Saturday, January 30, 2010

A Bedtime Story

Once upon a time there was a beautiful golden sheep named Sophia. She and her three best friends, Dorothy, Blanche and Rose, lived on a farm. They spent their days eating green grass in the summer and nibbling on crunchy hay in the winter. Their shelter was small but nice and filled with comfortable straw to rest on. In the morning the shepherd would pour out a small amount of corn for them as a treat. At bedtime they would follow the shepherd into the barn where they would each receive an animal cracker. It was a good life.

Then one cold and blustery day Sophia grew tired of the animal crackers. She thought they were bland and tasteless. She would rather have more corn. That night, when the other sheep followed the shepherd into the barn, she stayed outside and refused to go in. The shepherd asked "What's wrong, Sophia?"

"I don't like animal crackers, I would rather have corn" she said.

"But I don't have any corn, Sophia."

"Yes you do. It's in that little barn over there."

"No Sophia, it's time for bed. Come get your animal cracker."

"But there is corn in this building right here. Just behind the door. I know it's in there."


Sophia wouldn't give up. No matter how hard the shepherd tried to reason with her, Sophia wouldn't budge. "I'm not going to bed until you pour out some corn and that's all there is to it" she said.


"If you don't do what she says, we could be out here all night" whispered her friend Rose.

Finally the shepherd agreed, deciding a little corn wouldn't hurt anything. The news made Blanche jump straight up into the air. "It worked, it worked! We're getting corn" she shouted!

"Oh my goodness, I'm so excited! I can't believe it worked" said Dorothy as she kicked up her heels.

"Give us the corn, give us the corn, give us the corn" they all cheered as they danced around the shepherd.

"Yes, yes, I will but you must get ready for bed like good little sheep."

"Oh we will, we will" they said as they raced into the barn.


They enjoyed their bedtime snack and settled down for the night, bellies full, thinking about how wonderful the day had been. Sophia quietly chewed her cud, beaming with pride over what she had accomplished. She had heard of a breed of sheep called Leadersheep, part of the primitive flocks in Iceland. They were said to be the smartest of all sheep.

"Well, maybe not all sheep" she thought with a grin.

21 comments:

Patsy said...

The story was intense I was on the edge of my seat.LOL Loved it:
Patsy

Unknown said...

What is that old saying, "There is a sucker born every day"? Not that I am speaking from experience again:) I loved the story by the way!

Anonymous said...

Oh gosh - my spouse and I were chuckling away. :)

Jayne said...

I LOVE this story!! Sooo cute!

Vivian said...

Adorable story. Sophia is one VERY smart sheep, and I'm glad there was a wise story teller who could share the saga with us.

Theresa said...

Good story, Christine!

. . . I forgot to tell you that they know how to wrap you around their little hooves!

Karen Anne said...

I guess besides chickens, I'm now going to have to figure out some way to have sheep. How am I going to do this on a lot that measures 6,600 sq. ft...

Kara said...

Okay you HAVE to try to send that to a publisher...it would make a great children's book with your photos and all.

Lois said...

The story and the photos were grand! They are fortunate to have a shepherdess who listens....that we are the decision makers is a fantasy ;-)

Winona said...

Oh goodness! This was such a cute story. I loved it. You should write books. Winona

Michelle said...

"Sophia," I found you on my friend Carrie P's site and I just love to read about your day! I laugh and laugh when I see what you have been up to during the day.

Thank you, Thank you for sharing. It brings out the little girl in me that spent many hours on my babysitter's farm, tending the cows and sheep!

Michelle

StitchinByTheLake said...

You could be in big trouble now! It will be corn every single night. :) blessings, marlene

Lori Skoog said...

This could be a great Children's Book!
Nicely done.....

lisa said...

blanche, dorothy and rose? LOVE IT~

thecrazysheeplady said...

This is the very best story ever. Ever!

Nancy K. said...

The photos are adorable and the captions are absolutely perfect! Most excellent post!!

Maggie Ann said...

What a delightful post...love that picture of the sheep 'in the air'.

Dianne MacDonald said...

Who are these people who keep insisting that sheep are dumb? You and I both know it's just not true! I don't even want to admit how many times I've been outsmarted by my own flock.

LDWatkins said...

Cute story and loved the pics!

tonya said...

Fabulous story.. I loved it! I agree that you should think of making this a little kids book (or an adult book for sheep people like myself..lol) It's great!

Peacecat said...

I love this story, and the photos. Beautiful!