It was time for bed and Raju wasn’t feeling sleepy at all. Grandma was tucking him to bed, when he asked, “Could you please tell me a story, Grandma?”
“Alright, what kind of story do you want to hear?” asked Grandma.
“Any kind. But it has to be a good one.”
“Alright. Once upon a time, on a warm summer night, a little firefly flew into a spider’s web. The sticky web made it impossible for the firefly to get out. But, a little boy named Raju was watching this happen. Feeling bad for the little firefly, he freed it from the web.
The firefly was happy to be free and flew up to Raju’s shoulder. ‘If you’re ever in trouble, feel free to call me. I’ll come to your rescue, said the firefly.
Raju laughed and said, You’re a tiny little firefly. How on earth will you be able to save me?
”Leave that to me. Never judge the capabilities of someone based on their size. All you have to do is shout out my name and I’ll be over in a jiffy,” said the firefly.
Just to keep the firefly happy, Raju agreed. With a smile on its face, the firefly flew back to the trees to join its many friends.
Many days passed since this incident. Raju decided to take a walk in the forest. He loved being among the trees and birds and wandered deep inside. Soon, it began to grow dark. Raju decided it was time to go home and turned back. But, because it was dark, Raju couldn’t find his way back. Everywhere he turned, the forest looks just the same- dark and scary.
He wandered for hours and still didn’t manage to find the way out. Tired, Raju sat down at the foot of a tree. It was pitch black and Raju could barely see his hand in front of his face. Now there was no way he could find the path back home. Worried, he sat there, wondering what to do. Just then, he remembered what the little firefly had told him.
Raju called out to the firefly, ‘Firefly, where are you? I need your help.’
Immediately, a spark of light came floating up to him. It was the firefly.
What’s the matter, my friend?’ asked the firefly.
I’ve lost my way. Can you help me get back home?’ asked Raju.
‘Is that all?’ asked the firefly. Wait right here. I’ll be back in a flash
Raju waited and in a few minutes, the firefly returned. With it were thousands of fireflies casting a warm glow on the forest. Their collective glow was so bright that the entire forest was lit up.
‘Come with us,’ said the firefly and together the fireflies lit the path back to Raju’s home. Raju followed the trail of brilliant flashing fireflies and reached home in a short while.”
Grandma had finished her story. “You see my child, it’s always good to help other people. If you help them, then one day, they will be there for you when you need their help.”
Raju smiled and went to sleep. That night, he dreamt sweet dreams of fireflies glowing outside his window.
The predawn call of the cuckoo is very melodious in May. The name seems taken from the Latin word Maius or Maia, the mother of God Fleriner. Further, the Britons of Yore used to call it ‘Trimalic’, for cows gave milk three times in these longer days.
Historically, nearly all days of May are important for one event or the other. Brevity, however, allows us to recall the very important ones only.
The first of May is observed as “May Day”, i.e. Workers’ Day and International Labor Day. It is also known for the first Great Exhibition of Inventions and Industrial Marvels, held at Hyde Park in London during 1851.
Swami Vivekanand established Ramakrishana Mission at Calcutta (now Kolkata) on this day during 1897. On May 2nd, 1945, the Soviets captured Berlin while the Nazis had surrendered.
On May 3rd, 1939, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose formed the “Forward Bloc” in Congress at Calcutta. May 3 is Press Freedom Day too.
On May 4th, 1494, Christopher Columbus landed on today’s Jamaica and thus discovered the new world, or America.
May 5 is celebrated as Children’s Day in Japan and South Korea.
On May 5th, 1921, Napoleon Bonaparte died in exile at St. Helena. On May 6th, 1937, Hindenburg, the largest rigid airship, exploded while landing at Lakehurst Naval Air Station, New Jersey, killing 36 of 97 people onboard.
May 8th is celebrated as “World Red Cross Day” to pay tribute to the volunteers who work for the betterment of the society. Last but not least, the second Sunday of May is observed as Mother’s Day.
On May 10th, 1857, the Great Indian Mutiny started at Meerut when the Indian soldiers in the British East India Company’s army revolted against their English masters.
May 11 is observed as National Technology Day to commemorate the technological breakthroughs in India.
The birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) on May 12th is celebrated as “International Nurses Day”. Florence Nightingale is considered as the founder of modern nursing.
On May 14th, 1796, Edward Jenner (17491823) invented vaccination and in 1973, U.S. launched their first manned space station Skylab-1.On May 17th, 1540, Sher Shah Suri defeated the Mughal Emperor Humayun at Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh.
The day is also World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD), which helps to raise awareness of the possibilities that the use of information and communication technologies (ICT), such as the Internet, can bring to societies and economies.
On May18th, 1974, India exploded its first nuclear device at Pokhran (Rajasthan).
On May 19th, 1536, Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII of England and mother of Queen Elizabeth-I, was beheaded for Adultery.
On May 20th, 1588, the Spanish Armada set sail from Lisbon on a misadventure against England.
On May 21st 1991, Rajiv Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India, was assassinated at Sriperumbudur in Chennai. The day is observed as Anti-Terrorism Day.
On May 23rd, 1984, Bachendri Pal became the first Indian woman to climb Mount Everest. In the month of May Africa Day is celebrated to commemorate the founding of Africa Union (AU).
On May 24th, 1844, Samuel Morse wired the first telegraphic message from Baltimore to Washington. German battleship Bismark sank the British ship HMS Hood in the North Atlantic on this day in 1941.
Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Vijay against Pakistani intruders at Kargil on May 26th, 1999.
On May 28th, 1934, the Dionne quintuplets, five daughters, were born prematurely to Oliva and Elzire Dionne at Ontario in Canada.
On May 29th, 1953, New Zealand’s Edmund Hillary and Nepal’s Sherpa Tenzing Norgay surmounted the so far invincible Mount Everest.
On May 31st, 1911, the tragic luxury ship Titanic was launched at Belfast. It is “No Tobacco Day” as well.
Thus, we know that the month of May is loaded with a number of interesting events.
This is a tale of the country called Kashabpuri. It was a beautiful country ruled by King Mohanchandra.
Mohanchandra lived in a grand palace with his Queen and a son named Nitin. Prince Nitin was a pampered child. His parents loved him a lot.
Whenever King Mohanchandra went to another country, he bought lots of gifts and toys for the Prince. Prince Nitin was a charming boy and was loved by everyone. And he had become very naughty and stubborn.
The kids of the Kashabpuri kingdom wanted to be friends with Nitin. He often used to ride throughout the kingdom on his horse and all the kids used to wave to him and try to talk to him or play with him.
But Nitin was extremely proud of himself and never spoke to those kids. Instead, he troubled the kids and made fun of them.
He used to wear a Halloween mask and scare young kids. He enjoyed it a lot when those kids used to get scared and cry. Prince Nitin, because of his behaviour, had no friends and was alone.
King Mohanchandra and his Queen tried hard to make Nitin understand, but all was in vain. As time passed, Prince Nitin grew up to be even naughtier and more stubborn.
The New Year was approaching and the king had arranged for a grand celebration. King Mohanchandra sent invitations to many people. Prince Nitin invited all the kids to the party.
Prince Nitin was extremely enthusiastic about the party and made fine arrangements for his little guests. He arranged for gifts, toys, puppet shows and magic shows. He also had the garden decorated with swings for the kids to play and also arranged for some delicious food and sweets.
Prince Nitin was ready to enjoy the party to the fullest with all the kids.
It was evening and the entire palace was shining brightly with colourful lights. The decorations were splendid and beautiful.
Guests started coming in, and the King and his wife extended a warm welcome to all of them.
On the other side, Nitin was eagerly waiting for all his little guests to arrive. Time passed and none of the kids came. The King soon got busy in looking after his guests but noticed that Prince Nitin was upset about something.
He called for Nitin and asked him, “Why haven’t your guests arrived? Did you not invite them to the party?”
To this Nitin replied, “I had invited all the kids to the party, and I do not know the reason why they haven’t come.”
The king said, “You have done all great preparations for the celebration, but have you made friends?”
Nitin looked confused at his father’s question. The king explained, “You have misbehaved with those kids several times and never made them your friends.”
Nitin said, “But I had only joked with them.”
The king said, “Yes my child, not everyone likes to be laughed at. How would you feel if someone made fun of you and laughed at you?”
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Prince Nitin understood his mistake and learned a lesson. He was ashamed of his behaviour with the kids and felt sad about all that had happened. The King said to Nitin, “It is never too late to make friends. You can still apologize to those kids and become good friends with them.”
This advice brought a smile on Nitin’s face and he understood that one should not misbehave with others.
Making fun of others or insulting others leaves us friendless and all alone. And loving and respecting others fetches us true friends who shall be with us in good and bad times. Prince Nitin realised his mistake and immediately went to apologise and invite all the kids for the party.
Megha and Neeti were the best of friends. They attended the same school and lived in the same colony. They went to school and played together.
While Megha’s mother was a working woman, Neeti’s mother was a housewife. Megha’s mom would wake up early in the morning and prepare breakfast and lunch before leaving for work.
When Megha would come home in the afternoon, she would take a short nap and run out to play.
As soon as her mother would return from work, Megha would say, “Mummy, I want you to make something tasty to eat. Neeti’s mother packs two different things for lunch every day.”
While her mother prepared dinner, Megha would either do her homework or sit in front of the TV.
One evening, when Megha went to play with Neeti, she said, “Wait for a while Megha, my mom is a little unwell and needs help around the house. Let me finish and we can go out to play.”
Megha sat down on the sofa and waited. As she waited, Megha noticed that Neeti helped her mom with a lot of things. She made tea, brought in and folded the clothes that were hung out to dry, gathered up all the cups and tumblers that had been placed around the house and helped her mom cook dinner by washing the vegetables and keeping them ready. She even shucked the peas and kept them in a bowl.
Then, her mother said, “Neeti, why don’t you go play now? I can handle it from here.”
“Are you sure, mom? What about your headache?” Neeti asked.
“That’s gone away,” Neeti’s mom said with a smile.
Seeing all this, Megha was surprised. She thought to herself, “I’ve never helped mom with anything. All I’ve been doing is watching TV. To top it off, my mother is a working woman. I never imagined how tired she must feel at the end of the day?”
“Do you help your mom out like this every day?” Megha was curious to know.
“Most of the time,” said Neeti.
This made Megha make up her mind to start helping her mom around the house. She spent the next few evenings with Neeti learning how to prepare all the dishes she knew.
Mother’s day was approaching and Megha used all her savings and bought a bag for her mother. When mother’s day arrived, she could hardly control her excitement. It was a Sunday and her mother had stepped out to do some shopping. Megha blended some bananas, milk and honey and placed it in the fridge. She then made sandwiches with tomatoes, cucumbers, green chillies and chutney. She prepared bhel puri with finely chopped tomatoes, onions, chillies and mixed them with chutney.
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When her mother arrived, she was left confused. As soon as she came through the door, Megha took the bags from her and placed them on the table and served her a glass of water. Then, she brought her all the food and beverages she had prepared for her along with the purse. She wished her mom a ‘Happy Mother’s Day’ and gave her a hug.
Megha’s mother had tears in her eyes. She had never seen this side of Megha before. Megha vowed to help her every day. Mother and daughter laughed and ate all that Megha had prepared, together.
“This time I will give her a different but useful gift,” thought Mandira. She could not come up with any ideas, so she decided to ask her grandmother for help.
“Grandma, Mother’s Day is coming up in a few days, and I still haven’t decided what gift to get. Please give me some ideas,” Mandira requested her grandmother.
Grandma though for a while and said, “I will give you an idea, but before that let me tell you about another mother, it is related to the gift I am going to suggest.”
Mandira was puzzled. “Another mother? Who is that?” she asked.
“Mother Earth,” replied Grandma.
“Why is Earth my mother?” asked Mandira even more confused.
“She is a mother to all of us. We are all children of this Earth—you, your mom, dad, the animals, birds, insects…everyone! Earth looks after us like a mother,” said Grandma.
“How is that so?” asked Mandira.
“Our lives revolve around the revolution of the Earth itself that gives us day and night. When the sun rises, the day starts. We have oxygen to breathe, the rivers give us water to drink, we grow food on the Earth’s soil—everything that we need to survive.
We share space and resources with the other species, just like one would share a room with one’s siblings. Earth is like a mother who makes sure we have what we need,” explained Grandma.
“Oh, she is a generous mother,” said Mandira in awe.
“Yes, she is, but she can also get very angry just the way your mother gets angry when you do something wrong,” said Grandma.
“But what wrong did we do?” asked Mandira worried.
“We are cutting down trees, polluting the rivers and the air, killing animals for our greed, destroying farmlands and much more,” said Grandma.
“Even the other day, our neighbour, Uncle Sharma was telling me about how the river in his village had become unusable because the factory nearby dumped all its waste into it. They couldn’t use the water to irrigate the fields and apparently, all the fish died too,” recalled Mandira.
“Do you see how one thing leads to another? Similarly, all these problems are also causing the Earth’s temperature to rise, because of which the glaciers are melting. Therefore, sea levels are rising and flooding the low lying cities and towns. The excess air pollution is slowly destroying the ozone layer, which is responsible for preventing the harmful rays from the Sun reaching Earth,” said Grandma.
More From Champak: A Campaign for Cleanliness
“What happens to Mother Earth when we do all this, Grandma?” asked Mandira.
“Drought, flash floods and many more natural calamities…,” said Grandma but after looking at Mandira’s frightened expression, she consoled her saying, “But a lot of it can be avoided if we start looking after Earth.”
“How can we do this?” asked Mandira eagerly.
“We can start by planting more trees. That is why as a Mother’s Day gift, I suggest you get your mother a plant. It is both useful and beautiful, and is a gift to Mother Earth as well,” said Grandma.
“That is a great idea, Grandma!” exclaimed Mandira.
On Mother’s Day, Mandira gifted her mother a beautiful rose plant. She then shared with her everything that Grandma had told her. Mandira’s mother was happy at the thoughtful gift, and more so that her daughter cared about Earth.
“Come Mandira, let’s keep this beautiful plant in our garden,” said Mandira’s mother. “Let’s also keep planting more plants in our garden. That way we will be doing our small bit in taking care of Mother Earth.”
“Just like you take care of me,” said Mandira giving her mother a hug. “Happy Mother’s Day, Ma, and Mother Earth too!”
Where have you been Sonu? How many times do I have to call out to you?” Charu, the dormouse, asked her son Sonu.
“I was just outside watching people passing by. I can take care of myself,” he said confidently.
“How many times have I told you not to go outside without telling me? It’s a dangerous place, and that cat seems to have settled down there. Please be careful,” saying so, Charu embraced Sonu.
One day when Sonu had entered their neighbour’s kitchen looking for food, one of the people living there opened the fridge to pull out a bottle of water. The light from the fridge caught Sonu’s attention and what was inside kept him glued. Sonu had never seen so much food in one place. When the human walked away, Sonu ran back home.
He narrated the entire story to his mother. “If you were there you would have jumped in and made off with all the food you can carry,” he added.
Charu was not as excited; instead, she said seriously, “Listen and listen carefully.” “Don’t even think about going near that fridge. It is dangerous, and you will regret it if you do.”
Her reaction shocked Sonu, “But Ma, we spend the entire day looking for food, and if we are lucky, we find enough to eat. All the food we need is in that fridge. Why shouldn’t we steal food from the fridge?” said Sonu.
“Don’t argue with me. What do you plan on doing if the door closes behind you? You will be trapped. There’s no guarantee you will make it out safely. Don’t be greedy and forget about that fridge,” she said and put an end to their discussion.
Sonu was not prepared to take ‘no’ for an answer. The next time he went in search of food, he observed the fridge from a dark corner.
In some time, the lady of the house opened the fridge and placed some food inside.
“No matter what the consequences, I am definitely getting inside that fridge. So what if it’s cold inside? I’ll jump out the moment the door opens,” he said to himself, fully prepared for the next time the fridge door opened.
He went home but didn’t share his plans with his mom. The next day, he found the perfect spot under the fridge and lay in wait. As soon as the door opened, Sonu quickly slipped inside and hid behind a bottle.
When the door was closed, Sonu realised that the fridge was a lot colder than he had imagined.
But when he saw that the bowl of pudding in the fridge, he didn’t mind the cold that much. He gorged on all the pudding he could when he heard the humans talking.
“Let’s go, we’ll be late for the movie,” said the dad.
“When will we come back?” asked the little girl.
“The movie is three hours long, so we should be back in four hours,” said the dad.
When he found out that nobody was going to open the fridge for the next four hours, Sonu began to panic.
Suddenly the fridge got a lot colder than it was before. He pushed hard and tried to open the door, but it wouldn’t budge.
“Help me, help me!” he cried out, but his calls for help fell on deaf ears. Tears welled up in his eyes. “I should have listened to mummy’s warning,” he said to himself.
Meanwhile, Charu was getting worried. She hadn’t seen Sonu since that morning, and he was nowhere to be found. When she checked all his usual hangouts, she realised that he has probably tried entering the fridge and ran towards it.
She quickly ran to the house and nibbled off the fridge’s power cord. When the cord was cut, the power went out, and the blast of cold air stopped.
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By the time the family came back, the fridge was no longer freezing cold, and Sonu had gained some of his strength back. When the door was opened, Sonu leapt out of the fridge. He gave the little girl quite a scare but escaped unharmed.
Back at their burrow, Sonu apologised to his mother. “Please forgive me; I promise I will always listen to you.” Seeing her son safe and sound, Sonu’s mother gave him a tight hug.
Jeeva, look what that boy of yours has done!” complained all her neighbors early one morning.
“What did he do this time?” asked Jeeva, the elephant.
“What did he do?” asked Mantru, the monkey. “Jambu snuck in to our banana plantation. It looks like a disaster zone now.”
“The other day, he snuck in to my sugarcane field. He ended up uprooting more cane than he could eat,” said Ketu, the rhino with his tail wagging furiously.
Jeeva said with a sad voice, “Ever since poachers killed his mother, I have raised him as my own. I try to make him understand, but he just doesn’t listen to me.”
“Look over there! That’s him walking this way, munching on some bananas,” said Sochi, the parrot.
“All the animals are angry because you snuck in to their fields and ate everything. Why do you keep doing this Jambu?” asked Jeeva.
“I can’t control myself. I am hungry all the time.” said poor Jambu feeling hurt, and ran towards the river.
“Please forgive him this time,” said Jeeva. “I will pay you for the loss.”
“I don’t think that would help,” said Ketu.
While Jeeva went to the lumber yard to start her shift, Jambu was standing at the water’s edge. Sochi found Jambu and said, “You were such a good boy Jambu, why do you give your mother so much grief?”
“Mother? Jeeva’s not my mother. I don’t have a mother.”
“She may not be your real mother Jambu, but she loves you just as much. You should consider yourself lucky to have someone like her to take care of you.”
They sat in silence for a while when suddenly a net fell on top of Jambu and a few men came in from the trees banging loudly on a drum. Sochi flew away but Jambu was too scared to move. The men tied him up and put him in a cage on the back of a truck.
Sochi quickly went in search of help. He saw Mantru, the monkey, sitting on a tree. “Jambu is in danger! The poachers have caught
“Jambu is in danger! The poachers have caught him!” he said in between breaths.
“Good riddance,” muttered Mantru.
“Don’t be like that,” said Sochi to Mantru. “He really needs your help.”
After some thought, Mantru said, “Alright! We have to tell Jeeva. You tell her, I’ll stop the poachers.”
Mantru called two saras cranes that picked up Mantru and flew away towards the poachers and Sochi went to Jeeva to give her the news.
When Jeeva found out what happened, she burst into tears. “My poor baby has been kidnapped. We must save him!”
Meanwhile, Mantru and the saras cranes were flying over the truck. Carefully, the cranes dropped Mantru on the roof of the truck. Mantru then swung in through the window and grabbed the driver’s shirt.
“Aieeeee! Let me go you monkey!” screamed the driver.
Mantru opened the door and pushed the driver out who landed on a soft bush.
When the truck stopped, the other poachers jumped out ready for a fight but came face-to nose with Ketu, the rhinoceros.
Don’t move another inch,” said Ketu. All the other animals had surrounded the truck. A few animals rounded up the driver and brought him back to the truck. The forest guards soon arrived, they handcuffed the poachers and took them away.
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Mantru drove the truck to the timber mill. Jeeva was nervously waiting at the gates. All the elephants were behind her eager to find out if Jambu was safe.
Mantru drove into the timber mill and said, “Special delivery for you Jeeva.”
The cage was opened up and Jambu ran towards her and hugged her. “I love you mommy. I’ll never sneak into a field and give you so much trouble again,” he said.
All the animals in the forest cheered and life was once again back to normal.
Laksh, Chirag and Peehu loved each other, but they were always up to some mischief. The moment their mother returned from work, other children would gather around her complaining about the three of them. Their mother would explain to them why troubling others was not a good thing, they would never heed her words.
One evening, when Laksh’s friend Hari was showing him his new cycle, Laksh said, “Unless you let me take your cycle out for a ride I can’t know what it’s like.” As soon as Hari was out of Laksh’s sight, Laksh deflated the rear tyre. Seeing the tyre this way, Laksh began to cry.
“Your cycle is less than a day old, Hari, and it’s broken already,” said Laksh and began laughing. Chirag and Peehu laughed with him.
One day, Chirag punctured his friend Mohit’s football and their mom was forced to buy Mohit a new one.
The kid’s naughtiness was beginning to worry their mother. When she would ask them to help out with the housework, they would make some excuse or another and escape.
During the summer vacations, Mom had to leave early and come late because she had a project to complete. She hardly found time to relax. Because she had a lot of work to do, Chirag began helping her out with a little bit of the housework.
He would hang the clothes out to dry, water the plants, collect milk from the milkman and would even pick up a loaf of bread on his way home. But Laksh and Peehu, on the other hand, would spend the entire day watching TV and playing.
One day, their mom suddenly fell ill. Chirag phoned the doctor. After examining her, the doctor prescribed some medicines for her and recommended that she take some rest. Chirag promised that he would take good care of his mom and not let her any work.
“I don’t think you will be able to do all the work alone,” said the Doctor. “Take Laksh and Peehu’s help.”
Laksh and Peehu agreed to help and began with their daily chores. Peehu slowly began enjoying doing housework.
Under mom’s guidance, she even began preparing food. Laksh loved buying vegetables from the market and would serve fresh fruits to his mom every day.
Laksh, Peehu, and Chirag turned over a new leaf. After finishing the housework, they only played for an hour. They had completely stopped playing pranks on the other kids and nobody came over to complain about their antics. Their mother was very happy to see such a change in her kids.
With the medicines the doctor prescribed and the care and affection the kids gave her, their mom recovered. Even after becoming better, the kids continued to help her with the housework.
More From Champak: Animal Mothers of the Wild
Mother’s day was around the corner and the kids wanted to do something special for her. Peehu was good at drawing and suggested that they make her a card. But Laksh and Chirag wanted to give her something else with the card. With the money in their piggy bank, they bought her a beautiful necklace.
On Mother’s day, the three of them placed a card, the handbag and the bouquet near her bed and went back to sleep. When mom saw the Mother’s day card, she became very happy. She went into their room and hugged them tightly.
“I received the perfect Mother’s day gift, the day you stopped being naughty, took care of me and started helping me with the housework,” said their mom.
“We love you mummy!” said the kids and hugged her tight.
However, there are some animals that are not known for their nurturing instincts, and make a very different kind of animal mother.
Orangutan- Even though Orangutans are known to be very solitary and independent apes, they build strong bonds with their mothers. Orangutan mothers carry their offspring for the first two years of their lives. During this period the young ones learn what kind of food is good to eat, where they can find it, what material can be used to build a nest and how to do so. This training period lasts from six to seven years. Then mothers and offspring part ways, but not for good. They pay regular visits to their mothers until they are 16. Typically, orangutans live up to 45 years or more in both the wild and captivity.
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African Elephant mothers are the largest land mammal mothers on Earth. When new in the role, mothers are never left alone in caring for their little ones. Due to the matriarchal organization of the group they live in, the other female elephants support all new moms during their 22-month pregnancy. By doing so, the new mothers learn how to raise their babies, what food to give them, dangers to watch out for and places to go. The babies suckle on mother’s milk for 4 to 6 years.
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Lion- Even though lions do not inhabit jungles, they are recognized as the kings of the jungle. Generally, a mother lioness is protective, attentive and caring with her little ones, especially when they are very young. Unfortunately, when a new male takes over a pride, lion mothers allow the new lion king to kill all cubs younger than two years old and start a new dynasty from scratch.
Giant Panda- Giant pandas get pregnant with great difficulty. When they do succeed, they deliver up to three cubs. Out of the three, giant panda реəцатар mothers choose only the strongest-seeming cub to raise, abandoning the others.
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Chuchu was a mischievous little duckling and he would always be thinking of ways to fool other people. His mother Milly would try to get him to stop but it was of no use. Nothing stopped him from playing pranks on others.
One day, there was a festival in the area. The other ducks and ducklings were celebrating it by bursting crackers, playing with colored powders, singing and dancing on the streets.
Milly had given all the ducklings a bath, and now it was her turn. “Sit here quietly and wait for me. Don’t step outside. Everybody is playing with coloured powders and you don’t want to get any of that stuff on you,” she said.
While all his brothers and sisters sat patiently inside, Chuchu couldn’t control himself. He ran outside alone to take part in the festivities.
Chuchu walked amongst the others who were celebrating with coloured powder and firecrackers.
He saw a big drum of coloured water. Wondering what colour it was, he climbed to the top of the barrel and peered inside. Suddenly, he lost his balance and fell into the drum.
He jumped out right away, but it was too late—his feathers were dyed red. He began to shiver in the cold. He felt better when he moved into the sunlight.
When he took a look at his wings, he was shocked. “If my wings are red, that means, my entire body is red too,” he said. Excited, he walked back to his neighborhood.
When Chuchu reached his neighbourhood, all the other ducklings stopped playing and stared at him. They had never seen such a colourful duckling before.
“Who is this? I’ve never seen him before. Where did he come from?” asked the others. Chuchu was thrilled when he heard this because it gave him an idea for a prank to pull on everyone
“I am a robot duckling. The humans made me,” said Chuchu in a flat, robotic voice.
‘I wonder what’s happening at home?’ thought Chuchu. ‘I should find out what’s happening there? Maybe I’ll go later. I don’t want mummy to recognize me and spoil my fun.’
Chuchu wandered around the neighborhood fooling all the other ducklings. After a while, he got bored of the game and headed home.
When he reached, he saw all his brother and sisters and his mother were all upset. ‘They have no idea it’s me. This is going to be so much fun,’ he thought to himself.
Chuchu approached them and asked his brother Chamcham, “What’s the matter? Why are you so worried?”
“Our brother Chuchu is missing. We haven’t seen him all morning. Who are you?” asked Chamcham.
Chuchu fooled Chamcham into thinking he’s a robot, then went up to Milly, their mother.
“What’s the matter, ma’am? Who are you looking for?” asked Chuchu.
“My son, Chuchu has been missing all day. The poor thing hasn’t eaten anything since morning. I hope he’s safe,” she said worriedly.
All the mischievous thoughts in Chuchu suddenly disappeared and his eyes began to well up with tears. Here he was having fun and making a fool of everybody while his mother was worried sick.
Chuchu was just about to tell her that it was him covered in red colour, when Milly said, “Why don’t you go inside and eat something. I’ll go look for Chuchu.”
Reluctantly he said, “Mummy, it’s me, Chuchu. I’m right here. I fell in a drum of red coloured water.”
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“Oh my, it is you! Are you ok? Are you hurt? Are you feeling cold? Where did you fall? How did it happen?” asked Milly, picking Chuchu up and holding him close to her.
Chuchu was confused. He expected her to scold him at the least. “Mummy takes such good care of me; can I not ensure that I keep her happy? I will never give her so much grief ever again, thought Chuchu.
Chuchu gave Milly a big hug and promised not to do a single naughty thing again. He learned that no prank will make him feel as good as being hugged by his mother does.
Ever since the circus people had captured some animals from Nandanvan, the animals and birds were scared to step out of their homes. But after the circus had moved to another town, life was slowly getting back to normal in the forest. They were alert but they stopped hiding in their homes.
One day, Kiku, the kingfisher was sitting on a tree. He saw his friend Lolo, the lamb walking by. Just as Kiku was about to call out to him, he spotted Trixie, the vixen hiding behind the bushes just up ahead. She appeared to be waiting for Lolo to walk by and pounce on him.
Kiku had to warn Lolo, but without drawing Trixie’s attention. So he quickly took out his mobile phone and called Lolo.
“Hello, Kiku! How are you?” enquired Lolo over the phone.
“Lolo, you are in trouble! Trixie is hiding behind the bushes just ahead of you. But don’t react or else she might be alerted,” warned Kiku.
Lolo was a smart lamb. He immediately came up with an idea to escape from Trixie. Continuing to talk into the phone, he said, “Oh no! The circus people have been spotted in the forest again? That is not good.”
At first, Kiku was confused as to what Lolo was talking about but then he understood, so he continued listening.
“This time the circus people want foxes?” said Lolo aloud. “We will have to alert all the foxes so that they can go into hiding for a while.”
Trixie, who was overhearing the conversation, got scared. She immediately ran off and went into hiding, afraid that the circus people would catch her.
Kiku, who could see Trixie running away from his spot on the tree, burst out laughing. He said, “Lolo, you are very clever! I can see Trixie running away!”
Lolo heaved a sigh of relief. “Thank you, my friend. If you hadn’t warned me, Trixie would have certainly caught hold of me!”
“I only warned you but you were smart enough to talk your way out of it. Instead of panicking, you were calm and thought of a solution immediately,” appreciated Kiku.
Both the friends then continued to chat in peace.
One afternoon, as Sonu and Monu were playing, their mother, Mini called out, “Sonu! Don’t push your brother!”
“I am not pushing him, mom. We are just playing,” said Sonu.
Sonu tickled Monu in the tummy.
“Ha! Ha! Please stop! I am tired of laughing!” said Monu.
“No way!” said Sonu and continued to tickle his brother.
Suddenly, Monu lost his balance and fell off the nest. Fortunately, he fell on a pile of dry leaves, so he was unhurt. Slowly, he got up and looked around him.
“Mom! Help me! Mom!” he cried.
Molu, the mole was woken up from his sleep by Monu’s cries. He came out of his burrow to see who it was.
“You poor thing! Are you hurt? How did you fall?” asked Molu, rushing to help Monu.
“I was playing with my brother when I slipped and fell down. I am not hurt as I landed on this heap of dry leaves,” mumbled Monu between sobs. “But I am scared. I want my mom!”
Mini flew down next to Monu and hugged him. “Don’t be scared, Monu! I am here now,” she said. “And this is Molu, our neighbour and friend.”
“Mom, it’s Sonu fault that I fell down,” complained Monu.
“You know Sonu didn’t mean any harm,” said Mini consoling him.
“But now, how do we get you back to the nest?” wondered Mini.
“Why don’t you hold him with your feet and fly to your nest?” suggested Molu.
“I’ll try,” said Mini. She held Monu with her feet and tried to fly, but she couldn’t.
“I think he is too heavy for you to carry,” observed Molu.
Tina, the bird was flying by and saw Mini and Molu talking. When she decided to drop by to say ‘hello’, Mini explained the situation to Tina.
“Why don’t we try lifting him together?” suggested Tina.
Tina and Mini held Monu with one leg each and tried to fly, but their wings kept hitting each other.
“It’s no use. It’s not working,” said Mini.
Just then Molu had an idea. He brought a wooden stick. “Both of you hold on to one end of the stick each,” said Molu. ,
Mini and Tina did as told.
“Monu, now hold on tight to the stick with your beak,” said Molu.
Once Monu grabbed the stick, Molu instructed the two birds to fly. With enough space between them, Mini and Tina could fly without their wings hitting each other and they could carry Monu along too.
Once Monu reached the nest, Sonu rushed to hug him.
“I am glad you are back unhurt,” said Sonu.
“I am glad to be back too!” said Monu. “Thank you, O Mom. And thank you, Aunt Tina and Uncle Molu for helping me,” he said.
“Don’t mention it,” said Molu and went back to his burrow to continue to sleep.
“Look, mom! There’s a huge bird flying across the sky!” said Sunny.
“Yes, mom! It’s very big and it is making a loud noise,” added Marty.
“It is so shiny, unlike any bird I have seen!” exclaimed Coco.
Mini laughed and explained, “That is not a bird. It’s an aeroplane. Humans use it to reach far off places in very little time.”
“Wow! Humans can fly?” asked Marty surprised.
“But I have never seen any human flying,” said Coco.
“They cannot fly but they can build things that can. So all they have to do is sit inside an aeroplane that will take them from one place to another,” said Mini.
“Mom, how did they build an aeroplane?” asked Sunny.
“Humans came up with the idea of flying when they saw us flying. They thought it would be a faster way to cover long distances, said Mini.
“When did they build the first aeroplane?” asked Coco.
“The aeroplane was not built at one go. The one that you saw today is the result of many scientists working over several decades on different designs. In fact, people have been attempting to fly or build flying devices since ancient times,” explained Mini.
“So, there were other designs?” said Marty.
“Yes, Marty. Do you remember when we flew past the park last week I showed you a lot of people flying kites?” asked Mini.
“Yes, Mom,” said Coco. “Sunny and Marty thought they were sky-fishes,” she said laughing.
“Kites are one of the earliest man-made flying objects. People in China designed them hundreds of years ago. Some kites were so big that they could carry a man along with them,” said Mini.
The little ones listened in awe. “Later, the humans discovered that they could fill balloons with hydrogen gas to make them fly.”
“But Mom, balloons are too small,” said Sunny.
“But the balloons I am referring to are so big that they can carry humans with it,” said Mini. “In 1783, the Wright brothers Orville and Wilbur— used hydrogen-filled balloons to attempt flying.
Once, a goat was made to fly such a balloon!” said Mini.
The three giggled at the idea.
“Yes, it’s true,” said Mini. “Haven’t you heard Lonu uncle saying that it was his great grandfather who was sent up in that balloon?”
But mom, how did the humans change the design from a balloon to like the one we saw?” asked Marty.
“We helped the humans on this. They understood that our tails and wings help us to fly and maintain balance in the air. So they designed a machine with similar features and soon, they were successful,” replied Mini.
“Mom, our wings don’t just help us to fly, we can even move in any direction we want. Can the aeroplanes do that too?” asked Sunny.
“Yes, the Wright brothers dreamt of building a powered machine that could fly and also be controlled by the pilot to change directions. After observing the way we fly, they built the first successful aeroplane. After decades, this model evolved into the one we saw today,” explained Mini. “They must have been
“They must have been delighted with their success,” said Coco.
“Yes, dear. Every human is happy at their success. Every invention these humans make is to make their lives easier,” said Mini.
“Mom, how many people can travel in a single aeroplane?” asked Marty.
“There are aeroplanes of different sizes built today—from the smallest ones that can carry just two people, to bigger ones like what you just saw that can carry over a 100 or even 500. And these aircrafts can travel pretty fast,” said Mini.
“Even we birds tear across the skies with our wings,” said Coco flapping her tiny wings.
“Yes, we sure do,” said Mini with a smile.
As the temperature rose with the summer heat, water was becoming scarce at Mangalvan. So scarce that even the King, Babbar, the lion was having trouble finding some. He wandered from one watering hole to another and was disappointed to see that they all had dried up. He stumbled through the forest, weak and tired.
Monty, the monkey saw Babbar wandering through the jungle and decided to have some fun.
“Good morning, Your Highness. I hear you’re looking for water. You know what? I just saw some myself,” said Monty, hanging upside down from a tree.
“You’ve only seen it? I just drank a whole litre of it,” boasted Bobby, the crow who perched next to him.
“What’s all this talk about water? Go find another tree to catch up on your gossip and let me sleep,” said Olly, the owl who was sleeping on another branch.
“The King is dying of thirst here and you’re more worried about your beauty sleep? Shame on you, Olly,” said Monty, still in the mood for some fun.
“Is that what’s happening? Forgive me, Your Majesty. I can’t see in the daytime. It is too bright for my eyes that are best suited for darkness. It’s sad to see that our jungle has become so parched. With all the trees gone, there isn’t as much rain as there once used to be and the little rain we get is sadly not conserved. If somebody had taken up the task to keep our trees safe and built bunds to retain water on our land longer, we wouldn’t have been in such a sad state,” said Olly.
Babbar turned red in embarrassment. As king of the jungle, it was his job to take care of it, but he had neglected his duties, as had his ministers.
“Never mind though, there are more pressing issues at hand,” said Olly. “The King of the jungle is thirsty, and I cannot rest until my King’s thirst is quenched!” Olly turned his head, “Monty, my kurta is hanging over there. If you check the pockets, there should be a piece of paper with Dumpy, the donkey’s phone number. Give him a call and he’ll bring the King some water.”
Dumpy, the donkey lived just outside the jungle and had a beautiful garden of his own. He also had a little pond that was always full of water.
“Yes, please give him a call. Here, use my phone,” said Babbar, handing Monty his mobile phone.
Monty made the call and Dumpy immediately got to work. He filled up a big can with water and loaded it on the back of his motorcycle and zoomed to their location. With a big smile on his face, he handed over the water to Babbar.
“Do you have a glass or a mug for me to drink from?” asked Babbar.
“I’m sorry, Your Highness. I guess I forgot to bring one. You’ll have to make do with your hands,” said Dumpy.
“Fair enough. Just give me some water, I’m dying of thirst,” said the King. Dumpy picked the can up and gently tilted it. Babbar cupped his hands together and drank the water. In only a short while, the water was all gone and Babbar breathed a sigh of relief.
“Thank you for giving me water when I needed it most. Having spent the entire day thirsty, I understand the trouble the rest of the animals must be going through. I promise that I will ensure that nobody goes thirsty in my jungle again.
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For starters, I’ll speak to my friend, Veer Singh, the lion from the neighbouring jungle to release some water. Our lakes will be full and we will no longer be forced to seek water in the villages and get hurt by humans,” said Babbar.
He apologised to the animals there and promised to plant more trees, conserve rainwater, build more bunds and dig more lakes. He also promised to get rid of all the lazy ministers.
“That sounds great, My Lord. Hop on. I’ll drop you off at the palace,” said Dumpy.
Dumpy took the King to his palace and soon, all the arrangements were made. Water was available for all the animals of Mangalvan and plans for a future full of water were made.
Pack your bags, we’re spending the summer at our farmhouse,” said Dad, as he came home from work.
“Hurray!” shouted the twins, Rohan and Rohit.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea? Didn’t the new caretaker, Ramu, complain that the farmhouse was haunted?” asked Mom.
“Everybody knows that there are no such things as ghosts,” said Dad
Meanwhile, the brothers had already started packing.
“Did you hear that? The farmhouse might be haunted. This is so exciting!” said Rohit.
The next morning, the family set off towards their farmhouse. When they arrived, Ramu welcomed them.
“How are things, Ramu?” asked Dad.
Ramu’s face fell. “What can I say, Sir? Strange things have been happening here. I keep seeing this mysterious figure every now and then. He has a scary face.”
“You’re probably just imagining things, Ramu,” said Rohit.
“I wish I was,” said Ramu. “It is a ghost, Sir. He comes at night, especially when it’s raining heavily. Usually, someone from the market would drop off supplies, but now the villagers are too scared. I have to go get things myself,” said Ramu.
“Those are a nice pair of shoes, Ramu,” said Rohan.
“Thank you. They’re a gift from a friend,” said Ramu and went inside to bring some tea.
“You’re finally here! So good to see you,” shouted a voice from outside the house.
“Kaushik!” exclaimed Dad and introduced him to the rest of the family, “This is Inspector Kaushik. He’s recently been posted here. He’s a childhood friend of mine.”
“What’s this we keep hearing about a ghost, Inspector Kaushik?” asked Rohan.
“Don’t call me Inspector Kaushik, call me Uncle. It’s all a sham,” said Kaushik Uncle. “I’m sure there’s more to this story.”
After dinner, everyone went off to sleep. The twins slept in the same room. A loud thunder woke Rohan with a start. It was still dark outside. As Rohan looked out of the window, lightning flashed and lit everything. There was someone outside in the garden.
Rohan jumped out of the bed and woke Rohit. When the lightning flashed again, he too saw the figure. Its face was terrifying. When the lightning flashed for the third time, the figure was gone. The brothers huddled together in the same bed and fell asleep.
The next morning, Ramu looked tired as he served everybody breakfast.
“What’s the matter, Ramu? You don’t look too well,” said Dad.
“I haven’t slept all night, Sir. It was that ghost. He was wandering in the garden last night. Did you see him?” asked Ramu.
“No, we didn’t see anything,” said Dad.
“Neither did we,” said Rohan. Rohit shook his head in agreement.
“That’s strange,” mumbled Ramu.
After breakfast, Ramu took the kids for a walk around the farmhouse.
“Why is that room locked?” asked Rohan, pointing to a shed behind the house.
“That’s just a godown. It’s got a lot of old things inside. It was already locked when I came here.” said Ramu.
“Really? This lock looks brand new,” said Rohan.
“Uh… that’s because the old lock broke. So I changed it,” said Ramu nervously and walked on. As they followed Ramu, they noticed a set of tyre tracks nearby. But they did not ask Ramu anything.
That night, the twins set the alarm for 2 AM. When they woke up, it was raining and outside their window was the same figure. But the figure jumped into the woods and disappeared.
The next morning, Ramu was still surprised that nobody had seen the ghost.
After breakfast, the kids went to investigate the tyre tracks outside the godown.
“I think these tracks lead to the forest,” said Rohan. “I wonder who uses it.” Through one of the windows, Rohit peeped inside the godown. The entire godown was a mess and there were several logs of wood inside.
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Back at the house, the two brothers had lunch.
“That was a lovely meal. If only there were some cold drinks to wash this down,” said Rohit. “Can you please get us some?”
“I’d love to but the nearest store is at least an hour away,” protested Ramu.
“Please Ramu, we’ll wait till then,” begged Rohan.
“What happened to your boots, Ramu?” asked Rohit.
This caught Ramu by surprise. “Uh.. they’re at the cobbler’s. I’ll go buy some cold drinks,” said Ramu.
When Ramu stepped out, the twins got into action. They went straight to his room and began rummaging around for clues. At first, they couldn’t find anything. Finally, Rohan said, “Look what I found under the bed.”
Rohit took a look and said, “This explains everything!”
They found some of Ramu’s clothes hanging in the room and searched the pockets. They found what they were looking for.
“Quickly, let’s get out before he comes back,” said Rohan and they left Ramu’s room.
Ramu came home with cold drinks. While drinking them, Rohit said, “By the way, Ramu, I noticed this morning that one of the godown windows is broken. You should get it fixed.”
“Really? I didn’t notice. You didn’t go near it, did you?” asked Ramu.
No way, even we are scared of the ghost now. In fact, I heard Dad talking about selling the farmhouse.” said Rohit.
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“Really? That’s both good news and bad news,” said Ramu.
Later that evening, the boys were walking through the woods. Every few feet, there were boards that said cutting trees was prohibited.
As they walked along, they heard the sound of wood being chopped. They went closer and saw Ramu talking to a couple of mysterious men, one fat and one thin. They spoke for a while and parted ways. While Ramu walked towards the house, the two men walked the other way.
The kids followed them deep into the jungle until they reached a small house. Behind the house was a slope leading into some bushes. They made their way to the back of the house and pressed their ears against the walls. They heard the two men talking, “If Ramu doesn’t do anything soon, we’ll have to intervene,” said one of them.
“You’re right. We cannot afford to delay the shipment any further,” said the other.
Just then, Rohit’s leg slipped and he slid down the slope, into the bushes. Rohan turned to grab his brother, but he was too late. All this commotion alerted the men.
They stepped outside and saw Rohan behind the house and grabbed him. “Put him in the house. We’ll deal with him tomorrow,” said the fat man, and the thin man took Rohan away. Rohit, who had been scratched badly, watched from the bushes.
When the coast was clear, Rohit ran back to the farmhouse. He narrated the whole story to his parents. Inspector Kaushik,
By then, the two men and Rohan had been brought to the farmhouse.
“We had our doubts about you the day you complained of ghosts here,” said Rohan. “We know that you’ve been using this ghost tale to scare us.”
“We grew more suspicious when you told us that the godown had junk inside. If there was just junk inside, why would it need a new lock?” asked Rohit.
“Our suspicions were confirmed when we peeped inside the godown through the broken window. We saw logs of wood,” said Rohan.
Ramu hung his head and remained silent.
“What about the ghost?” asked Mom.
“There’s a ghost alright. We’ve seen it with our own eyes,” said Rohit.
“The ghost is none other than Ramu. When we sent him off to bring us some cold drinks, we snooped around in his room and found muddy boots under his bed. They were muddy from walking around in the rain. Along with it was a scary mask. We also found a brand new key in one of his pockets. It turns out that this is the key to the godown,” said Rohan.
I admit it. I’ve been trying to scare you away by pretending to be the ghost. When I first came here, these two men approached me. They told me about their plan and paid me well. We then cooked up this story about the ghost so that you’d sell the house,” said Ramu.
“We also knew that nobody would buy the house because of the ghost. Then we’d be able to buy the house from you. But our plans were foiled,” said Ramu.
“Good job, kids!” said Inspector Kaushik and patted them on the back.
“Thank you, Sir,” they said. “Don’t call me Sir, call me Uncle,” he said and everybody laughed.
Gabu, the chimpanzee lived in Africa with his parents. He was still a baby and his family members would teach him good things so that he could grow up to be an honest chimpanzee and a valuable member of jungle society.
Chimpanzees are social animals and very intelligent too. Not only do they work together to solve problems, they’ve been known to make and use tools and also regularly pass on skills to other members of their group. After humans, chimpanzees are widely regarded to be the most intelligent creatures on this planet.
One day, Gabu and his group were looking for food. After travelling for some time, they found a tree with dried-up fruits on it. The chimpanzees immediately climbed up the tree and picked all the fruits and gathered them.
Stripping away the peel and dried pulp, the chimpanzees picked up stones and smashed them against the seeds.
Gabu watched this in shock and turned to his mother, “Mom, make them stop. They’re hurting the seeds,” he said.
Don’t worry Gabu, the seeds are all dried up. Also, inside them are nuts that are meant to be eaten. They are nutritious and tasty too,” said Gabu’s mother, handing him a nut.
Gabu ate the nut and was very happy.
“I want to smash open a seed too,” he said excitedly.
Gabu’s mom gave him a few seeds. Gabu found a couple of stones and with his best friend, Sabu, looked for a nice place to try cracking open the seeds by themselves.
They found an outcrop and settled down, but every time Gabu tried smashing the seed, it would spring out from underneath as soon as it was struck.
“This isn’t as easy as the adults make it! seem,” said Gabu.
“You’re right. How about I hold the seed in place with my hands and you smash it with the stone?” suggested Sabu.
Holding the seed between his fingers, Sabu readied it and Gabu picked up the stone. He brought it down hard on the seed and smashed it open. But, the seed wasn’t the only thing he smashed.
“Ow! My finger!” cried Sabu.
Being just babies, neither Sabu nor Gabu had thought about what would happen to Sabu’s fingers.
“I’m so sorry. I should have been careful,” said Gabu, dropping the stone.
“These seeds are dangerous. I don’t want to eat them again,” said Sabu. Even Gabu didn’t want to eat them anymore.
Once the pain in Sabu’s fingers went away, the two friends cuddled up next to their mothers and fell asleep.
Many days passed since that day and as the two chimpanzees grew bigger, their friendship grew deeper. Gradually, the time they spent with their mothers reduced and the time they spent with each other increased.
One day, their group was settling in a comfortable tree for a nap. While the rest of the chimpanzees were sleeping, Gabu and Sabu decided to stay up and chat. One thing led to another and soon, they went out for a walk. They were so engrossed in their conversation with each other that they didn’t notice that they had wandered far away from their tree. Another thing they didn’t notice was the danger lurking in the bushes.
Hidden from plain sight by the tall grass, a hungry hyena watched Gabu and Sabu walk towards him. “Looks like I won’t have to look for dinner tonight. It seems to have come to me,” he said to himself, licking his lips.
The two chimps realised that they were in danger when the hyena jumped out from behind the grass and blocked their way.
“Don’t you know you’re not supposed to wander off alone in this part of the grassland?” asked the hyena.
“Sir, we haven’t done anything to you. Please let us go,” said Sabu, his voice quivering.
“Oh no, you’re not getting away that easily,” said the hyena and stepped closer.
“Sabu, it looks like the only way we can get out alive is by running,” said Gabu.
“Where do we run? I don’t see any trees nearby and if we continued to run, he’d catch up in no time,” said Sabu.
Looking around, Gabu said, “Look over there. There’s a cave on the top of those rocks. It looks too small for the hyena. If we get inside, we’d be safe.”
Together, Gabu and Sabu made a run for it. The hyena tore after them, but the little chimpanzees were too nimble for him. Weaving in and out of rocky outcrops, the chimpanzees successfully made it inside the cave and hid there.
The hyena reached the cave’s entrance and said, “So, you’re going to hide in there, are you? Well, I’ve got all day. Maybe, I’ll just wait here. After all, you are my new neighbours.”
As the hyena found a comfortable spot outside the cave, Gabu and Sabu were busy working out a plan.
“Seems like the only way we can escape is by smashing some seeds,” said Gabu.
“Where do you intend to find some seeds?” asked Sabu. “Also, don’t you remember why we stopped eating nuts from those seeds? Cracking them open was painful.”
“You don’t have to worry about the pain or finding them. The only one who needs to worry about anything is the hyena,” said Gabu, with a smile.
They whispered the plan to each other and got to work.
“I must say, you must be the worst hyena in your pack. If you go back and they found out that a couple of baby chimpanzees managed to give you the slip, you’d be the laughing stock of the jungle. If you really want to catch us, why don’t you come and get us?” said Sabu.
The hyena was deeply insulted. “Wait till I get my hands on you,” he grumbled and stuck his paw inside the cave. At that moment, Gabu smashed it! with a rock. The hyena yelped and pulled his paw back.
“These little monkeys aren’t worth all this trouble,” he said and scrambled away.
After checking whether the coast is clear, Gabu and Sabu ran as quickly as they could to their group. They realised how important it was to try and explore things for themselves and learn about things from their elders. You may never know when they might come in handy.
Summer was making life at Ashokvan hard. The sun’s harsh rays beat down on the ground, taking away all the water. The earth was parched, the plants had dried and all the animals were thirsty. Since Ashokvan didn’t have any rivers flowing through it and all the lakes and ponds had dried up, the animals had to travel far, deep into the neighbouring forest to quench their thirst.
The severe water shortage meant that all the animals were growing weak. Bhola, the monkey had worn himself out while looking for food all day, when suddenly he started feeling light-headed. Then, without any warning, he fell unconscious.
A crowd gathered around him, as concerned animals gathered to see if they could help.
“He’d wake up the moment we sprinkle water on his face. But we don’t have any water to spare. What have our lives come to?” asked Kani, the crow.
Just then, Mili, the squirrel came running and asked all the animals to make some room and give Bhola some fresh air. She then ran back home, came back with a bottle of water and splashed some on Bhola’s face. He regained consciousness and she gave him a drink of water.
The animals who saw this happen were astonished. “Where did you get all that water?” they asked her. “You look so fresh, like you’ve taken a bath!” remarked others.
“As a matter of fact, I had just stepped out of a bath when I saw that Bhola had fainted,” said Mili.
“Where did you get the water?” they asked. “Where did you get the water?” they asked.
“I had saved it, of course,” said Mili. “When it rained last week, I knew that this was the right time to save water. So, I rearranged the leaves on a few branches in such a way that I could fill them up with water and save it for later.”
The animals were amazed and praised Mili for her ingenuity. Soon, word of Mili’s store of water spread across the forest. Everybody wanted to save rainwater just like her. Even the water minister, Kalu, the bear was impressed and said, “If a little squirrel can save enough water to last her the summer, imagine what we can do together?”
He asked the animals to suggest different ways to conserve rainwater. One by one, the animals gave him their ideas and the good ones were implemented immediately. Slope corrugated roofing was installed on all terraces. The roofs would slope towards pipes that would channel the water into tanks.
Slopes, planes and storm drains were all directed towards natural water bodies and tanks, thus enabling more water to be stored for use, instead of running off or evaporating.
By the time they were finished, each and every animal had done something or the other to save rainwater. When it rained, all their hard work came to fruition, and there was enough water stored to last the rest of the summer.
Kalu announced that the rainwater harvesting project was a grand success. He said, “We have enough water to last us a long time. By boiling it before drinking, we can use it well into the future.”
The animals of Ashokvan were very happy and thanked Mili for saving them from the summer.
When little Isha learnt that on the first of next month she would start school, she was happy as a butterfly. She jumped around the house, thinking about all the fun she was going to have there.
As the days went by, her parents started buying her all the things she would need for school. With just a day to go, Isha had everything she needed for her first day. She had a pretty little bag filled with colourful books and a new set of uniform and shoes too.
Her little brother, Chotu, looked at all her things in awe. He couldn’t help but open her bag and see what’s inside.
“Be careful,” said Isha. “They’re new.”
“Sorry, I was just looking,” said Chotu.
“Alright, go ahead but don’t turn the pages. They might tear,” said Isha.
“Is this your lunch box?” asked Chotu picking up her casserole.
“Yes, that’s a casserole. It will keep my lunch nice and warm,” said Isha.
“Your shoes are so nice,” said Chotu.
“Uh huh,” said Isha. “I have two pairs. One to go with the regular uniform, one for the sports uniform and on Saturdays, I can wear whatever I want. I’ll wear a new frock every week.”
Hearing all this, Chotu also wanted to go to school. But he’d have to wait another year before that happened.
In the evening, Isha’s friends Pinky and Shweta came over to play. They were all going to board the school bus together the next morning.
“Will you come see me off in the morning, Chotu?” Isha asked him.
Chotu nodded and resumed playing fetch with Shweta’s dog, Bruno.
“Shweta, does Bruno see you off every morning?” asked Isha.
“Yes, he does,” said Shweta. “He runs ahead and waits with me till the bus arrives.”
That night, Isha had packed all her books and readied her uniform for the next day. She could hardly wait. The next morning, Isha’s parents rode with her on the bus and took her to class. They introduced her to her class teacher at Rimjhim School. Isha took an immediate liking to her new school and her teacher. She sat right next to her teacher and made lots of friends. *
Her teacher was very sweet to her and said, “You have such a nice name.”
Isha smiled and said, “Thank you, ma’am.”
“You seem to have made a lot of friends today. Are you having fun?” asked the teacher.
“Yes, ma’am, I am,” said Isha.
“Very good,” said the teacher. “Do you have any friends outside school?” asked the teacher.
“Yes, I do. Shweta and Pinky are my best friends. They are older than me, but we play together every evening,” said Isha.
“That’s nice,” said the teacher. “How many people are there at home?”
“There’s me, Chotu and my parents,” said Isha.
“Is Chotu your brother?” asked the teacher.
“Yes, he is. He’s younger than me, but he’s my best friend too,” said Isha.
“That’s great,” said the teacher. “Why don’t you stay here and I’ll be back in a minute,” she said and stepped outside.
As Isha sat in her place near the teacher’s desk, she saw that a strange man was peeping inside through the window. Isha felt nervous. After looking around, the man climbed in through the window and walked towards the teacher’s bag. Isha immediately ran to the teacher’s chair and grabbed the bag.
“Who are you? Go away!” she said to the strange man, but he didn’t listen and tried to snatch the bag away from her.
Isha held on tight and refused to let go. She called out to her parents, who were outside paying Isha’s fees. The thief yanked hard on the bag and knocked Isha down. She burst into tears and cried out loud.
Hearing her cries, her parents came running. Startled, the thief jumped out of the window and escaped.
As her parents came, they asked her what happened. Hearing all the commotion, the teacher too came running and at once understood that Isha had foiled a robbery. She took her bag from Isha and gave her a hug.
“Isha, you’ve not even finished your first day at school and you’ve already shown tremendous courage,” said the teacher. “I had my money, phone and credit cards in that bag. Thank you for not letting that man steal it,” said the teacher.
Isha stopped crying and realised what she had done. She smiled for knew she was going to like school.
When Meenu, the squirrel’s summer vacations began, her appetite grew by leaps and bounds. If one day she demanded biscuit cake, on another she would crave pizzas and burgers. And while she was having a good time, her mother grew tired of this.
One day, Meenu’s mother said, “Meenu, you’re getting older now and you will need to start becoming responsible. Why don’t you help me out around the house? It is important for all children to develop such skills at an early age.”
Meenu really liked her mother’s idea. She started waking up early in the morning and going for a walk. Then she would spend some time studying, and then later help her mother in the kitchen. After that, she would go out to play with her friends.
In the kitchen, Meenu’s mother started her off with simple things like how to wash the vegetables and store them in the fridge. She taught her the names for various ingredients too. Once she had learned this, she taught her how to prepare simple dishes like rice, dal and other dishes. Meenu had a lot of fun and loved helping her mother.
When Chinki, the dormouse’s mother heard that Meenu has been learning how to cook, she asked her to learn too. Chinki flat out refused and told her that she is not interested in learning how to cook. She just wanted to enjoy her summer vacations.
Duggu, the elephant, Sheenu, the fox and Molu, the jackal wanted to spend their summer vacation in the same way. When Meenu told that that they should spend their summer vacations learning something new like painting, swimming or music, they refused to listen. They made fun of her and started laughing but Meenu didn’t feel bad.
One day Meenu and all her friends were at the park when they noticed a flier on the bulletin board. It was an announcement about a cooking contest in the colony.
The contest was called Kitchen Kids’ and would take place in one week. The kid who prepared the best dish would be awarded a cycle. The chance of winning a cycle interested them all. Chinki, Duggu, Sheenu and Molu didn’t know how to cook; they decided to spend the next seven days at home learning how.
Meenu was feeling sad. Despite it being her summer holidays, she could no longer meet her friends. When she offered to teach them how to cook, her friends weren’t receptive. They felt insecure about the fact that Meenu was already a good cook and her chances of winning were much higher than theirs. So they told her that they didn’t need her help.
The day of the cooking contest was drawing near. Meenu was feeling very lonely. It had been so long since she had seen any of her friends. While they were worried about the competition, Meenu was not. She wasn’t even interested in winning the cycle. The only reason she looked forward to the competition was because she would finally be able to meet her friends.
When Meenu asked her mother what she should prepare at the competition, she asked her to prepare anything her heart desired.
“After all,” she added. “This competition is being conducted so that children can learn something new and become selfsufficient. So it is best that you decide what you would like to make and I’ll help you with your practice batches.”
Meanwhile, Chinki, Duggu, Sheenu and Molu were trying to learn how to make one dish each so that they could prepare it at the competition and win the cycle.
On the day of the competition, all the children assembled at the venue. In order to win the cycle, they would need to successfully complete two rounds and move on to the third where they would have to prepare their special dish.
The first round involved identifying different ingredients. Meenu and all her friends except Sheenu and Molu cleared this round.
In the second round, all the children were given a bowl of ice-cream each and asked to identify all the different flavours in it. Duggu, who had barely cleared the previous round, was getting really nervous because he was not able to identify half the flavors. Not only was Duggu eliminated in this round, Chinki was too.
In the final round it was Meenu against three other kids from the colony. Meenu prepared pudding and won the competition.
Chinki, Duggu, Sheenu and Molu regretted the fact that they didn’t learn how to cook sooner. If they had, they would have had a better chance at winning the cycle.
When Meenu was handed the keys to her cycle, she ran towards her friends. “This is not my cycle,” she said. “This is our cycle.”
When Chinki, Duggu, Sheenu and Molu realized how much love Meenu had for them, they all gave her a big hug. They congratulated her on her victory and chanted, “Hip-hip. Hurray! Hip-hip Hurray for Meenu!”
Cheeku rabbit was on his way home when he saw a group of animals discussing something. They all looked troubled.
“What’s the matter?” asked Cheeku.
“We have been tricked by a duo selling detergent powder,” said Dinky deer. “They gave us a bottle of perfume free with each packet we bought as well as a prize coupon.”
“The two told me that if I bought the detergent, I had the chance to win a television set or a washing machine,” said Squiggy squirrel.
“But what is the problem?” asked Cheeku.
“When we opened the packet, it was filled with sand!” said Squiggy.
“We have filed a complaint with the police. Inspector Blacky bear has promised to look into it,” said Monty mouse.
Cheeku thought for a while and asked, “Would you be able to describe how the two tricksters looked?”
“Yes! We remember them very well,” said the other three. “Both of them were pot-bellied. They had white beards and long, white hair. They also had long, bushy tails.”
As they described their features, Cheeku quickly took out his diary and drew rough sketches of the two animals.
After he was finished, Cheeku studied the sketches and felt that they looked like Baddy and Laptu.
“But Baddy and Laptu are not pot-bellied and neither do they have white beards,” Cheeku thought to himself.
Cheeku decided to keep a watch on Baddy and Laptu for the next few days.
Early next morning, Cheeku hid behind a bush near Baddy’s house and kept a close watch. After a while, Baddy and Laptu came out of the house and walked down a path leading out of the forest. Cheeku followed them.
Baddy and Laptu walked until they reached an abandoned house on the outskirt of the forest. They discussed something and then headed into the house.
“I wonder what those two are up to,” thought Cheeku. “There are no bushes to hide in here. I better climb that tree. That way I can stay hidden and still observe them.”
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After some time, two potbellied animals came out of the house. They had long, white hair and beards. Cheeku was surprised. “These two look just like the two animals Dinky, Squiggy and Monty described,” he thought. “Do Baddy and Laptu know them or…”
Just then, Cheeku saw one of them pull the beard from his face and scratch his chin.
“This beard is very itchy,” said one of them who sounded like Laptu.
That is when it all became clear to Cheeku—the two were Baddy and Laptu!
“They must have disguised themselves with wigs and fake beards. Looks like they have also stuffed their shirts to make it appear as if they have pot bellies,” thought Cheeku.
Cheeku followed them for a while. As suspected, Baddy and Laptu went from house to house, selling fake packets of detergent powder.
Cheeku dashed to the police station and informed Inspector Blacky who followed Cheeku to the street where Baddy and Laptu were. They were busy selling a packet of fake detergent powder to Jumpy monkey and Donna cat.
When Baddy and Laptu saw Blacky, they panicked and tried to flee. But Blacky swiftly caught them. Cheeku opened Baddy’s bag and showed the packets of sand to Blacky.
Blacky arrested the two of them and thanked Cheeku for his help in catching the fraudsters.
Everyone applauded Cheeku’s smartness.
