The Four Friends
A crow, a mouse, a tortoise and a deer; when one falls into a trap, the other three save him.
Tap a word to see it in Turkish · Long press to translate the whole sentence.
In a forest a crow and a mouse became friends. The crow took the mouse to the shore of a lake, to his friend the tortoise. The three began to live together: the crow watched from the sky, the mouse knew the underground, and the tortoise knew the water.
One day a deer came to the lake, out of breath. "Hunters are after me," he said. The three friends hid him. The deer became the fourth friend. Every evening they gathered on the shore of the lake and told each other what they had seen during the day.
One evening the deer did not come. The crow took off and searched the forest. He found the deer caught in a hunter's net. He flew straight back and told the others. The mouse ran off and began gnawing the net with his small sharp teeth. The tortoise set off too, slowly: "If my friend is in danger, I am going as well."
Just as the mouse finished with the net, the hunter came. When the last knot snapped the deer leapt away, the crow flew off, and the mouse slipped into a hole. But the tortoise was slow and could not get away. The hunter said, "The deer has escaped; at least I'll make tortoise soup," put the tortoise in his sack and started walking.
The three friends gathered again. The deer said, "He came to save me; now it is our turn." They made a plan. The deer stepped out in front of the hunter and pretended to limp. The crow landed on his back and pecked as if eating carrion. The hunter said, "The deer must be dead, I'll take that too," put the sack down and walked toward the deer. The deer "limped" a few steps farther away, and the hunter followed. Meanwhile the mouse gnawed a hole in the sack; the tortoise crawled out and hid in the bushes by the lake.
When the hunter got close to the deer, the deer suddenly sprang away on sound legs and vanished. The hunter went back; the sack had a hole in it, and the tortoise was gone. "This forest is bewitched," he said, and left, never to come again.
That night the four friends gathered on the shore of the lake. The tortoise said, "I am slow, I held you up." The deer said, "You set out for us; your speed does not matter." The crow said, "Four friends, four different strengths." The mouse yawned: "And one good sleep."
They all slept. You sleep too; your friends are waiting for you in your dream.
The tale ends here. Sleep well.
The Four Friends is a children's tale from Kalila and Dimna, suitable for ages 4-9 and about 2 minutes long. Read it free on Masal Merkezi, play a lullaby or nature sound in the background, tap any word to see its Turkish meaning and save it to your favorites. For similar tales browse the Bedtime Stories category.
Sign up and your favorites and reading list follow you on every device.
