Gennady Tsyferov

There Once Was An Elephant

Translated by Fainna Solasko
freebooksforkids.net
Illustrated by T.Zebrova

There once was an elephant.

He was a very good baby elephant, but he didn't quite know how to spend his time or what to do. So he sat by the window, sighing and thinking hard.

Suddenly it began to rain.

“Hey!" a wet fox cub shouted when he saw the little elephant in the window. “Look at those big ears of yours. Why, you would make a fine umbrella!”

There Once Was An Elephant

The baby elephant was pleased. And so he became an umbrella for the baby rabbits, hedgehogs and foxes hiding under his huge ears.

There Once Was An Elephant

But the rain soon stopped and the little elephant became sad again. He did not know what to do once more. So he sat down by the window again to think.

There Once Was An Elephant

Just then a rabbit hopped by and said, "My! What a wonderful long nose! You could use it for a hose."

There Once Was An Elephant

The baby elephant was pleased. He went out and watered the flowers, the grass and the trees.

There Once Was An Elephant

When there was nothing more to water he became sad again.

There Once Was An Elephant

Evening came. The sun set, the sky turned dark, and the stars came out.

There Once Was An Elephant

All the little animals were fast asleep in their beds.

There Once Was An Elephant

The poor baby elephant could not sleep. He kept wondering what to do.

There Once Was An Elephant

Suddenly he saw flames amidst the trees. “It’s a fire!” he said. Then, remembering how he had watered the flowers, he ran to the river, drew in as much water as his trunk could hold and put out the fire in the old tree.

There Once Was An Elephant

When the animals awoke, they saw the little elephant by the smoking tree stump and thanked him for having put out the fire. They decided he would be the forest fireman.

There Once Was An Elephant