Name: HEMA RAO

Age: 64 years
Language of entry: English
Category of entry: Above 16 years

FOOD FOR US, NOT FOR YOU!

The fields of Anikatty village were arid. There was no rain. Village folks were a
worried lot. They needed water for crops to grow.

Then Kannan had a brilliant idea. They could make a plastic-lined pond inside
their village. Rain water run-off and rain would collect in it. This water would help
to irrigate their fields!

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The plan worked! The village folk were very happy. They had finally managed to
grow a good crop on the fields. The maize was ripening nicely. Trees were bearing
fruits. There were potatoes, ginger, radish, beetroot and carrots buried in the
soil.
That pond is a miracle! said Kannan to his wife, Alagini. It made our field
RICH!

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Good crop is like a magnet. It attracts trouble! Word spread about the crops
growing in Kannans village.
And there is water too! said a crow.
The crows flew to the village-with-lots-of-bird-food.
Shoo.shoo.. SHOOOO! shouted Kannan as he chased the crows away with a
stick. I grew maize for my family. Not for YOU!
SELFISH man! cawed the crows, loudly. A KIND man shares his food!

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Next came the rats.

Shoo.SHOOOOOOO! shouted Kannan. Food is for me and family. NOT for
you! SHOOOO!
He promptly invited some cats to stay with him.
MEOWWWWW! purred the happy cats, when they spied their favourite food.
Squeak. Squeak. SQEEEEAAAK! squeaked the mice, as they quickly
scampered away. The crows were right. He is a SELFISH fellow and CRUEL too!
Food he cannot share, but serve us as food to the cat, THAT he can happily do!

Next uninvited guest was a fox in search of a fat hen. It chased the hens pecking
up grains outside the coop.
AAIIEEEEEEEEE! shouted Alagini. She had spied the fox! She ran towards fox
waving a big stick. How DARE you chase my hens! AIEEEEEEEEE! Wait till I catch
you. I will WHACK you, BLACK and BLUE!
YELPPPP! howled the fox and ran away. It picked up a very spicy red pepper
wheat rusk lying on the ground. Something to eat is better than NOTHING to eat!
Poor foxy! He did not know that he was going to run for water after eating it!
SELFISH woman! said the fox. How does it matter if there is ONE hen less in
the coop?

Did the march of hungry four-legged intruders stop?

NO!
Next came some elephants. They had meandered out of their habitat.
Yaannai! yelled Chitru, who was banging his drum.

Villagers ran towards the pachyderms with an ear-splitting unmusical din!

CLANG.CLANGCLING.CLANG! sang the brass utensils when beaten with
heavy metal spoons.
BOOM.BOOM.BOOM! shouted the drums when beaten with drum-sticks.
BOOM!
TANTARRAAAH! roared the trumpets.
EYAAAAAAAAAAA! yelled the villagers. PO..PO.PO!
SWOOOOOSH! PATACK! hissed firecrackers. PSSSSTWHOOSH!
The pachyderms fled, trumpeting loudly. They had big ears and the noise was
unbearable!

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Kannan and his villager friends hugged each other happily.

Kannans village folk now face no water shortage in their village. Their artificial
pond has helped them to harvest precious rain water. They plan to use waste
water from the home to water their fields.
They are saving money to put up an electric fence around their village. Animals
will have to cross the fence to reach the fields.
In the meantime, they have put up a fence with spikes and cow-bells on the iron
string. When the bells ring, villagers will know a four-legged intruder is trying to
get in.
The smart villagers have grown hot red chilli pepper near this fence. This food
will give the eater a red, hot, swollen BURNT tongue!
They also have a stock of dry dung-cake bombs, which also contain red chilli
pepper powder. When burnt, the dung cakes give out pungent smoke. This will
give everyone teary eyes and also a choking fit when they inhale the acrid
fumes!
The animals are very angry.
Men are really SELFISH and CRUEL! say the elephants, rats, crows and other
animals. They just CANNOT share their food!
ENDS