20 Bedtime Stories , livre ebook

1. Mom, You Don’t Know How Much I Love You

“How can I remember to tell her?”
Theo the little bumblebee was waiting for his mother to come home. Peering out of a small window, he kept one eye on the meadow stretching out beyond. It was a splendid view! As far as the eye could see, poppies, daisies, periwinkles and a host of other wildflowers bloomed. But the entire splendor of this sight was lost on Theo; his heart was elsewhere.
“How can I remember to tell mother how much I love her?” he wondered again. “For days and days, I’ve promised myself I would tell her, but as soon as she returns home, there are so many things happening that I always forget.”

Theo stared at the meadow as if it harbored the answer to the question that so perplexed him—perhaps it was hidden under a rock or inside a wildflower? He spied a snake basking in the sun, curled upon itself in a sinuous coil. Its long body seemed to be tied in a knot.

“That’s it!” Theo exclaimed. “I’ll make a knot in one of my antennae! No one can forget about a knot in one’s antenna. That will remind me of what I have to say.”

Theo managed to tie his antenna easily with his long forelimbs. Then he returned to his post in front of the window. How his heart leapt for joy at the sight of his mother approaching in the distance.

She was flying low over the meadow in the company of other bees. After a long day of foraging, she was returning to the hive, heavily laden with pollen.
“Mother, mother!” cried Theo, catapulting out of the entrance to their family’s home.
“My dear little bug!” rejoiced Theo’s mother when she saw her son fluttering awkwardly to meet her. “Let me drop off this load and I will be right with you!”
“What are we going to do today?” the little bumblebee asked.
“You have a surprise coming!” responded his mother with a mysterious smile before she disappeared into the hive’s storeroom.

Theo could hardly contain his impatience to discover what kind of surprise was planned for him. He adored his mother’s surprises—every one of them involved fantastic discoveries and true moments of joy. What had she planned for him tonight?
Theo watched his mother exit the storeroom. Now free of her burden, his mother moved easily, catching him up for a hug, and announced:
“Today is Friday. Tonight, I will take you to see a moon-o-graph!”
“Great!” Theo responded. He had never been to see a moon-o-graph, but he was sure that it promised to be a wonderful attraction.
“We still have a little time before the show starts. Come with me. Let’s have a bite at Flower King.”
So Theo and his mother flew to the most famous restaurant in Bumbledon. The moment they arrived, a very good table had just become available inside a wood anemone. Theo settled comfortably onto a velvety soft petal. The wind blew gently through the corolla of the flower, creating a pleasant tinkling from the stamens and pistil. A heavenly atmosphere was always guaranteed at Flower King. His mother flew away to get their food. She returned with a tray bearing two flower-burgers and two large cups of nectar. Theo settled down to eat his enormous burger made with four kinds of pollen stuffed between thin slices of rose petals and topped with honey, the entire composition seasoned with a sauce of morning dew.

While they ate, Theo’s mother told him a fascinating story from the history of the hive. It was at a time when worker bees were not allowed to have their own children. Only Queen Beeatrice enjoyed the privilege of having little bumblebees. One day, Beeatrice was kidnapped by the evil hornet Sting. None of the drones dared to defy this formidable opponent. The hive seemed lost. Fortunately, one bee, Joan of Dart, gave courage back to her people. Disguised as a bumblebee-knight, she appealed to the bravery of the drones and raised an army that defeated the hornet Sting.
Theo barely had time to swallow the last mouthful of his burger before night fell and the moon appeared in the starry sky.
“It’s time for us to go!” his mother said.

She and Theo flew straight towards Moongazers’ Field. A dense crowd of spectators was already waiting for the start of the performance, perched on blades of grass and wild plants around the pond of the Ninth Wonder. Theo saw many small bees accompanied by their parents as well as fireflies, cicadas and baby beetles. His mother searched in vain for two free seats until finally they heard a small voice call out:
“Madam Bee! Theo! Come this way!”
A little bee named Emma, a friend of Theo’s, was gesturing ecstatically to the spaces still available on the curved stem of a poppy where she sat next to her father.
The show began as Theo and his mother made their way through the crowd to their friends. Moths sprang by the hundreds up from the reeds and soared towards the moon, creating a strange dance in the sky. Theo didn’t understand what the actors were doing at all—it seemed as if they whirled and spun above his head chaotically. His disappointment was mounting when his mother whispered in his ear:
“Don’t look at the actors. The real show is happening on the pond.”

Theo turned his head to look in the direction she had indicated. The light of the moon cast the moving shadows of the moths on the sparkling surface of the pond. To Theo’s great surprise, the shadows created images representing scenes from fairy tales. The little bee recognized Cinderella persecuted by her stepmother. He watched the two stepsisters preparing for the ball and witnessed the arrival of the fairy godmother. The shadow play continued as the pumpkin was transformed into a carriage, the mice into horses and the lizards into footmen. He followed the entire story enthralled, as if it were happening right in front of his eyes.
At the end of the show, the little insects and their parents applauded the actors wildly. Then the spectators made their way home. Theo was so tired that he barely had the strength to fly with his own wings. Finally, his mother carried Theo in her arms. Once they had arrived to their waxy home in the hive, Theo’s mother tucked him into his warm bed.

“It’s high time for you to be asleep,” she said.
“Already? You aren’t going to read me a story tonight?”
“No, Theo. It’s getting late. Tomorrow, I will read you a beautiful book that I borrowed from the queen.”
Theo’s mother was hovering over his bed to give him a final hug when she noticed the knot in his antenna.
“Oh my!” she said, puzzled. “That’s strange. Where did that knot come from?”
“Yes, the knot! I completely forgot. I’m the one who did it,” Theo confessed.


“You made a knot in your antenna?”
“Yes, mom! It was because I wanted to remember to tell you how much I love you! I’m so happy when we’re together—you have no idea!”
Madam bee was so moved that tears came to her eyes. She turned her head slightly so that her son wouldn’t see and then she said:
“It isn’t every day that I am able to spend so much time with you.”
“That’s OK, mom. The time I spend with you is so precious and so intense! Those moments make up for all the hours I spend without you!”
2. Love Is Complicated

“Oh, no!” groaned Jessie the jester. “Here we go again!”
“Hmm…why don’t we play dress up for a change?!” he added in hope to liven up Teddy’s somber mood.
As the toys started putting different clothes on, all of a sudden they were struck by Clara’s beauty.
“Wow! That princess costume really suits you!” exclaimed the jester. “You should dress like that every day!”
“Oh no, I wouldn’t want to be dressed like a princess every day! I’m too modest for that!” Clara protested, although the admiration of her friends was clearly pleasing to her.
“What is all this false modesty?” said little Jojo indignantly. “Every day you carry yourself so proudly, even in rags, and now you play coy!”
“Quack, quack!” the rubber ducky added and everyone collapsed into fits of laughter—everyone except for the teddy bear, who sat motionlessly staring at the image of Clara in the mirror.

“Hey! Teddy, wake up!” yelled little Jojo. But Teddy didn’t hear a word. That’s when Jessie realized that something very serious had happened—his friend Teddy had fallen in love with Clara.
The next day, Teddy, Jessie and the rubber ducky met to discuss the problem.
“How do you feel?” Jessie asked.
“I think about her all the time,” Teddy sighed. “I dream about talking to her and giving her all of my attention.”
“So why don’t you go and declare your love!” said the Ducky impatiently. “You aren’t going to pine away all by yourself in a corner, are you?”
“It’s not that simple!” Teddy replied sadly. “As soon as I approach the dollhouse, my heart feels like it wants to beat right out of my chest, and I can’t say a single word.”
“That is certainly a problem! And it complicates things,” agreed the ducky.
“I have an idea,” declared Jessie.
“Oh good!” Teddy replied, overjoyed. “What is it?”
“You will distinguish yourself with an amazing feat! Dolls adore toys who accomplish exceptional feats. Listen to me and she’ll fall for you, no doubt.”
“I thought of that…” sighed Teddy. “But I have no idea how I could distinguish myself.”
“Ah, well, that’s simple! Tomorrow, our mistress, little Jeanette, is celebrating her birthday, is she not? And she has promised to take us all out on the river for a picnic. I propose that you stand up in the middle of the party and announce at the top of your lungs that you will swim across the river. Then you jump into the river, cross over to the other side and pick one of the beautiful red roses that grow on the bank. When you return, to thunderous applause, you will offer the rose to Clara, without saying a word, of course.”
“But I don’t know how to swim!” Teddy exclaimed.
“Rubber ducky will teach you. He’s always telling us how easy it is.”

Rubber ducky didn’t need to be asked twice. He loved feeling important and the role of swimming coach suited him just fine. He spent the rest of the day teaching Teddy to swim