Children's Story: STRIPY AND TABBY

Hundreds of years ago, in one of the jungles of what we call Kerala today, a tiger family lived in a cave on the face of a mountain slope. The father tiger was called Angry, the mother was called Ruby, and their two children were called Stripy and Tabby.

These two cubs were very mischievous. But for their vigilant mother, they would have long been in danger, for within earshot of their cave was a waterfall. The roar of the foaming water hurtling from hundreds of feet could be heard from the cave. Ever since they started walking, Ruby had been worried about the safety of Stripy and Tabby. Her job was made doubly hard due to the fact that Angry was a very lazy father.

One day, Ruby wasn't feeling well. She said to her husband, "Look, dear, I'm not feeling well today. You have to take the kids hunting." Angry nodded half-heartedly. When the cubs overheard this, they jumped with joy. For them, going out with their father meant a lot of freedom.