The Lion and the Mouse
So the first story I am going to tell you, my mini-gorillas, is about a
lion named Sarah and a mouse named Lizzy.
As I sat picking the fleas out of my young daughter, Bon Qui Qui
(who was named after a bonfire that went out quickly, thus we got the
name Bon Qui Qui), I noticed the little mouse, Lizzy, was running
around. She was frolicking along the sandy shores enjoying the
beautiful day. Lizzy began to dig in the sand to try and find
seashells. She kept finding more and more! She was so excited!
Then she started digging in another spot on the beach, only to find the
biggest bone you have ever seen! As she continued digging, trying to
find the end of this bone, a large lion, Sarah, came sprinting out
of the ocean in a fit of rage.
"Why are you touching my grandfather's bones!!??" shouted Sarah.
"Well, I was looking for seashells and I came across this," said Lizzy.
Sarah looked at Lizzy in the most evil way, and was about to sit on her
so Lizzy would be dead. But Lizzy shouted, "No! No! Please don't
hurt me! I have done nothing wrong! I don't even want
these bones! I promise if you don't hurt me I will be able to repay you
one day!!"
Sarah looked at Lizzy and laughed, wondering how a little mouse
possibly ever help a huge lion. So, because Sarah the
lion found this so hilarious, she decided to take Lizzy up on the
offer.
"Okay, if you really think you can repay me, I'll take you up on that
offer! But this is absolutely ridiculous," said Sarah.
So the lion let the little mouse go. Lizzy the mouse was so
thankful! Over the next few days, Lizzy was laying out at the
beach trying to get a tan. She was a bit nervous she would run
into the lion, considering she had promised she would help her, but
hadn't yet.
However, one day she noticed the lion looking very nervous.
So she ran up to the lion and said, "What's wrong, Sarah?"
"Well, I have a date tonight. I am really stressed out because I don't
know how to apply make-up. Plus, I don't even own any
make-up. I have no idea what I am going to do," said Sarah.
With great joy, Lizzy the mouse shouted, "I can help! I can help! I
have a whole room full of make-up and I can put it on for you!"
She told the lion to hurry and to follow her to her house on the
beach. Once they got there, Sarah waited patiently to see all of
Lizzy's make-up. Lizzy came out with boxes and boxes of
make-up. Sarah was so excited!
"Okay, we must hurry! I want you to look so beautiful for your
date. We don't have much time," said Lizzy.
Lizzy began applying eye shadow, lipliner, eyeliner, blush, lipstick,
and mascara. Sarah the lion was just praying that she would
look beautiful. Finally, Lizzy was done applying the make-up! She
gave Sarah a mirror, and Sarah shouted, "Oh my gosh! I look so
wonderful! I would have never been able to do this without you!"
So as you can see, my little gorillas, the smallest of creatures can
end
up helping in big
ways! I wanted to share this story with you children because I
know we are quite big animals. As gorillas, we grow to be very
large and we have an advantage over other animals. So before you
injure another animal who is smaller than you, think again, because
they might be able to help you. You just never know!
Author's Note: I based my story on of "The Lion and the
Mouse." The original story is about a little mouse who goes
walking and ends up stepping on the lion. The lion is startled
and wants to eat the mouse. However, the mouse convinces him that
if he doesn't eat him, he will be able to help him out in the
future. Later in the story, the lion gets caught in a trap and
the little mouse scurries over to chew apart the trap and the lion is
saved!
I changed the story, starting with the fact that I gave
the lion and the mouse names. I also wanted to change the
scene. I tried to
make it a bit humorous by making it on the beach, because you don't
often see a mouse or a lion on a beach. In the original story, the
story takes place in the woods. I
also changed the situation that the animals were put in. In the
original story, the big animal (lion) is caught in a trap and the
little one (mouse)
helps
him. I changed the story so that the the mouse was trying to take
bones. To make this story more light-hearted, I wanted to have
this huge lion applying make-up, and then this little mouse comes
along and helps when it's crunch time. We all know animals don't
apply make-up or go out on dates, but I wanted to make it a little
goofy.
I chose to retell this story because it fits well with the theme of
"Lessons Learned." Another story I chose was "The Fox and the
Goat," which is the next story you will read. This story is also
going to teach a lesson. "The
Lion and the Mouse" and "The Fox and the Goat" both involve trusting
someone.
Bibliography Information:
Story Title: The Lion and the Mouse
Book Title: Aesop’s Fables
Book Author: Joseph Jacobs
Year: 1894
Web Source: The Story!
Image Information:
It's an image of a
lion and a mouse. The image was done by the Well Hung Picture Co
UK.
Coverpage
Intro