Little Bear and Other Stories / Маленький медвежонок и другие рассказы. 3-4 классы

And that is what he did.

Tear-water Tea

Owl took the kettle out of the cupboard.

“Tonight I will make tear-water tea,” he said.

He put the kettle on his lap. “Now,” said Owl, “I will begin.”

Owl sat very still. He began to think of things that were sad.

“Chairs with broken legs,” said Owl. His eyes began to water.

“Songs that cannot be sung,” said Owl, “because the words are forgotten.”

Owl began to cry. A big tear rolled down his face and dropped into the kettle.

“Spoons and forks that are lost,” said Owl.

More tears dropped into the kettle.

“Books that cannot be read,” said Owl, “because some pages are lost.”

“Clocks that are broken,” said Owl, “because no one could fix them.”

Owl was crying. Many big tears dropped into the kettle.

“Mornings nobody saw because everybody was sleeping,” cried Owl.

“Vegetables left on a plate,” he cried, “because no one wanted to eat them. And pencils that are too short to use.”

Owl thought about many other sad things. He cried and cried.

Soon the kettle was filled with tears.

“There,” said Owl. “That is enough!”

Owl stopped crying. He put the kettle on the stove to boil for tea.

Owl felt happy when he filled his cup with tea.

“It is a little salty,” he said, “but tear-water tea is always very good.”

Upstairs and Downstairs

Owl’s house had an upstairs and a downstairs.

There were twenty stairs between them.

Sometimes Owl was upstairs in his bedroom.

Other times Owl was downstairs in his living room.

When Owl was downstairs, he said, “I wonder how my upstairs is?”

When Owl was upstairs, he said, “I wonder how my downstairs is? I always miss one place or the other. I want to be upstairs and downstairs at the same time.”

“Maybe if I run very very fast, I can be in both places at the same time,” said Owl.

Owl ran up the stairs. “I am up,” he said.

Owl ran down the stairs. “I am down,” he said.

Owl ran up and down the stairs faster and faster.

“Owl!” he cried. “Are you downstairs?”

There was no answer.

“No,” said Owl. “I am not downstairs because I am upstairs. I am not running fast enough.”

“Owl!” he shouted again. “Are you upstairs?”

There was no answer.

“No,” said Owl. “I am not upstairs because I am downstairs. I must run faster.”

“Faster, faster, faster!” cried Owl.

Owl ran upstairs and downstairs all evening.

But he could not be in both places at the same time.

“When I am up,” said Owl, “I am not down. When I am down, I am not up. All I am is very tired!”

Owl sat down to rest. He sat on the tenth step because it was a place that was right in the middle.

Owl and the Moon

One night Owl went to the seashore.

He sat on a big rock and looked at the waves. Everything was dark.

Then the moon went up over the sea.

Owl watched the moon. It went higher and higher into the sky.

Soon the whole, round moon was shining.

Owl sat on the rock and looked at the moon for a long time.

“If I am looking at you, moon, then you must be looking at me. We must be very good friends.”

The moon did not answer, but Owl said, “I will come back and see you again, moon. But now I must go home.”

Owl walked back home. He looked at the sky.

The moon was still there. It was following him.

“No, no, moon,” said Owl. “It is kind of you to light my way. But you must stay over the sea where you look so fine.”

Owl walked a little farther. He looked at the sky again.

There was the moon following him.

“Dear moon,” said Owl, “you really must not come home with me. My house is small. You would not fit in it. And I have nothing to give you for supper.”

Owl walked and walked. The moon followed him over the tops of the trees.

“Moon,” said Owl, “I think that you do not hear me.”

Owl climbed to the top of a hill. He shouted loudly, “Good-bye, moon!”

The moon went behind some clouds. Owl looked and looked. The moon was gone.

“It is always a little sad to say good-bye to a friend,” said Owl.

Owl came home. He put on his pajamas and went to bed.

The room was very dark. Owl was still feeling sad.

Suddenly, silver light filled Owl’s bedroom. Owl looked out of the window.

The moon came from behind the clouds.

“Moon, you followed me all the way home! What a good, round friend you are!” said Owl.

Then Owl put his head on the pillow and closed his eyes.

The moon was shining through the window.

Owl did not feel sad.

Mouse Tales by Arnold Lobel

The Wishing Well

A mouse once found a wishing well.

“Now all of my wishes can come true!” she cried.

She threw a penny into the wishing well and made a wish.

“Ouch!” said the wishing well.

The next day the mouse came back to the well.

She threw a penny into the wishing well and made a wish.

“Ouch!” said the well.