Learning and Development Partner
Is this a picture of a frog?
Or is this a picture of a dog?
Did you draw an ugly cat ?
Or did you draw a filthy rat?
Does this depict a strong baboon?
Or does this depict a lone raccoon?
Does this show a slippery eel?
Or does this show a playful seal?
I am a believer that true friends don’t exist
And I refuse to believe that
friends may help in your hardships
I realize this may be a shock, but
true friends will stand up for you
Is a lie
You cannot depend on your friends for any help at all
In 30 years, I will tell my children that
I have my priorities straight because
Self-reliance
Is more important than
Friendship
I tell you this:
Once upon a time
people helped other people
But this will not be true in my era
People will mind their own business
Experts tell me
People are becoming more self-centered
I do not conclude that
Friends can act for you in times of trouble
In the future,
friends will never stand up for you
No longer can it be said that
friends will support you during your hard times
It will be evident that
friends are a waste of time
It is foolish to presume that
Friends care about you
And all of this will come true unless we reverse it
Friends care about you
It is foolish to presume that
friends are a waste of time
It will be evident that
friends will support you during your hard times
No longer can it be said that
friends will never stand up for you
In the future,
Friends can act for you in times of trouble
I do not conclude that
People are becoming more self-centered
Experts tell me
People will mind their own business
But this will not be true in my era
people helped other people
Once upon a time
I tell you this:
Friendship
Is more important than
Self-reliance
I have my priorities straight because
In 30 years, I will tell my children that
You cannot depend on your friends for any help at all
Is a lie
true friends will stand up for you
I realize this may be a shock, but
friends may help in your hardships
And I refuse to believe that
I am a believer that true friends don’t exist
Soccer ball flies
People cheer and clap
Opposing team saying Boo! Boo!
Rolling to the goalkeeper
Takes a leap and saves it
It is So boring
Lunch is Coming
I am so Happy
I will Open my box
I got Oatmeal! I don’t Like oatmeal
It is a bright day
birds are chirping loud and clear
An eagle swoops down…
The brave jungle king
Roar! He tears up his weak prey
Gulp! Nothing remains
Striding along the grass
This striped, strong, mighty creature
Crack! Sees his week prey
The ocean’s beauty
The blue animal swims along
Her prey found, and –– Gulp!
Let me ride this huge, mighty horse
Oh no! I see a legion’s force
Nature is a beautiful bird
Singing softly and bringing happiness
throughout the world beyond
Nature is a raging fire
Ruthlessly taking everything
Within its boundaries
Nature is a green tree
Animals peacefully living
Inside and out
I am from colorful rubik’s cubes and colorful walls
From the garden at my grandparents’ house in India
I am from a family who hikes on weekends
and from a family known for eating fruits and vegetables
I am from lemons, figs, blackberries, and raspberries growing in my backyard
Which would fill our bellies
I am from playing basketball at my neighbor’s house
And from the song ‘Believer’
I am from Rithvik and Raghu
and from Puri and Oliga
I am from those moments when the sun sets and rises in the beautiful sky.
A bird goes for a meter-run
A beetle comes and says a pun
I cannot bear that bear
I see it over there
Oh no I really need to run…
There once was a silly dog
Who met a serious frog
When they met at a pond
They developed a bond
And talked a lot on their log
There once was a cool rocket ship
Who’d really always want to grip
That cool-looking asteroid
Then would go in the void
And put their finger on their lip
The police are on high alert
They saw a thief who would divert
Everyone they saw
Would take their money raw
and to stop them from looking ––– dirt
As Ivy walks along the sidewalk, she thinks to herself, “Ugh. No teenager in the world wants to be friends with me.” Ivy moved to the city a few months ago. Her new classmates tease her for being from the country. She misses her old friends. Ivy kicks a pebble and she watches it roll off the sidewalk and onto a small, black creature.
“Ahh!” she exclaims, before realizing that it’s just a bunny. Ivy picks it up and looks into its hazel eyes.
“You poor thing!” Ivy exclaims. “I’ll take care of you,” she coos. In her excitement, she ignores the thought that maybe this bunny belongs to someone else. A strap of her black tank top slips down as the bunny tries to jump on her shoulder.
“I will call you Ralph,” Ivy giggles.
Meanwhile, Lily is walking to her friend Jasmine’s house. They are planning to walk to the new ice cream shop downtown. When she gets there, she sees Jasmine comforting her little sister, Rose.
“What’s going on?” Lily asks.
“I was playing with Fluff on the grass in our front yard. And then I turned around to tell my mom I wasn’t hungry for lunch, and when I looked back, he was gone,” Rose sniffles.
“Oh, no. I’ll help you look for him,” Lily says, patting Rose on the back.
While Lily is out looking for Fluff, she encounters a girl who looks to be about her age holding a black bunny.
“Oh, yay! You found Fluff,” Lily says.
“Found? No, this is my bunny, Ralph. I’m sure this isn’t the bunny you’re looking for,” Ivy gasps, pretending that she hadn’t just found the bunny moments ago.
“A little girl is crying because she lost her bunny named Fluff. I think the bunny you’re holding is Fluff,” Lily says skeptically, but polite at the same time. She is convinced that Ivy is lying. “How about you come with me to see the girl who is missing Fluff. She will know if that bunny is hers or not,” Lily says. “If it is, she will probably let you play with him. And if it isn’t Fluff, then I’m sorry for bothering you.”
“Well, okay. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to see the girl,” Ivy says. She imagines the girl missing her bunny and starts to feel guilty, knowing how it feels to miss a friend.
Lily leads Ivy to Rose’s house. Ivy’s heart breaks when she sees the girl crying. Ivy brings the bunny to the girl, whose face glows with happiness at the sight of Fluff.
“Oh! Fluff! Thank you so much for finding him! I missed him so much. I really owe you for your help,” Rose cries.
“Happy to help… Do you think maybe I can visit Fluff sometimes? I don’t have a lot of friends here and Fluff made me feel less lonely. He’s a really great bunny,” Ivy sighs sadly.
“Of course you can visit Fluff! Anytime!” Rose nods enthusiastically.
“Oh, thank you so much!” Ivy beams. Then she turns to Lily. “I’m sorry for lying about the bunny.”
“It’s okay. I understand why you wanted to keep Fluff. He’s so cute! Hey, do you want to go get ice cream with me and Jasmine? We want to check out the new ice cream shop,” Lily asks. Ivy lights up.
“Yes! I would love to come,” Ivy says, excited to finally make new friends.
THE END
Willy and Floppy are best bunny friends and next door neighbors. They both love carrots more than anything. One day, they decide to plant carrot gardens in their front yards. Willy and Floppy buy seeds from the market and return to their homes, excited about all the carrots they will grow.
Willy starts out by preparing the soil. He removes all the weeds and rocks and decides where he will plant his seeds. He uses a spade to make evenly spaced holes for each seed. Then, he places one seed in each hole and covers it with soil.
Floppy, on the other hand, scoffs at Willy’s careful efforts to plant his seeds. He instead throws all of the seeds in the air and lets them drop to the ground.
“Floppy, if you throw all the seeds like that, the carrots won’t grow! They need to be covered by soil, or there won’t be enough nutrients for each one,” Willy explains.
“You really think so?!” says Floppy. He pours a bag of fertilizer over the seeds and remarks, “Problem solved.”
“Whatever,” Willy mutters. Then he pours water over each seed.
At the same time, Floppy throws the hose up in the air and water splatters everywhere.
“Phew! It’s hot out here,” Floppy says as he goes back into the house. He sits on his couch and is asleep in minutes.
When Willy realizes that Floppy went back inside, he calls out, “Floppy! We still have more work to do!” All Willy hears in response is Floppy’s snoring. Willy finishes planting his garden and then goes inside for the night.
The next morning, Willy wakes up at 7:00 to eat breakfast and water his garden. He fills his watering can with water and carefully pours water over each seed, making sure not to flood any of them.
Nextdoor, Floppy sleeps until noon. He eats cereal for breakfast and plays video games until dinner, forgetting to water his thirsty garden.
This continues in this manner for two weeks, until the seeds in Willy’s garden begin to burst out of the soil. In another week, Willy’s carrots are ready to be picked and he stocks his carrots from the garden.
Nextdoor, Floppy’s garden is barren. He watches as Willy munches on his carrots. Winter soon comes, and Willy is well stocked while Floppy has no carrots.
“I wish I had listened to Willy and taken better care of my garden,” Floppy thinks to himself. “Next season, I will not make the same mistake as I did last time.”
THE END