short stories for kids Archives - Page 2 of 2

EVERGREEN EMPATHY

Autumn had passed, winter was approaching. All the birds began to fly south. Only one little bird was left behind. It had a broken wing.

“Farewell! We’ll meet in spring,” said the birds. The little bird sighed. It said, “Oh dear! Oh dear! I need a home for the winter. If I can reach those trees, perhaps, they will help me.”

It was very cold with the frost and snow falling steadily.

The first tree that the bird saw was a Birch. It took a deep breath and pleasantly asked, “Oh, dear beautiful Birch, my wing is broken. May I take shelter in your branches?”

“For how long do you wish to stay?” The Birch asked the bird.

“Just until spring,” answered the bird.

“Oh dear! That’s too long. Sorry!” The Birch replied.

“Birch, it’s all right,” replied the bird. “Perhaps, the mighty Oak will help me!”

When the bird reached the Oak, it took a deep breath and politely asked, “Oh, dear mighty Oak, my wing is broken. May I take shelter in your branches until my friends return?”

“Oh dear! Dear me no!” The Oak sighed. “You’re a restless bird; you’ll move around and disturb me throughout the winter!

“Oak, it’s all right,” replied the bird. “Perhaps, the kind Willow will help me.”

When the bird reached the Willow, it took a deep breath and politely said, “Oh, dear kind Willow, my wing is broken. May I take shelter in your branches until my friends return in spring?”

“Oh dear! Oh dear!” The Willow said. “I don’t know you. However, I’m sure you’ll find a few trees somewhere in this forest! that’ll take in strange birds!”

The poor bird was just about to give up looking for shelter. It heard a gentle voice calling, “Little bird, where are you going?”

“Oh dear! Oh dear! I really don’t know!” said the bird, truthfully. “I’m very sad and cold.”

“Come, climb up to one of my branches,” said the soft voice. “I’m the Spruce tree. You can live on my warmest branch all winter, if you choose to.”

The bird said, “Oh dear, oh, dear, how can I thank you enough?”

“It’s time at least one tree helped you, I will keep the cold wind away from you,” said the Pine tree.

Yet, another voice called out and said, “I can also help you.”

“Oh dear, oh, dear, who is that?” The bird asked.

The tree answered, “It is I, the Juniper. I can give you berries all winter long. Birds like you, love my berries.”

“Oh dear, oh, dear, of course we do!” The bird exclaimed in a happy tone.

The Spruce gave the lonely little bird a home. The Pine protected it from the cold North Wind. The Juniper gave it berries to eat. These trees spread some evergreen empathy towards the little bird. That’s why the leaves of the Spruce, Pine and Juniper are always green.

Forgetul Grandma

Grandma lived in a big house. She lived alone. Her children and grandchildren lived abroad. Forgetful by nature, she would often keep something somewhere and forget about it. Then, she would keep searching the entire house. She would be restless till she found what she was looking for. She loved children. She would often call them by wrong names.

The children found this funny. They would laugh. Grandma was very fond of watching movies. One day, she decided to go for a movie. She wore a nice fur coat. She locked the door. She began thinking as to where should she keep the key so that she could find it easily. She knew she was forgetful. She didn’t want to lose the key.

She thought, “I should keep the key in a flower-pot. However, there are so many pots here, so how will I remember in which pot I have kept the key? I can keep the key in the pot in a corner, but then there are pots in every corner. What should I do?” Grandma couldn’t make up her mind.

“I should keep the pot with the key in the car. Then I will just have to remember car and pot.” Grandma thought that this was a good idea. She heaved a sigh of relief.

Grandma kept the pot in the car and began her journey. Unfortunately, she forgot where she was going. She figured that she must have come out for some shopping. She turned left, towards the main market.

It was Sunday. The market was very crowded. Many cars were parked. Grandma thought that there were so many cars here that she would find it hard to remember where she had parked her car. Now she was in a dilemma.

Grandma thought, “It would be better if I keep the car at home and come back in a taxi.”

Grandma returned home.

By now, Grandma was tired.

“How about having a hot cup of coffee first?” she thought.

Grandma loved having coffee, while watching flowers through her kitchen window.

She reached the door.

“Where have I kept the key?’ she thought for a while.

Finally, she remembered the idea of putting the key in a flower-pot. She looked inside all the pots. The key wasn’t in any of them.

Grandma was worried.

“Oh no, what has happened to me? If I remember one thing, then I forget the other!”

In frustration, Grandma banged her hand on the car. This act reminded her that she had kept the pot with the key inside the car! Happily, she took out the pot from the car and searched. The key was nowhere to be found. “Oh my, this forgetfulness is not leaving me. Now, where shall I find my key?” Grandma muttered. Absentmindedly, her hand went inside her coat’s pocket.

“Hey, I kept the key inside my pocket and here I am, searching for it everywhere else!”

Grandma was relieved. While keeping the pot in the car, Grandma had kept the key in her coat pocket. She had forgotten to put the key inside the pot!

Grandma was very happy to have found the key. She went inside to have a cup of coffee. However, she soon forgot her original plan, to go out of the house to watch a movie.

Baba Bhootnath

Idam PudamSudam” Jumpy was repeatedly chanting this when Blacky the Bear came there. He asked, “What strange thing are you saying?”

Jumpy replied, “This is a very effective chant Baba Bhootnath gave it to me and said that if I chant this 100 times, I will score very well in the school exams. He has also given me a talisman to wear around my neck.” Jumpy then showed the talisman around his neck.

Blacky had failed in the previous exam. He thought that if he seeks help from Baba, he would also score good marks. So he requested Jumpy to take him to Baba Bhootnath.

The next day, Jumpy and Blacky went to meet Baba Bhootnath. Baba Bhootnath was sitting under a Banyan tree. He was wearing a Dhoti and had applied ash on his entire body. He was sitting with his legs crossed. His eyes were closed and he was chanting something. He had already seen Jumpy and Blacky coming towards him. He asked them, “How come both of you are here?”

Blacky was stunned at this question because he wondered how Baba could anticipate that they were coming towards him with his eyes closed. Blacky really thought that Baba was a great magician.

Baba gave a talisman to Blacky in return of Rs. 100 and said that if he wore the talisman around his neck and chanted “IdamPudamSudam” 100 times a day, he would pass his exams with good marks. Blacky thanked him and returned home. He became free of tension and chanted “IdamPudamSudam” 101 times a day.

Many other classmates of Blacky also went to Baba to buy the talisman. Some shelled out from their pocket money, while some others borrowed money from friends. Cheeku the Rabbit did not believe in having blind faith or superstitions. He felt sorry that so many school students were wasting money on a talisman which they believed could fetch them good marks in the exams. His teacher and his parents had explained to him that he could score well in the exams only through hard work. He knew for sure that there was no shortcut to success. Studying hard would only help in achieving good marks.

Cheeku was surprised when he learned that even some parents had gone to Baba to buy the talisman for their children.

Cheeku wanted to make everyone realise that belief in such superstitions results in nothing. He also wanted to expose the fake Baba’s truth to everyone. So he started thinking of ideas. In no time, a very good and efficient idea struck his mind and he went to his friend Fatty the Elephant. Fatty agreed to help him with his plan.

As per the plan, Cheeku and Fatty went to Baba Bhootnath. Cheeku said, “Baba, I have an enemy. Do something so that he gets destroyed.”

Baba Bhootnath had only one solution to all the problems. And that was the talisman and the chant. Baba had to do something different as Cheeku had approached him with a different problem. Baba thus doubled the prize of his talisman and said to Cheeku, “Your problem is different, and so the talisman for you will cost Rs. 200. Also, you shall have to chant ‘Cyclones in plenty, destroy my enemy’ 202 times. Then a cyclone will strike and your enemy will be destroyed.”

Cheeku handed over 200 Rupees to Baba and took the talisman.

Cheeku said, “Baba, I will start chanting right away. I request Fatty and you to count the chants and stop me after I chant 202 times.”

Cheeku started chanting. Baba was worried now. He had thought that Cheeku would leave after taking the talisman but that was not the case. Cheeku was chanting right in front of him.

Baba had no choice but to sit there. He then thought of a plan. He thought that when Cheeku would finish chanting, he would send him to see his enemy. And as soon as Cheeku would leave, he would escape too.

No sooner did Cheeku finish chanting, than Baba said, “Go and see your enemy. He must have been destroyed by now.”

Cheeku said, “No Baba, my enemy is still alive. What you said did not happen. Your talisman and your chant are a sham. My enemy is right in front of me. I wanted to destroy you because you are my enemy.”

“What are you saying?” asked Baba.

Cheeku said, “You are a liar and a cheat and such a person is not only my enemy but the entire society’s enemy. People like you fool everyone and cheat them. You have no virtue to be called a saint. Return my money right away.”

Baba threatened Cheeku, ”You talk a lot. Leave from here or I shall turn you into ashes.”
“Oh liar Baba!” said Fatty, “Stop threatening. You are not competent enough to do anything. Let me show you what I can do.”

Fatty lifted Baba in his trunk and threw him on the nearby bush. Baba landed with a thud. By then all the animals of Champakvan had gathered there.

Baba got up and started running away from the crowd to save his life. But unfortunately, he was caught by the animals. They handed him over to the police.

Baba Bhootnath’s fraud had been exposed. All the animals were ashamed of themselves. They appreciated and thanked Cheeku and Fatty for confronting them with the truth. They also swore that they would never fall prey to such false claims and superstitions.

Miraculous Plants in Champakvan

Mimmo was a smart goat of Champakvan. One sunny afternoon when she was returning home from the market, she saw a huge crowd near a tree.

She went there and learnt that there was an old saint sitting there. He was telling about a miraculous plant that makes one wealthy and prosperous.

Mimmo asked Blacky the Bear who was standing beside her, “What is all this?”

Blacky pointed at some plants kept near the saint and said, “He seems to be a great saint. He claims that if we grow these plants in our house and later on return them to him, we can get a lot of wealth from a holy cave.”

Mimmo looked at the plants and laughed. She then turned to Blacky and said, “I don’t find anything unusual or special in these plants. They barely have some leaves and no flowers at all.”

The saint heard Mimmo’s words and said angrily, “Foolish Mimmo, you have humiliated me.”

“How do you know my name?” asked Mimmo.

The saint replied, “Child, I am omniscient. I know Jhingu, the prawn; Chinti, the ant; Kuki, the Cuckoo and Jumbo, the elephant also. I can keep a watch on all the animals of the entire world by merely sitting here.”

The saint correctly guessed the names of all the animals present there. Mimmo was impressed by this. She bowed to him and apologised for her mistake. The saint forgave her and gave plants to everyone present there.

Juju the Giraffe said to Mimmo, “See how great he is! Had he been a fraud, he wouldn’t have distributed these plants for free.”

The saint distributed plants to everyone and told them to take good care of the plants. He also said that he would return to Champakvan after a few months. The saint then returned to his holy cave in the Amazon forests.

Mimmo happily returned home and placed the plant in her small garden. After a few months, the plants grew well and bore a lot of flowers and fruits. Now the animals were eagerly waiting for the saint to come.

One morning when Mimmo was watering the plants, she saw her best friend, Caty the Cat. Two years ago, Caty had gone abroad to study. Mimmo was extremely delighted to see Caty after such a long time.

“Mimmo, you and gardening? I am impressed,” said Caty.

Mimmo told Caty about the saint and the magical plants. Caty was shocked to see Mimmo believing all this. She explained to Mimmo that all this isn’t true in this modern world. She then pulled out a book from her bag and started matching Mimmo’s plant with the ones in her book.

“These seem to be opium plants I guess?” said Caty.

Mimmo said, “Whatever it is! It doesn’t make any difference. The saint said that this is a magical plant.”

“Don’t be foolish, Mimmo,” said Caty, “Opium is also known as “Afeem’.

Planting this is illegal. The fruits of these plants are used to make drugs which are very dangerous to health.”

Mimmo stood dumbstruck for a few seconds. Then Caty and Mimmo went to each and every house of Champakvan and told the truth to everyone.

Blacky informed inspector Panther about the entire episode. Inspector Panther and King Shersingh immediately returned from Amazon where they had gone for a holiday.

They also told the animals that there is no holy cave or saint in Amazon. Inspector Panther assumed that the saint was living in Champakvan itself and that is why he knew the name of all the animals.

Just then, the saint appeared there with a truck. He saw the inspector and started turning his truck around.

Inspector Panther leapt at the truck and pulled the saint out of it. During this brawl, the saint’s false beard came off and everyone was shocked to see that it was Jojo, the fox who was dressed as a saint.

Jojo was caught red handed. He said that these plants were given to him by his brother, Gogo. He had said that they would earn lakhs of rupees by selling these plants in the foreign markets.

“Oh, so that was the reason you came dressed as a saint and tried to fool us? Thanks to Caty and her knowledge of botanical science, we came to know about these dangerous plants. Had we given the plants to Jojo, who knows how many animals would have fallen prey to addiction,” said Mimmo.

King Shersingh also praised and thanked Caty for her timely support. He requested the animals to not encourage such acts that have no scientific proof.

Jojo and his brother were arrested and put behind the bars. The animals of Champakvan started growing papaya, mango, and apple trees. They exported the fruits and started earning profits in plenty. King Shersingh calls these trees as magical and wealth providing trees of Champakvan..

Bhediyanand Gets Exposed

All the animals in Champakvan were queuing up since morning to get a glimpse of Swami Bhediyanand.

Cheeku the Rabbit saw that his mother was asking for 1000 Rupees from his father and telling him that she would visit Swami Bhediyanand’s Satsang along with her Sister Meow and Cheeku.

When Cheeku reached the satsang venue, he saw that many animals had gathered in a huge stall. Swami Bhediyanand was sitting with his disciples on a stage, attired in saffron-coloured clothes. Binny the Goat got up from her place and holding the mike closer, said in a choked voice, “Maharaj, my husband is not doing well in his business since the past few days. Please help us.”

Swami Bhediyanand lifted his hand up and said, “Everything will be okay in one week.”

Cheeku was surprised to hear this. He wondered how Binny’s situation could change in one week! All the animals were touching Swami Bhediyanand’s feet and offering him money. Cheeku too, along with his mother, reached close to Swami Bhediyanand and touched his feet to seek blessings from him.

Cheeku couldn’t concentrate on any work after reaching home. He recalled that Binny the Goat lived near his friend Smarty the Tortoise’s house. He contemplated something and went to his mother, “Mom, please give me your mobile phone. I am going to my friend Smarty’s house to play.”

“Okay, Son, take the phone, but don’t be too late. Come home on time,” Mother directed.

“Okay, bye,” Taking leave, Cheeku got out of the house. He spoke to Smarty about the happenings at the satsang and told him about his plan.

As Cheeku threw the ball, Smarty hit it with full force so that it entered straight in Binny’s house. Cheeku entered the house through the gate and said, “Excuse me, Aunty, my ball has come inside your house.”

“Come and take it,” Binny said.

Cheeku saw that Lallu the Wolf was present in Binny’s house at that time, conversing with her.

Cheeku switched on the recorder of his mobile phone and hid it in a flower pot.

He played cricket for half an hour and then again put the ball in Binny’s house. Then he went inside the house again on the pretext of taking the ball and took his mobile phone too from there.

After bidding goodbye to Smarty, Cheeku reached home and heard the phone recording. His suspicion turned out to be true. Lallu was instructing Binny regarding what she had to say on the mike. He even paid her money for the acting, which she had done before.

Cheeku immediately told his parents about it, who in turn informed Inspector Cheetah Singh. Bhediyanand was handcuffed the next day in the satsang. Cheeku’s picture was published on the front page of Champak Times.

Unlucky

Once again, all the ants were accusing Joey the Ant for being the culprit. They said that he was responsible for all that happened. Joey was quietly standing on one side with tears in his eyes. He had just lost his leg and that was the reason why everyone pronounced him unlucky or jinxed.

It had so happened that in the morning, the Queen Ant’s son Nannu was playing where Joey was searching for food.

Nannu lost his balance and fell down and got injured. He said that it was due to Joey that he got hurt. Thus everyone thought that Joey was unlucky.

“We cannot let Joey stay with us anymore. He should be asked to leave our anthill,” said Nikki the Ant. All the ants agreed to it and asked Joey to leave. Joey had no choice but to find a new home for himself. He decided to stay alone.

Joey was proceeding towards his house when he heard someone mourning in pain. He went in the direction of the sound just to find out that an ant was badly injured. He then asked her for her residential address and safely took the ant to her house.

Joey had saved her life. Her family members praised him for his work. When Joey narrated his story, they felt sorry for him and asked him to stay with them. Joey agreed and started staying with them. He was very kind and hardworking. Everyone in his new home respected and loved him. Joey liked his new home but still missed his old anthill.

Gradually, the summer season came to an end and the monsoons arrived. Joey did not face the shortage of food as he had a lot of food in store.

One night when he was sitting in his room, he heard some noises from outside. He went out and saw that the area was flooded with rainwater and the water level was rising continuously. He quickly informed all the ants in the anthill to secure themselves at a height where the water could not rise. Joey’s presence of mind and alertness had saved many lives and once again Joey’s work was appreciated.

Just then, Joey recalled that even the ants of his old anthill might be in trouble. He immediately went there and saw that all the other ants were panicking because Nikki was drowning. He looked around and saw a leaf that was floating in the water. He jumped onto the floating leaf.

He knew that there was a fallen tree ahead and was sure that the leaf would get stuck there and wouldn’t float further. The moment the leaf came near Nikki, Joey pulled Nikki up onto the leaf and saved her life.

The ants saw this and felt really ashamed of their behaviour with Joey. They apologised to Joey and asked him to stay with them. Joey was finally happy and forgave all of them.

BIG TREE SMALL TREE

A long time ago, there lived a tall and mighty tree in a big jungle. The tree was named Big Tree. Big Tree always stood erect and tall and looked down upon the smaller trees. Yes, Big Tree was quite arrogant.

When the wind blew hard, Big Tree would stand upright and tall. His trunk and branches would stay firm and wouldn’t sway by even an inch. The wind could only make Big Tree’s driest leaves fall down. Big Tree would feel proud and boast, “I am the tallest and mightiest tree in this jungle. The other trees should make me their king. My branches are thick and strong and my roots are spread wide and deep. Yes, I should be made a king.

Small Tree was a smaller tree who grew right next to Big Tree. Small Tree was very thin and weak in comparison. When the wind blew hard, Small Tree’s trunk would sway to and fro.

Big Tree would watch this happen. One day, he looked and Small Tree and said, “Small Tree, you really are weak. You must grow up soon. I feel very sorry for you when the wind makes your trunk sway.” Small Tree listened patiently and said, “Don’t worry, Big Tree. A time will come when I too will grow big and mighty like you.”

Big Tree laughed. “Little one, I pity you,” Big Tree said proudly. “Look at how great I am! I help people by giving them shade on sunny days! And there are birds, animals and insects that have built their homes on me! I am very, very important.”

“Well, you are right, Big Tree,” Small Tree agreed. “You are always doing something worthwhile. But I am sure that someday I will be able to help others, just like you do.”

“I will be very happy for you then,” Big Tree said. “You must stand erect then. You must spread your roots deep and far and raise your head high in the air, just like I do.” Small Tree smiled and thought, “I am in no hurry to grow up. I am happy with the way I am right now!” Small Tree enjoyed the rain and the warm air. He had no idea that they were slowly helping him grow. Big Tree grew bigger with time too. But sadly, he became more and more arrogant.

Every day, Big Tree would tease Small Tree and ask him to grow faster. Small Tree on the other hand, would simply smile. One day, when the two trees were talking, Big Tree suddenly said, “Small Tree, you really are of no use to anyone.”

“Why are you saying that, Big Tree?” Small Tree asked, feeling quite hurt.

“No one comes to you for shade. And no creature lives or plays on you. Look at me! There are squirrels running all over me! I am sorry to say but you are quite worthless.” Big Tree said haughtily. Small Tree felt bad but didn’t utter a word.

“One day, I will be of use to someone too,” Small Tree thought everyday as he drank the water from the earth. “One day, people will flock to me for my shelter and shade! Creatures will live and play on me too!” he thought as he made his food with his leaves in the sunshine. Then on, Small Tree ignored the harsh things Big Tree said and concentrated on growing.

All, the other trees in the jungle were growing quickly. “I’m lagging far behind,”

Small Tree realised. “For some reason, I’m taking very long to grow!”

A day came when the other trees in the jungle outgrew Small Tree. They looked far taller and stronger and covered Small Tree completely. But Small Tree didn’t mind. “I’ll grow slowly and steadily,” he thought and kept himself happy. The seasons changed and the trees around Small Tree kept on growing. Small Tree couldn’t even see how tall the others were, but he was still happy for them.

One night, a thunder storm hit the jungle. The wind howled and blew fiercely. Many strong trees found themselves falling down. Some others were uprooted. Many big trees found that their branches were being broken by the wind. There was panic and disappointment everywhere.

Small Tree on the other hand, found that he was still firmly rooted to the ground. His trunk was swaying wildly in the wind but his branches were still too small for the powerful wind to break.

The next day, the sun rose early in the morning. Its very first rays touched Small Tree since there were very few tall trees around now. The sun’s warmth made Small Tree wake up and smile. He felt very happy to be alive. Small Tree realised that his fortune was going to change for the better.

As time passed by, many tall trees kept falling down. But Small Tree grew slowly and steadily in the sunlight. Big Tree was now old and weak. He was no longer erect or arrogant.

One day, Big Tree sadly told Small Tree, “I am old now. I have become useless. Birds don’t make nests on my branches anymore as they fear that my branches will fall down. All my leaves have fallen off and no one comes to me for shade. The squirrels too prefer to skip on you as they find your bark smoother than mine.”

Big Tree then began sobbing uncontrollably.

“Big Tree,” Small Tree consoled his old friend. “Being old doesn’t mean that you are useless. You are still of great worth to me. You guided me when I was growing up. The knowledge you gave me is priceless. And it’s amazing that you are still standing with me, while all the other trees have fallen down.”

“Is that true?” Big Tree asked. “I must say, that you have been very kind to me. The seasons have changed many times and many years have passed. You have remained a true friend all along. While I lost my other friends, you stood by me and made the life of an old tree happy.”

“What I did was my duty towards you, Big Tree!” Small Tree said softly. “You appreciate my friendship and that is my biggest reward!” By now Big Tree had realised that the smaller trees were unnecessarily ridiculed by the bigger trees for not growing as quickly. He felt sorry for all that he had said to Small Tree.

And then, a day came when like the other big trees, Big Tree too fell down on the ground.

Small Tree felt bad for his old friend. He would miss him. But he also knew that a day would surely come when he would become bigger and taller. The birds, animals and insects would make homes on him then. And people would come seeking his shade. Small Tree knew he would become useful for everyone, just like his old friend.

A Match To Dimpy

Elle Elephant was a florist. He owned a small flower shop in Champakvan. Elle was a good-natured fellow and took good care of his customers. He had even hung a beautiful wooden board outside his shop. On the board was painted in bold letters, “ELLE FLORIST. Buy our flowers. They are beautiful and fragrant. They are fresh and will make you feel refreshed through the day.”

Elle Elephant was very courteous to all his customers. “He is always smiling, just like his flowers!” Elle Elephant’s customers would often say.

But Elle Elephant had a rule that he followed very strictly. He only sold his flowers to the animals and birds who paid him right away. He didn’t give credit to anyone. None of the customers even bothered to ask for credit for they knew what a hard worker the young elephant was and that he deserved to be paid right away.

Besides this, Elle Elephant’s flower shop had another speciality. Its fresh lotus flowers. Come rain or shine, Elle Elephant would wake up early every morning. He would wade in the pond and bring fresh lotus flowers from there.

Elle Elephant would sell some of the lotus flowers from his shop. He would personally deliver the others to the homes and shops of the animals who didn’t have the time to come to his shop. He didn’t charge them anything extra.

Everyone was impressed by the trouble Elle Elephant took. This resulted in good business for the shop. Dimpy Monkey was very fond of lotus flowers. He was a tailor and owned a small tailoring shop in Champakvan. Dimpy Monkey liked putting the lotus flowers in a vase that he had on his workbench. He relished their fragrance.

Like Elle Elephant, Dimpy Monkey was an expert at his work too. Everyone liked the clothes he stitched. They looked nice and fitted well. And so, Dimpy Monkey’s shop was always crowded.

But Dimpy Monkey’s nature was quite different from Elle Elephant’s.

Dimpy Monkey was a grumpy fellow. He lost his temper very quickly too. Even the pettiest matter annoyed Dimpy Monkey no end. He wore glasses and every time he got angry and shouted, his glasses appeared like they were dancing on his nose.

HONESTY PAYS OFF

Nobody liked Dimpy Monkey because of his foul temper. But there was no other tailor better than him in Champakvan. And so, all the animals in the forest had no choice but to ask Dimpy Monkey to stitch their clothes.

Elle Elephant would take fresh lotus flowers to Dimpy Monkey’s shop every day. He would politely ask him for the money after leaving the flowers near the vase on the workbench.

Once Dimpy Monkey had paid Elle Elephant the money, he would leave quietly.

One morning, Elle Elephant went to the tailoring shop as usual to deliver a bunch of lotus flowers. He found Dimpy Monkey in the middle of an argument with a customer.

Elle Elephant waited patiently till the customer left and then kept the flowers on Dimpy Monkey’s workbench. “Brother Dimpy,” Elle Elephant said politely.

“Here are your lotus flowers. Please give me my money now. I can’t wait any longer. I have to reach my shop soon. My customers will be waiting for me.” Dimpy Monkey was in a terrible mood. “Put the flowers in the vase!” he scowled and said. “I will give you the money tomorrow.”

“You know I don’t give anyone credit,” Elle Elephant said courteously. “It will take you less than a minute to reach into your pocket and give me my money.”

To Elle Elephant’s surprise, Dimpy Monkey grew furious. “Fatso,” he shouted. “I have already told you that I will pay you your money tomorrow. Now stop bothering me and get out of my shop!”

Elle Elephant lost his temper too now. He didn’t like being insulted or spoken to so rudely. “Well Dimpy,” Elle Elephant said, sounding very annoyed. “I want my money right now. If you don’t pay me right now, I’ll take my flowers back.”

This made matters worse. Dimpy Monkey flew into a rage.

Without even stopping to think, he picked up a pair of scissors and poked Elle Elephant’s trunk. “You want money, Elle Elephant?” Dimpy Monkey shouted. The glasses on his nose danced. “Well, this is your money!”

“Ow!” Elle Elephant howled in pain. He then ran out of the shop.

Dimpy Monkey laughed as he saw Elle Elephant holding his trunk and running on the street. “I’ve scared Elle Elephant away!” he thought and began cutting a piece of cloth.

More From Champak: Help Yourself

Elle Elephant walked back to his shop, feeling very annoyed. “I’ll teach that horrible Dimpy Monkey a lesson!” he thought. “He’ll never dare poke anyone again!”
Later that day, Dimpy Monkey was ironing the clothes he had just finished stitching when Elle Elephant suddenly entered his shop.

Dimpy Monkey was surprised to see him.

But before he could say anything, Elle Elephant threw some muddy water that he had in his trunk all over Dimpy Monkey’s shop. The new clothes that Dimpy Monkey had stitched got dirty and there were small puddles of mud everywhere.

Dimpy Monkey was astonished. “Oh no!” he cried.

“Elle Elephant has ruined my customers’ new clothes! I have taken so much trouble to stitch them. What will I tell my customers now when they come asking for their new clothes?”

Nothing like that had happened to Dimpy Monkey before. No one had dared to stand up to him or teach him a lesson.

“I shouldn’t have poked Elle Elephant’s trunk,” he said regretfully.

When Dimpy Monkey’s customers came to take their clothes, Dimpy had no choice but to tell them what had happened.

“Dimpy Monkey,” each and every one of Dimpy Monkey’s customers said. “You always lose your temper at others. You are always rude to others. Today, you have found your match.”

Dimpy Monkey felt very embarrassed. He decided he would never lose his temper or hurt anyone again. He even apologized to Elle Elephant for poking his trunk and was never rude to him again.

Don’t Underestimate Me

After sweating it out in the harsh sun, when Minti, the ant came home with a grain of rice, she saw that someone had filled her whole house with mud.

Who could have done this?” Minti thought to herself and kept the grain aside. She went inside her house and started removing the mud.

After some hard work, Minti was able to remove all the mud from her house. Huffing and puffing, she brought the grain inside and then went out to collect some more.

When Minti returned, she again saw that someone had filled her house with mud. She started removing the mud again. She again kept the grains inside and went out to collect more.

When Minti returned home, she saw her house was filled with mud once again. She rested for a while and again she started removing the mud.

After a while, when Minti came outside Gauri, the sparrow, who had been watching her said, “Minti, I have been watching you. You go to collect the grains but in between someone fills your house with mud. Every time you remove the mud. Why don’t you make your house in a safer place? These kids are always filling your house with mud. You will be left cleaning it every time.”

Smart Mice

“Gauri, I am an ant. A hard working being. When those children don’t get tired of putting mud in my house, how can I be tired of clearing it? I will never be tired and one day, those children will learn to accept it,” said Minti.

That is alright Minti. But this bravery is nothing but foolishness. You are so small and the children are big. If they want, they can just stamp on you. But you can’t do that,” said Gauri.

“So you want me to give in because I am small. Then the whole world will only be ruled by the strong. Little beings will always have to live in fear. But Gauri, things are not like that. Strength is not in sizes, it is in self-belief. Don’t consider us small. Despite being small, we can still make them accept our worth. If I leave this place in fear, where will I go?” asked Minti.

“Some other safe place,” said Gauri.

“This place used to be safe too but today it isn’t. What is the guarantee, the place I go to will always be safe? If I run away in fear, then there will be no safe place left. Everywhere someone will show their strength and will make me want to run away. In life, there will be a struggle. We should always fight with courage. That is why I don’t want to run away.”

Gauri was carefully listening to Minti.

“You are right Minti. We shouldn’t run away thinking ourselves to be small. We sparrows also work very hard but if someone makes us fly away, we fly. That is why there is always a chance of us being hunted,” said Gauri.

Minti was happy that Gauri understood what she had said.

“Alright. Then I will leave to collect my grains,” Minti said.

“Alright, you go. Your words have taught me that I can do something too. I will make sure that your house is not filled with mud. I will teach a lesson to that person who tries to put mud in my friend’s house,” said Gauri, while laughing. Minti also became very happy hearing what Gauri had to say.

“Thank you!” said Minti, and left to collect grains.

Leo’s Haircut

In the forest called Greenland, there lived Chatur, the fox. He was a barber by profession.

One day, Chatur sat outside his shop feeling jealous about the queue of animals outside Malku, the bear’s barbershop.

An angry Chatur grumbled, “How long will I keep looking at them? Don’t I have any work to do?”

Chatur sighed and muttered sadly, “But what work can I do?”

Chatur continued thinking in self-pity, “Poor me! Hardly anyone comes here for a haircut and I know that I’m such a great barber. Why? These animals simply don’t have any appreciation for my great skills.”

The truth was that Chatur was such a bad barber that one could be sure of getting a bad haircut from him.

Chatur knew that sitting sadly in self-pity was not going to help. He got up and called out to the customers who were going into Malku’s shop.

“Hey Porky, come here. Shall I give you a nice trim?” Chatur cheerfully asked Porky the porcupine.

“No thanks, the last time I got one from you, I ended up looking like a sheared sheep,” Porky said angrily.

Poor Chatur’s face fell. But he did not give up.

Chatur called out to Chimpu, the chimpanzee who simply looked at him in horror and ran away.

Chatur was definitely at a loss now. He sadly wondered how he was going to earn his living. Then, he had an idea.

Chatur went to Malku’s shop and requested to meet him outside where no customer would hear them.

Malku nodded out of curiosity.

When they were alone, Chatur suggested, “Dear Malku, why don’t we enter into a partnership? That way we both can make a huge profit. You can send half of your customers to my shop and I will do the same for you.”

But Malku was clever too. He said, “What do you mean by your customers? Nobody’ is the only customer you have. Nice try, Chatur but no thanks. I will have my customers and you can have ‘Nobody’ as your precious customer.”

Malku laughed and went inside.

Just then, Chatur spotted King Leo, the lion going towards Malku’s shop.

Chatur quickly ran to him and said with a polite smile, “Sir, please honour me by getting a haircut from me.”

Surprised, Leo asked, “From you? I have heard rumours about you. I don’t know. After all, my mane is my crowning glory.”

Chatur’s heart sank a little but he gave a quick smile. He said sweetly, “I am sure that lovely mane of yours requires to be royally pampered. And I am the best person to do it. I will first give your mane a nice oil massage, free of course for you, Your Majesty. Then I will give a haircut which will make everyone jealous. Just think about it.”

Leo hesitated but Chatur’s words were playing in his mind. He imagined his lovely mane looking all silky and pampered and being admired by many. So he decided to give Chatur a chance.

Leo gave in, “Alright. I will give you a chance. Make sure you do it right or else…”

Chatur was over the moon. Leo was his first customer in months.

Chatur immediately led Leo inside and seated him.

There was an impressive collection of beautiful oil bottles on the table.

Chatur used to keep empty oil bottles and fill them with cheap quality oils and creams unknown to even him. He never remembered what was mixed with what.

Chatur selected a fancy oil bottle and poured some of it on his hands.

Leo sniffed the air and asked in disgust, “What is that? Smells awful.”

Chatur said sweetly, “Forget the smell, sir. This oil is the best though it smells bad. It is made with thousands of herbs. Don’t worry, you won’t be able to smell it after a few minutes.”

“I hope so,” thought Chatur, for he had just lied.

Chatur rubbed the oil on Leo’s hair for some time and then picked up a pair of scissors to trim them.

Chatur accidentally chopped one section of his hair, cutting off a major chunk which fell to the ground.

Leo took one look at it and screamed, “What have you done, you clumsy fool? You were only supposed to trim it, not make me bald.”

Chatur gulped and said, “Err… don’t worry, sir. The haircut I am giving you is a very fashionable haircut. You will see at the end.”

Leo looked suspiciously at Chatur and warned, “Let us hope so, for your sake.”

The threat in Leo’s voice could not be missed.

Chatur cut another chunk of hair. He kept feeling that one side was longer than the other. In order to even it, he cut one side short and he had to redo it with the other side again.

Finally, feeling disappointed, Chatur put on a brave front and a fake smile. He said, “Your Majesty, your crowning glory can now be revealed to the world.”

Leo touched his mane but his mind was still filled with doubt.

Leo asked, “How much do I pay you?” Chatur said, “Just Rs. 100, sir.”

Leo paid him and left the shop. Chatur sniffed the oil bottle and thought, “I hope what I had used is a hair oil. I hope nothing happens to Leo’s mane.”

Just to be on the safer side, Chatur decided to close his shop and leave early.

King Leo stepped out and went in the middle of the crowd gathered outside Malku’s shop. He coughed with authority and asked, “Well?”

The animals stared at his mane with horror which now looked like it had been damaged by a group of rats.

But no one had the courage to say anything, not when Leo was looking for some admiration.

Leo again thundered, “Well, how do you find my mane?”

All the animals just stammered and looked at each other.

Leo then ran his fingers through his mane. Some of his hair came off in his hand in a bunch. Soon another section fell. This kept repeating so many times that Leo ended up having itsy bitsy hair in some places and big, round, bald patches in others.

It seemed that Chatur had used a hair removal oil instead of a nourishing one on Leo’s mane.

Everyone was horrified. Leo went to Malku’s shop to check his mane.

Leo roared furiously seeing his bald head in Malku’s mirror. By then, Chatur had already made his escape and closed his shop forever.

Sally and Dally

Sally and Dally, the birds, were good friends. They lived on the same tree and always played together but their personalities were different. While Sally believed in hard work, Dally constantly put off doing any work.

One night, the tree on which they lived, got uprooted in a storm. Luckily, both of them managed to escape unharmed.

“The weather is getting worse. We must start building our new houses first thing in the morning,” said Sally.

“You’re right, Sally,” agreed Dally. “Let’s build our houses together.”

In the morning, Sally did not waste any time. She went in search of a strong tree and found one a short distance away.

“Wake up, Dally! I’ve found a strong tree. Let’s start building our houses,” said Sally.

Dally woke up and stretched. She looked around and said, “Oh, it’s still early in the morning. We have the whole day ahead of us. You go ahead and start building your house. Let me sleep some more and join you later,” said Dally and went back to sleep.

Sally went ahead and started work on her new house. She took the help of Harry, the parrot, who was a carpenter. By afternoon, her hard work paid off and her new house was almost ready.

Sally was so engrossed in her work that she forgot all about Dally. It was afternoon when she finally remembered to wake Dally up.

“Wake up, Dally. It’s afternoon!” she said.

When Dally woke up, she looked around and said, “It’s just afternoon! Let me sleep for half an hour more, and then I’ll wake up and quickly build my house.” She went back to sleep again.

Sally continued working on her house. She fixed the doors and windows, painted the house, and bought new furniture. By evening, her house was ready.

When Dally finally woke up, she noticed the rays of the setting sun and quickly jumped up. By the time she finished collecting logs and began looking for a carpenter, it became dark.

“I don’t work after dark, Dally. If you had come during the day, I would have built your house,” said Harry, the parrot.

Dally then looked for other carpenters. But owing to the darkness and the bad weather, no one was ready to work.

She returned to the tree exhausted. By then, the weather had worsened and it started raining heavily.

Dally perched on a branch and wondered what to do. She saw a beautiful house on another branch and became thoughtful.

“If I hadn’t wasted the day, by now I could have built a house like that one,” Dally said to herself. She regretted being lazy. But now, she could do nothing but get wet in the rain.

Suddenly a familiar voice called out to her.

“Hey, Dally! What are you doing there? Come inside…”

It was Sally. She was calling out to her from inside that beautiful house. Dally sighed in relief and flew into Sally’s house.

“Where were you?” Sally asked worried. “I looked for you everywhere but I couldn’tfind you. I was about to shut my window and go to bed when I happened to notice you.”

Dally was now on the verge of crying. “I’m sorry, Sally. Both of us started this day together. But you worked hard and built this lovely house while I just wasted it away by being lazy.”

“It’s okay, Dally. I’m just glad that you are safe,” said Sally.

She served Dally a warm cup of milk and asked her to get some rest. Early next morning, Sally was surprised to see Dally get ready.

“Dally, where are you going so early in the morning?” asked Sally.

“To build my house!” said Dally, smiling. Sally was happy to see the transformation in her friend.

A Sweet Trouble

Bobby, the bear cub was browsing the website Honey.com on his father’s laptop. It was a famous online store that sold honey on the Internet. The website had mouth-watering image of a beehive dripping with honey.

To the left of the screen, the different flavours of honey were listed: strawberry, cherry, mango, pineapple, mint, rose and mixed fruit.

“Yesterday, I had strawberry honey, so today let me try the cherry-flavoured one,” Bobby decided. He clicked a button and ordered a big bottle.

Bobby was alone at home as his parents were travelling. They had left their Debit card behind by mistake which Bobby now used to make the online purchases. He knew the card’s security number as he had helped his mother with her online transactions.

By afternoon, Bobby received the honey from Honey.com through a courier. As soon as Bobby opened the lid of the bottle, the smell of fresh honey made his mouth water.

“Wow! It smells heavenly,” said Bobby.

After drinking half the bottle of honey, his stomach became full but not his taste buds and finished the entire bottle. Rubbing his tummy contently, Bobby slowly drifted to sleep.

The next day, Bobby ordered mango-flavoured honey and the day after, the rose-flavoured one. This continued for a few days—he would order honey, feast on it, and then doze off. He had not stepped out his house the entire week. He put on weight and was feeling sluggish. But this did not bother him.

One day, after downing an entire bottle of honey, Bobby’s stomach started hurting. He wanted to go out and get help but he could not move. He began crying as the pain was unbearable and nobody was at home to help him.

Just then, Bobby’s neighbour, Gabby giraffe happened to pass by and heard Bobby crying. Gabby became worried and rang the doorbell to check on Bobby. When no one answered the door, he peeped through the window and saw Bobby lying on his bed, clutching his stomach.

“What happened, Bobby? Why are you crying?” asked Gabby worried.

“Uncle Gabby, my stomach is paining a lot. Can you please take me to the doctor?” asked Bobby moaning in pain.

“Of course! Quickly open the door,” said Gabby.

“I can’t, Uncle. I can’t even move out of my bed,” said Bobby.

Gabby quickly called up Dr. Moo, the sheep and asked her to come over. Gabby also asked Haya, the elephant to help break open the door to Bobby’s house.

Haya used her strong trunk and smashed open the door. Soon, Dr. Moo arrived.

“He seems to have consumed a lot of honey which is causing the stomach ache,” said Dr. Moo after checking Bobby. “Where did you get so much honey from, Bobby?”

“I…er…my parents bought me the honey,” said Bobby.

“I see….” said Dr. Moo.

“How will you cure his stomach ache, Dr. Moo?” asked Gabby.

“That’s simple. I will drill a hole in his stomach, insert a big pipe, and pump all the honey out,” said Dr. Moo.

On hearing this, Bobby became scared and started crying.

“Please, don’t make a hole in my stomach, Dr. Moo. That will hurt a lot,” pleaded Bobby.

“Then tell me the truth. From where did you get so much honey? If you answer me honestly, I will not make a hole,” said Dr. Moo. She knew that Bobby’s parents had gone out of town.

Bobby explained that he ordered honey online using his parents’ debit card.

“Bobby, first of all, it was wrong of you to buy anything without your parents’ consent and that too using their card,” said Dr. Moo.

Bobby hung his head in shame.

“Secondly, if you have too much of anything, it will hurt you. You have eaten a lot of honey and that is why your stomach is hurting,” explained Dr. Moo.

“I am sorry, Dr. Moo. I was greedy and irresponsible. I will not repeat my mistake again,” said Bobby earnestly.

“Good. And don’t worry, I will not drill a hole in your stomach. I will just give you some tablets and you will be alright,” said Dr. Moo smiling.

Bobby was relieved to hear this. He smiled sheepishly.

SEO Keywords: short stories for kids