Mari Bercerita

       JERRY,

   THE LAZY     

        FOX.

Summer time was when foxes were supposed to work hard, gathering food for winter. When the snow came all the animals hid and there was nothing for the foxes to eat.

Jerry Fox didn't want to work and gather food. He loved summer. There was nothing he'd rather do than lie under the shade of a giant sunflower and listen to the birds chirp and the animals chatter.

“Jerry, you'd better get to work. Summer is almost done and you've not got any food stored up for winter. You'll be sorry,” said Kevin Fox.

Jerry ignored the other fox and closed his eyes, listening to the sound of the river flowing past.

A while later Lori Fox ran past. “Jerry, have you gathered all your food for winter already? I haven't. You're lucky.”

Jerry yawned. “I decided not to gather food for the winter. I'm having much too much fun lying in the sun.”

“But Jerry, soon the snow will come and there won't be any food. You'll be sorry.” Lori ran off to find more food.

A dozen other foxes ran past and all of them warned Jerry, but he didn't care. He was enjoying the sunshine.

One day dark gray clouds gathered overheard. Drops of rain fell on the sunflower and dripped on Jerry's fur. “What's this? Rain already?”

Jerry went to find a place to stay dry. All the other foxes were gathered inside a big, hollow oak tree trunk.

“You can't come in here, Jerry,” said Kevin. “We've all done our work and gathered food. You didn't feel like it, so now you can go find somewhere else to stay.”

Kevin pushed Jerry out of the tree trunk onto the ground.

Jerry ran from tree to tree. They were all full of animals. He tried the caves, but the bears chased him away. “What am I going to do? It's cold and I am wet and hungry.”

A small bird flew down from the tops of the trees. “Jerry, you can fly south for the winter with us.”

“I'm a fox. I can't fly,” Jerry cried.

“We'll carry you,” the bird said.

So Jerry flew south for the winter with the birds. In fact when spring came and they all headed north, Jerry decided to stay in the south, where it was always warm and where he never ever had to worry about rain or storing food.

   THE END

  

        RAPUNZEL

  

        

A pregnant woman wanted red cabbage that she saw was being grown over a stone wall and ordered her husband to go and bring her some. He did after some nagging and prodding. And his wife ate it all only to repeat the same request for three days. On the third day of his stealing cabbage from their neighbor a witch came to their door, refusing to be turned away. She told them that the only way to appease her was to give them the child that was growing and was soon to come. In return she also promised that the woman could have all the cabbage that she wished until that time.

The witch returned and took the child nearly as soon as she'd been born, whisking her away from her parents to a far away hiding place where Rapunzel, as she was named for the cabbage that her mother had eaten, grew and grew until one day a man came into the field in which Rapunzel was playing. The witch, seeing how beautiful Rapunzel was in his eyes decided that it was time to hide her away from the prying eyes of the world and so locked her up in a high tower, the only way in being a single window at the very top.

Each day the witch came a climbed Rapunzel's hair to the very top to bring her lovely things and take care of her, calling to her "Rapunzel, Rapunzel let down your gold hair."

One day, however a Prince, who was hunting in the forest heard a girl's voice singing beautifully. He followed the voice only to see the witch ask Rapunzel to let down her hair. He stayed hidden until the witch had gone and decided to see if he could climb the lovely tresses to the top and meet the lovely woman at the top. He mimicked the witch's voice and soon he was face to face with Rapunzel, who startled was not afraid. He began to visit her until one day the witch came to find that her Rapunzel was pregnant. Angry the witch banished the girl to a wasteland, but not before she chopped off the lengthy locks. When the Prince came to see Rapunzel the witch was there waiting and threw him from the side of the tower into thorn bushes, blinding him.

For years he wandered until he heard a lovely and familiar voice singing and recognized Rapunzel even without his sight. Seeing his eyes she wept for his loss, her tears falling into his eyes and clearing them, giving the sight he had lost for so long. Happy, she introduced him to their twins, a boy and a girl and the four traveled back to the Prince's kingdom where he was welcomed back where they all lived happily ever after.

                             THE END

THE ANT AND GRASSHOPPER

In a field one summer's day a Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart's content. An Ant passed by, bearing along with great toil an ear of corn he was taking to the nest.

     "Why not come and chat with me," said the Grasshopper, "instead of toiling and moiling in that way?" 

     "I am helping to lay up food for the winter," said the Ant, "and recommend you to do the same." 

 "Why bother about winter?" said the Grasshopper; "We have got plenty of food at present." But the Ant went on its way and continued its toil.

 
     When the winter came the Grasshopper had no food and found itself dying of hunger - while it saw the ants distributing every day corn and grain from the stores they had collected in the summer. Then the Grasshopper knew: It is best to prepare for days of need.