The Four Friends

One day, a Mama Ostrich returned home from gathering food for her two dear chicks. She

looked and looked for them but could not fi nd them anywhere. Imagine her alarm when she

discovered lion tracks around her two-footed chicks’ tracks! Fearful but determined to fi nd her

babies, she followed the lion tracks.

The tracks led into the woods and fi nally ended at the den of Mama Lion. In the opening

through the cave there lay her own dear chicks in the arms of Mama Lion. The Mama Lion did not

want to give the chicks back. She said they were her cubs. Then she challenged Mama Ostrich.

She said to Mama Ostrich that if she can make an animal to look her in the eye and tell her that the chicks are not her cubs, she will give them back to her. Mama Ostrich agreed and set out to

her friends to ask for help.

She told all the animals that there is an important meeting and that they should come.

Then, when she came to mongoose she told him the story and he said that he had an idea. The

Mongoose told her to make a hole under an anthill, as a second exit. Then, Mama Ostrich did

just what the mongoose had told her to do.

The next morning, the entire animals gathered near the anthill. Then, Mama Ostrich told

them the story and asked one of them to stare the Mama Lion in her eyes and say that the chicks

were not her cubs. The animals wanted to help her but they didn’t want to risk their life. One by

one they said that the chicks were her cubs. Mama Ostrich was disappointed that her friends

would not help her.

When it was the mongoose’s turn he said, “Have you ever seen a mama with fur has babies

that have feathers? Think of what you are saying. Mama Lion has fur! The chicks have feathers!

They belong to the ostrich!” having said that, Mongoose jumped down the hole under the anthill,

and escaped out the other end.

At once, Mama Lion jumped after him, and when she did so the two ostrich chicks were

freed. Mama Lion could not escape from the anthill and had to stay there for a long time.

Taken from: Interlanguage: English for Senior High School Students XI