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Young World
Happiness is an adventure
NIMI KURIAN
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Happy wanted something more from life. She was tired of living in a pool of hippos, being happy all the time.
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K.G. Rangarajan
Happy was.well, always happy. Happy, the happy hippo, lived in a little pool with a lot of other hippos. All seemed well, until one day Happy decided that she had had enough. "Oh! My life is dull," she said. "Here I am, happy all the time with my family and friends, all telling me that it's good to have such a happy hippo around.
But, what about
me? What
about my life?"
Bird, who
always sat on
Happy's back,
knew that Happy
was sad.
"Oh Bird, it's as
if my heart is going to
break. You see I am now
five years old and all I
have ever known is this
pool and happiness. Isn't there
anything else besides all this?" Bird
nodded.
"I want to travel the world... to see
life. I want more than a pool of hippos!"
She got out of the pool and
walked away with Bird on her back.
She had walked a long way when she
heard loud, raucous laughter. She saw
monkeys swinging from tree to tree,
pointing to her and laughing at her.
They were even hurling insults at her.
They had never before seen a hippo!
Happy was upset. Bird said, "It's an
experience, Happy!
A quick dip
It was hot and Happy's moist skin
was getting dry and itchy. "Oh! for
some water to have a quick dip," she
thought. Just then, she saw a pool,
invitingly cool. As she was about to
take a plunge she heard a growl.
"And who may you be?"
She saw a bright orange face. "This
is a private pool, I'll have you know,"
said Orangeface. "It is mine. You need
my permission."
"May I use your pool, dear
Orangeface?"
"Don't be cheeky. No! You cannot
use my pool," said Orangeface angrily.
Shocked at such rudeness, Happy
walked away.
She waddled off and came across a
nice pond. She was just about to jump
in when she heard a whiny voice.
"Not so fast, fatty. Not unless you
want to end up in my mouth!"
Happy looked to find a long, ugly
creature with big, bally eyes and a
wide, big mouth and sharp teeth.
"This is my pond, so keep moving.
Keep moving, I say."
Happy moved on. On and on she
went, growing more and more unhappy
with each step. Bird wanted to remind
her about `wanting new
experiences and seeing life'!
Then unexpectedly the trees disappeared
and they saw fields and fields
of cultivated crop. They trudged on.
And then they saw it. It
was the happiest moment
of their lives.
They found a large
beautiful lake, with
grass growing on the
edges and trees
swaying in the
breeze. Happy
tumbled into the
water. The relief
was enormous.
She
giggled as she
closed her eyes
and felt the cool, blue
waters cover her body.
Suddenly, there was
a scream. Happy saw a
number of creatures on
two legs, screaming
and pointing. "What
have I done now?" she
thought.
Soon she had a net
around her and was being
dragged out of the
water. She tried to tell
them, that she wanted to swim but
they wouldn't listen. Then the twolegged
creatures hauled her into a big
cage-like thing and she felt herself
moving away. Bird wished he could
remind Happy of the lovely home she
had exchanged for her adventure.
After what seemed ages, Happy was
dragged out and put into another cage.
This cage however, did not move. It
was rather cramped and there was a
small pool in the centre. Happy went
to dip herself in it and found that
when she did, most of the water
spilled out. But she was so tired, she
fell asleep.
The next morning, Bird woke her up
early because he couldn't understand
what was happening. For in front of
the cage were a number of two-legged
creatures, all peering at Happy.
"Have you had enough of new experiences?
Have you seen enough of
`life'?" asked Bird.
"Yes," whispered a very humble
Happy. "Can I go home now?"
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