The Grasshopper and the Owl

The owl had hunted all night. Now the sun was up, and she wanted to sleep. She tucked herself into her hollow tree and shut her eyes. Chirrup! went a grasshopper on the branch below. Chirrup, chirrup, chirrup!

"Please stop," said the owl. "I beg you." The grasshopper chirped louder. "Please!" said the owl. The grasshopper chirped louder still. The more the owl begged, the louder she sang.

The owl saw that begging was no use. So she tried a trick. "Since I cannot sleep," she called, "I may as well enjoy your song. It is as sweet as Apollo's harp! And I have a jar of nectar, a gift from the goddess Pallas. I am going to drink it now. Come up, if you like, and we will share it."

The grasshopper was thirsty, and the praise made her feel warm all over. She gave one last happy chirrup and sprang up to the hollow.

Out shot the owl. Snap! And at last the tree was quiet.