Hukumusume fairy tale collection > Classical stories of the world > September

イラスト　myi　　　ブログ　sorairoiro

Squirrel’s Adventure
Hudson’s fairy tale

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おりがみをつくろう ( おりがみくらぶ より) りす　　　どんぐり

　At the end of the summer, a squirrel lived in woods.
　The squirrel worked hard, collecting acorns and carrying them into his den in an oak tree.
　Looking at him, a little bird spoke to the squirrel.
“Hello, Squirrelie. What have you been doing?”
“Hello, Birdie. I am getting ready for the wintering. You know, in the winter, there will be no food.”
　The squirrel answered without stopping working, but the little bird laughed at him.
“Hahaha. You don’t have to do that. Why don’t you go to the South before the winter. You will find plenty of fruits and nuts in the South. You will never be hungry there.”
“Really! Where is the South?”
“The South is over the mountain. Well, you will easily get there in two weeks.”
“Over the mountain. Well, then …”
　The squirrel tried to ask him more, but the little bird felt lazy about answering his questions and flew away.

　The squirrel vaguely stared at the far mountain.
“I wish I could spend the cold winter somewhere warm. Plenty of fruits and nuts. … Oh, I wish.”
　The squirrel felt like going to the South himself.
　 Before long, the autumn came, but the squirrel stopped collecting acorns and making the warm bed. He did nothing but think of living in the South.
　Then, when all the leaves fell off the oak tree,
　he decided, “I am going to the South!”

　The squirrel set off for the South.
　He went through the woods, ran and ran to reach the foot of the mountain.
　It was already in the early evening. His feet were killing him.

“I will go up to the top of the mountain before dawn and say ‘good morning’ to the South!”
　The squirrel encouraged himself saying so. He went up the mountain step by step.
　However, his feet hurt and he was starving.
　Even worse, the evening wind was freezing cold.
“Oh, I cannot go any further …”
　The squirrel found a big stone and curled himself up behind it.
　He sighed, and suddenly he realized.

“Oh yes, the little birds can fly. That is why they can go to the South without feeling tired.”
　It was then that
　the squirrel felt pain in the back. He felt like being stabbed with a knife.
　Then, his body was lifted up. In an instant, he was taken up high into the sky.

　It was a scary black kite who snatched the squirrel away.
　The squirrel tried to run away, but he was too tired to resist.
　Of course, if he had resisted, he would have been dropped to the ground and died.
“One way or another, I am doomed to die.”
　At that very moment, something whizzed through the air. Another black kite turned up and shouted.
“Hey, if you don’t want to be in trouble, give me your prey!”
“No, no way!”
　The black kite holding the squirrel tried to run away. However, the squirrel was so heavy, he was unable to fly so fast.
　Soon, these black kites started fighting in the night sky.
　The squirrel was held in the claws and swung around in the dark night sky. He was in pain and scared. He almost fainted many times.
　As the fighting goes on, the black kite holding the squirrel was poked in the back. He happened to loosen his claws.
“Oh my god!”

　The squirrel dropped head-first toward the ground.
“I’m done for!”
　The squirrel fainted, but he bumped into something and woke up.

　Fortunately, the squirrel was caught in the branches of the woods.
　The squirrel used all his strength to climb down from the tree.

　Eventually, he came to the ground and looked up at the tree.
“Look where I am!”
　He was in the woods where he had lived. The tree he dropped onto was the oak tree where the squirrel’s den was.
　The squirrel was very happy. He curled himself up in the half-made bed.

“Oh, I feel so good! No matter how cold the winter is, there is no place like home!”
　The squirrel felt safe and sound. He sank into a deep sleep.

The End
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