Once upon a time, there was a little monkey who didn’t like to sleep. Whenever bedtime came, he would jump around the forest, refusing to go to bed. To coax him to sleep, Monkey Mama would tell stories, sing lullabies, and play games, but the little monkey just kept doing flips, still unwilling to sleep.
Exhausted, Monkey Mama finally said, “Alright, you can play by yourself. Just don’t disturb your dad and me while we sleep. If you want to sleep, sleep; if you want to play, then play.”
The little monkey was overjoyed! Finally, he could play freely without having to sleep!
The little monkey lived in a large, leafy tree, which was also home to a family of birds.
Since he didn’t want to sleep, he decided to visit Bird Mama and play with the baby birds.
The baby birds had just hatched a few days ago, with tiny yellow beaks and fluffy feathers. Their eyes were barely open, and they only knew to open their mouths wide, chirping for food. The little monkey adored the cute baby birds.
He knocked on Bird Mama’s door, “Knock, knock, knock!”
“Chirp, chirp! Who’s there?” Bird Mama asked.
“It’s me, the little monkey! I want to play with the baby birds!”
“They’re asleep right now. Come back tomorrow!” Bird Mama replied.
The little monkey sighed and decided to swing on the branches instead. As the night breeze blew, he rustled the leaves, creating a delightful sound. He watched the falling leaves dance in the wind, carrying the moonlight with them like little airplanes.
The little monkey was having so much fun! Not sleeping was the best!
The next morning, Monkey Mama and Monkey Papa went out to find food. Monkey Mama said, “Little monkey, you didn’t sleep last night; you’ll be tired during the day. Stay home and wait for us!”
“Mom, I’m not tired! It’s daytime, and I want to play with the baby birds!” he replied.
Climbing back up to the treetop, he knocked on Bird Mama’s door again.
“Little monkey, could you watch the baby birds for a bit? I need to go find them some food,” Bird Mama said.
The little monkey nodded and happily kept the baby birds company. They opened their little mouths wide, chirping for food.
He tried to feed them with his finger, but they just pecked at it and kept chirping. He even offered his tail, but they still wanted more.
Then, a hungry bobcat stealthily crept from the bushes, drawn by the baby birds’ chirps, drooling at the thought of a tasty meal.
“Hmm, a little bird! That should be delicious,” the bobcat thought as it climbed up the tree.
However, the bobcat soon noticed the little monkey and thought, “That monkey is strong; it will protect the birds. I won’t be able to eat them.”
Feeling frustrated but not ready to give up, the bobcat waited patiently on a distant branch.
As the little monkey played, he tried to touch the baby birds with his tail. Suddenly, his tail wouldn’t move!
“Hey, tail! Why aren’t you moving?” he exclaimed.
His tail whispered, “Master, I’m tired. I want to sleep now.” And just like that, his tail fell asleep.
Then, he tried to lift his arm to grab a leaf for the baby birds, but his arm wouldn’t budge either.
“Arm, come on! Why can’t you move?” he asked.
“Master, I’m tired. I want to sleep now,” his arm replied, and it too fell asleep.
The little monkey felt helpless. He wanted to give the baby birds a kiss, but his mouth wouldn’t move. It had also fallen asleep.
With Bird Mama still away, the baby birds kept chirping loudly, their mouths wide open, “Chirp, chirp!” The little monkey could only move his eyes, desperately trying to comfort the baby birds.
But soon, even his legs succumbed to sleep.
Now, the little monkey could only blink his eyes while the rest of his body lay still. His arms, legs, and mouth were all asleep.
Watching from a distance, the bobcat noticed that despite the baby birds chirping, the little monkey was completely motionless, as if asleep. The clever bobcat crept closer.
Quickly, it made its way to the little monkey’s side. The little monkey saw the bobcat but couldn’t move, only glaring at it angrily.
The bobcat noticed the little monkey’s wide eyes and was startled. But soon after, it realized the monkey couldn’t move.
The bobcat circled around the little monkey, smugly saying, “Meow! What luck! This is just a monkey that can only move its eyes!”
The little monkey felt anxious and worried. He knew the bobcat was about to pounce on the baby birds, and they would be in danger. But he couldn’t move a muscle.
Desperate, the little monkey silently pleaded, “Legs, wake up! Kick the bobcat! Arms, wake up! Hit the bobcat with a branch!” But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t move at all.
The bobcat crept closer to the baby birds, salivating as it observed them. The little birds, unaware of the danger, opened their mouths wide, chirping for food.
“Hey, this little treat looks tasty! What a lucky day for me!” the bobcat thought, opening its mouth wide to pounce on the baby birds!
Suddenly, a loud rustling erupted from the treetops. The bobcat hadn’t a clue what was happening before it was flipped onto its back, legs flailing in the air.
“Meow!” it yelped, rolling awkwardly. Looking up, it saw Monkey Mama had returned just in time to push the bobcat away from the nest.
With bared teeth, Monkey Mama warned the bobcat.
Knowing it had lost its chance, the bobcat slinked away, tail between its legs, and scampered off.
Turning back, Monkey Mama saw the little monkey, but he had his eyes closed; he had fallen asleep!
The little monkey had a long, deep sleep! When he finally awoke, he shouted, “Oh no! Baby birds! Help! The bobcat is going to eat them!”
Bird Mama, who had been watching over him, laughed and said, “Thank you for protecting my baby. You’re awake at last!”
When the little monkey understood what had happened, he felt ashamed. “But I fell asleep! If my mama hadn’t come back in time, the baby birds would have been in danger!”
Bird Mama reassured him, “The baby birds are safe. Don’t worry, and thank your mama too.”
Returning to his home, the little monkey said to his mama, “Mom, today was too dangerous! I won’t play at night anymore!”
“Then what will you do at night?” Monkey Mama asked.
“I’ll go to bed early! During the day, I’ll protect the baby birds! I’ll play with them and catch that sneaky bobcat so it can’t eat my friends anymore!”