I become discoloured like Beauty even when she is gently touched,” Gungun opined, “I am the best.”

“Leave it, leave it. Your heart is as dark as your colour. You just act as if you are singing. In reality, you are jealous of our beauty and spread negativity about us,” Queen and Beauty both scolded Gungun.

The fight increased and reached a point where they were ready to beat each other. When the breeze saw this, it felt very sad. Seeing the situation, it turned into a gust of wind and flew all of them in different directions.

The wisdom of breeze stopped the fight that day but their attitude didn’t change.

Next day they were fighting again. The king of flowers Rose was hearing them intently.

“Friend, you decide who is the best amongst us. We will go by your decision,” they went to Rose and said.

Rose was very intelligent. He had sensed that they were in anger, so explaining anything to them would be a waste.

“You all come tomorrow. You will get an answer to your question,” Rose asked them to wait for a day.

They returned back on hearing Rose. As time passed, their anger reduced. They were eagerly waiting for the next morning.

When they reached the garden the next day, the sight of the place made them astonished.

Not even one flower had blossomed. The garden was looking appalling without the flowers blooming.

The flowers didn’t blossom even when it was evening. Without the flowers, how could Queen collect nectar for making honey? She became very sad.

Where would Beauty linger if not on flowers? She too began crying.

Gungun forgot singing and went and sat on a branch dejectedly. They all realized their mistake. They requested the flowers to blossom.

“Now you must have got your answer,” Rose told them.

“Friend, forgive us. You answered our question without saying anything. How incomplete we are without the flowers, we know this truth now,” All three of them said.

“Everyone has importance in this world. So thinking about being big or small or best is foolishness. You all are the best,” As soon as Rose said this, all the flowers of the garden bloomed together.

The garden was looking picturesque again. Queen, Beauty and Gungun’s happiness knew no bounds.

They promised Rose that they won’t fight ever again. Together they would increase the splendour of the garden.

Rose smiled at their assurance. It congratulated them for showing sensibility and wisdom.

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