The Lost Kite

"I hope you like to fly." Bear carried his kite to the sunny hill. The breeze tugged gently, and Bear took a deep breath. Then he ran.

The kite lifted a little. Then it climbed higher. Then higher still. "I did it!"

But just then… WHOOOOOOSH! The string snapped in Bear's paws. "Oh no!"

His kite sailed over the treetops and rushed across the jungle. Then it disappeared. Bear ran after it until he could not run anymore. But his kite was gone.

Bear looked behind bushes, beside the river, and into hollow logs. Still no kite. Soon Bear found Elephant on the grassy hill and asked, "Will you help me look for my kite?" From the grassy hilltop, Elephant looked farther across the jungle than Bear could.

But when Elephant looked down again, he said, "I can see the winding river, the waterfall, the tall bamboo, but no kite." Bear found Giraffe in a tiny clearing and asked, "Will you help me look for my kite?" Giraffe stretched her neck high above the tallest trees and searched far across the jungle. But when Giraffe looked down again, she still had no kite to show Bear.

On the rocky cliff, Bear found Eagle and asked, "Will you help me look for my kite?" Eagle circled high above the cliff and scanned the whole jungle below. Then Eagle landed beside Bear and gave a gentle shake of her head. In the tall nut grove, Bear found Squirrel and asked, "Will you help me look for my kite?"

Squirrel raced through the branches, parting leaves and peeking everywhere. But at last Squirrel scampered back with an unhappy little sigh and no kite. At the sparkling stream, Bear found Beaver and asked, "Will you help me look for my kite?" Beaver searched along the water and around every little bridge and dam.

But the beaver couldn't find the kite either. Everyone helped, but no one found Bear's kite. Bear kept searching for the rest of the day. As the sun slipped down, Bear walked slowly home.

That night, Bear climbed into bed. Outside, the wind whispered softly through the trees. The next morning, knock, knock. Bear opened the door.

Elephant stood there with a great big kite with enormous floppy ears. Then Squirrel and Beaver arrived, carrying a fluffy-tailed kite and a sturdy wooden-framed kite. Eagle and Giraffe came with a wing-shaped kite and a very long kite that swayed above the yard. Then Weaver Bird and Snake arrived too with a small woven kite and a long curling kite.

Now his yard was full of colourful kites! "You all made these," said Bear. "We could not find your kite, so we made sure today would still be special," said Elephant. Just then…

Whoooosh, the kites tugged happily at their strings. Giraffe said, "I think they're ready." Bear grinned and said, "I think we are too." Together they ran across the clearing, and one by one the kites leapt into the sky.

Elephant's floated steady. Squirrel's danced, and Eagle's soared the highest. Beaver's flew straight, and Weaver Bird's twirled. Giraffe's stretched long across the blue, and Snake's curled in bright loops.

Soon the whole sky was full of colour. From that day on, whenever the first windy day of the year came, every animal made a kite like themselves and filled the sunny hill sky together. And if you looked very, very carefully, you might still spot one little kite with a cute yellow sun among them all!