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Oriešky pre všetkých je nová časť seriálu Zvieratká z Malej lúky, pripravená ako dvojjazyčný detský príbeh v slovenčine aj angličtine.
Oriešky pre všetkých: začína sa príbeh
Ráno bolo na Malej lúke mäkké a voňavé. Tráva sa ešte ligotala kvapkami rosy a pri potôčiku bzučala jedna usilovná včielka.
Ježko Bobo sa pomaly prechádzal po cestičke so svojou modrou šatkou okolo krku. Zajačik Timo narovnával pri ceste malý kamienok, aby sa oň nikto nepotkol. Vysoko na starom konári sedela Sovička Uma a pozerala sa na lúku cez svoje maličké okuliare.
Zrazu sa z okraja lúky ozvalo radostné:
„Jaj! Jéj! Toľko ich je!“
Bola to Veverička Líza. Vyskočila spod zeleného kríka, chvost mala napuchnutý od radosti a v labkách držala veľký, hladký oriešok.
„Pozrite, čo som našla!“ zvolala.
Pod kríkom ležali oriešky. Okrúhle, hnedé, lesklé. Niektoré sa schovali v tráve, iné odpočívali pri korienkoch. Líza si jeden pričuchla, potom ho šupla do zeleného vrecúška s obrázkom žaluďa.
„Jeden pre mňa,“ povedala. „A ešte jeden. A tento je pekne veľký! Aha, ďalší!“
Jej labky kmitali rýchlo-rýchlo. Vrecúško sa plnilo a plnilo.
Bobo, Timo a Uma sa na kamarátku chvíľu len usmievali. Líza mala oriešky veľmi rada. Keď nejaké našla, oči jej svietili jasnejšie než ranná rosa.
O chvíľu bolo vrecúško také plné, že sa sotva dalo zavrieť. Veverička ho zdvihla, no vrecúško sa naklonilo na jednu stranu.
„Ešte sa tam zmestia tri,“ povedala odhodlane. „Možno štyri. Alebo päť, ak ich trochu potlačím.“
Bobo sa priblížil opatrne, aby jej nerušil radosť. Na pichliačoch niesol jeden spadnutý list.
„Líza,“ ozval sa milo, „naozaj potrebuješ všetky oriešky naraz?“
„Všetky?“ Líza sa zastavila. Potom pozrela na krík a na oriešky v tráve. „No… sú predsa také chutné. Odnesiem ich do tajného úkrytu. Budem mať veľkú zásobu!“
Timo si sadol vedľa malej kôpky. Ušká sa mu jemne pohli vo vánku.
„Pod kríkom býva niekedy aj plš,“ povedal ticho. „A oriešok môže nájsť aj sýkorka. Alebo myška, keď sa príde poobzerať.“
„A čo ak ich nájde niekto skôr než ja?“ spýtala sa Líza a pritisla si vrecúško k brušku.
Uma zletela o vetvu nižšie. Nehovorila hneď. Najprv si všimla malý oriešok, ktorý Líze vykĺzol z labky a kotúľal sa medzi steblami trávy.
„Pozri,“ povedala pokojne. „Ten si našiel vlastné miesto. Prirodzené zásoby nemusia byť vždy v jednom vrecúšku.“
Líza sledovala oriešok. Zastavil sa pri korienku a ostal tam ako malá hnedá guľôčka.
„Ale ja chcem mať zásoby na zimu,“ zašepkala.
„To je dobrý nápad,“ prikývla Uma. „Zásoby sú užitočné. Len nemusí byť zásobou úplne všetko, čo nájdeme.“
Veverička sa pozrela na preplnené vrecúško. Potom na oriešky pod kríkom. Chvíľu nevedela, čo urobiť. Veľmi rada by ich odniesla všetky. Zároveň si spomenula, ako spolu kamaráti predtým pomáhali lúke drobnými skutkami. Nechávali po sebe cestičky čisté a dávali pozor na kvietky.
„Koľko je teda dosť?“ spýtala sa napokon.
„Skúsme to zistiť spolu,“ navrhol Bobo.
Na tráve spravili tri malé hromádky. Timo opatrne ukladal oriešky labkami, aby sa nekotúľali do cestičky. Bobo priniesol ďalšie dva na pichliačoch. Uma počítala pomaly, aby ich všetci stihli sledovať.
„Táto kôpka bude pre Lízu na zimu,“ povedal Timo.
„Táto môže ostať pri kríku,“ dodala Uma. „Tu si ju môžu nájsť zvieratká, ktoré tadiaľ prejdú.“
Bobo ukázal na tretiu, najmenšiu hromádku. „A tieto môžeme nechať tam, kde boli. Niečo dobré patrí aj lúke.“
Líza si prezerala svoju zimnú kôpku. Nebola ani obrovská, ani maličká. Bola akurát taká, aby ju uniesla a aby jej v tajnom úkryte nezavadzala.
„Myslela som si, že potrebujem viac,“ priznala. „Ale toto je naozaj dosť.“
Potom sa usmiala a jeden veľký lesklý oriešok položila späť pod krík.
„Tento nechám pre niekoho ďalšieho.“
„To je pekný oriešok,“ povedal Bobo.
„Práve preto,“ odvetila Líza a chvostom spokojne zamávala.
Neskôr sa pustili do práce. Bobo odniesol Lízinú zimnú kôpku k dutému stromu. Oriešky sa mu pri chôdzi jemne pohupovali na pichliačoch, no ani jeden nespadol.
Keď sa veci začnú meniť
Timo pri stromčeku upravil tichý zásobný kútik zo suchých lístkov. Nebol príliš hlboký ani príliš veľký. Líza tam uložila svoje oriešky a prikryla ich ľahučkým listom.
„Takto ich nájdem, keď príde chladnejší čas,“ povedala spokojne.
Medzitým Uma obletela krík. Skontrolovala, či pri ňom nezostalo nič rozhádzané po tráve. Oriešky, ktoré mali ostať pre druhých, ležali pekne medzi korienkami a pri nízkych kvietkoch.
„Teraz je tu poriadok,“ povedal Timo.
„A aj miesto pre návštevy,“ dodal Bobo.
Líza sa postavila k okraju kríka a na chvíľu sa len dívala. Už nemala plné vrecúško ani obrovskú hromadu len pre seba. Mala však svoju zásobu, pokojný úkryt a vedomie, že pod kríkom ostalo niečo aj pre iných.
„Nabudúce sa najprv rozhliadnem,“ povedala. „Možno nájdem jahôdky. Alebo žalude. A možno ich hneď nepozbieram všetky.“
Uma sa usmiala. „To je múdry začiatok.“
Napokon si štyria kamaráti sadli pod strom. Bobo si podoprel labky o bruško, Timo si uhladil ušká a Líza si pritisla chvost k bokom. Nad nimi ticho zašumeli listy.
Pri kríku sa v tráve lesklo pár orieškov. Čakali na správny čas a na toho, kto ich raz nájde.
Dnes Malej lúke pomohlo, že oriešky zostali aj pre druhých.
Pokračovanie nabudúce…
The Animals of Little Meadow, part 5: Nuts for Everyone
The Story Begins
Morning on Little Meadow was soft and sweet. The grass still shone with drops of dew, and one busy bee hummed by the little stream.
Bobo the Hedgehog walked slowly along the path with his blue scarf around his neck. Timo the Bunny straightened a little stone by the path so no one would trip on it. High on an old branch, Uma the Little Owl sat and looked at the meadow through her tiny spectacles.
Suddenly, a happy voice came from the edge of the meadow.
“Oh! Wow! So many!”
It was Liza the Squirrel. She jumped out from under a green bush, her tail puffy with joy, and in her paws she held one big, smooth nut.
“Look what I found!” she called.
Under the bush were nuts. Round, brown, shiny nuts. Some were hiding in the grass. Others were resting by the roots. Liza sniffed one, then tucked it into her green pouch with the acorn picture.
“One for me,” she said. “And one more. And this one is very big! Oh, another one!”
Her paws moved very fast. The pouch filled and filled.
Bobo, Timo, and Uma only smiled at their friend for a while. Liza loved nuts very much. When she found some, her eyes shone brighter than the morning dew.
After a while, the pouch was so full that it could hardly close. The squirrel lifted it, but it tilted to one side.
“Three more can fit,” she said bravely. “Maybe four. Or five, if I push them a little.”
Bobo came closer very carefully so he would not stop her happy moment. A leaf lay on his spines.
“Liza,” he said kindly, “do you really need all the nuts at once?”
“All of them?” Liza stopped. Then she looked at the bush and at the nuts in the grass. “Well… they are so tasty. I will take them to my secret hideaway. I will have a big запас— a big stash!”
Timo sat down beside a small pile. His ears moved gently in the breeze.
“Sometimes a dormouse lives under the bush,” he said softly. “And a titmouse may find a nut there. Or a mouse, when it comes to look around.”
“And what if someone finds them before I do?” Liza asked, and pressed the pouch to her tummy.
Uma flew down one branch lower. She did not speak at once. First, she noticed a small nut that slipped from Liza’s paw and rolled between the blades of grass.
“Look,” she said calmly. “That one found its own place. Nature’s little treasures do not always need to stay in one pouch.”
Liza watched the nut. It stopped by a root and stayed there like a tiny brown ball.
“But I want to have food for winter,” she whispered.
“That is a good idea,” Uma said with a nod. “Stashes are useful. They just do not need to be everything we find.”
The squirrel looked at her pouch. Then she looked at the nuts under the bush. For a moment, she did not know what to do. She very much wanted to take them all. At the same time, she remembered how her friends had helped the meadow before with small kind deeds. They had kept the path clean and watched the flowers.
“So how much is enough?” she asked at last.
“Let’s find out together,” Bobo suggested.
On the grass, they made three little piles. Timo carefully placed the nuts with his paws so they would not roll into the path. Bobo brought two more on his spines. Uma counted slowly so everyone could follow.
When Things Start to Change
“This pile will be Liza’s for winter,” said Timo.
“This one can stay by the bush,” Uma added. “Animals that pass by can find it here.”
Bobo pointed to the third, smallest pile. “And these we can leave where they were. Something good belongs to the meadow too.”
Liza looked at her winter pile. It was not huge, and it was not tiny. It was just right, so she could carry it and so it would not be in the way in her secret place.
“I thought I needed more,” she said. “But this really is enough.”
Then she smiled and put one big shiny nut back under the bush.
“I will leave this one for someone else.”
“That is a lovely nut,” said Bobo.
“Exactly why,” Liza replied, and her tail waved happily.
Later, they got to work. Bobo carried Liza’s winter pile to the hollow tree. The nuts swayed gently on his spines as he walked, but not one fell off.
By the little tree, Timo made a quiet little store place from dry leaves. It was not too deep and not too big. Liza put her nuts inside and covered them with a light leaf.
“Now I will find them when the colder time comes,” she said with a pleased smile.
Meanwhile, Uma flew around the bush. She checked that nothing was left scattered on the grass. The nuts meant for others lay neatly among the roots and by the low flowers.
“Now it is tidy here,” said Timo.
“And there is room for visitors too,” Bobo added.
Liza stood at the edge of the bush and looked for a moment. She no longer had a full pouch or a giant pile just for herself. But she had her stash, a calm hiding place, and the happy feeling that some nuts were left for others under the bush.
“Next time I will look around first,” she said. “Maybe I will find strawberries. Or acorns. And maybe I will not gather them all at once.”
Uma smiled. “That is a wise start.”
In the end, the four friends sat under the tree. Bobo rested his paws on his tummy, Timo smoothed his ears, and Liza tucked her tail close to her sides. Above them, the leaves rustled softly.
By the bush, a few nuts shone in the grass. They waited for the right time and for the one who would find them one day.
Today, Little Meadow was helped because some nuts stayed for others.
To be continued…