SLEEP

       Sleep is a temporary lapse of consciousness. During sleep, our central nervous system, breath, heart-beat, and muscle-tone are slowing down.

       Human sleep duration varies enormously. Babies sleep 18-20 hours a day, young children 12-14 hours, adults 7-9 hours, and older 5-7 hours.

       Some people nowadays suffer from insomnia. These people can not sleep easily. Insomnia is not an illness. It is a symptom of a sleeping disorder which can be caused by anxiety, depression, and excitement. It cannot be cured without getting rid of the problems which cause it. But temporary, insomnia can be overcome by drinking chamomile tea.

Satellites of Our Galaxy

     Our galaxy has a number of smaller neighbors, which are believed to be satellites of our galaxy. Some of them may "orbit" our galaxy for some time, but eventually, gravitational interactions between our galaxy and the various satellites will distort their structure, tear them to pieces, and cause those pieces to be absorbed by our galaxy. In fact, there are a number of star streams in the outlying portions of our galaxy which are believed to be satellite galaxies which are in the process of being absorbed. Such galactic "cannibalism" is thought to be the way in which galaxies grow, and the long-term fate of our own galaxy may well be a cataclysmic collision with the closest large galaxy, M31, in which each galaxy is torn to pieces, and becomes part of the galaxy which results from those pieces combining to form a new, still larger structure.

     The largest satellites of our galaxy are easily visible with the naked eye in southern skies, as apparently detached regions of the Milky Way. They are called the Magellanic Clouds, after Ferdinand Magellan, who noted them during his circumnavigation of the globe, in the mid 1500's. All other satellites are too small and too faint to be seen without a telescope, and in most cases, are difficult to distinguish from the star fields within our galaxy even with a telescope.

SILABUS BAHASA INGGRIS SMP KELAS 7, 8 DAN 9 KURIKULUM 2013 (FREE DOWNLOAD)

Silabus adalah rencana pembelajaran pada suatu kelompok mata pelajaran/tema tertentu yang mencakup standar kompetensi, kompetensi dasar, materi pokok/pembelajaran, kegiatan pembelajaran, indikator, penilaian, alokasi waktu, dan sumber/bahan/alat belajar. Silabus merupakan penjabaran standar kompetensi dan kompetensi dasar ke dalam materi pokok/pembelajaran, kegiatan pembelajaran, dan indikator pencapaian kompetensi untuk penilaian.

Silabus merupakan seperangkat rencana serta pengaturan pelaksanaan pembelajaran dan penilaian yang disusun secara sistematis memuat komponen-komponen yang saling berkaitan untuk mencapai penguasaan kompetensi dasar. (Yulaelawati, Ella. 2004. Kurikulum dan Pembelajaran: Filosofi, Teori dan Aplikasi. Bandung:Pakar Raya)

Berikut ini saya berikan contoh silabus pelajaran Bahasa Inggris SMP kelas 7, 8 dan 9 menggunakan kurikulum 2013 yang dapat anda download.

SILABUS BAHASA INGGRIS SMP KELAS 7 KURIKULUM 2013
SILABUS BAHASA INGGRIS SMP KELAS 8 KURIKULUM 2013
SILABUS BAHASA INGGRIS SMP KELAS 9 KURIKULUM 2013

FAMILY CAMPING

The weather was very clear. My family and I decided to go camping last holiday. Father prepared the tent and other equipment. Mother prepared the cooking and eating utensils. I took my fishing rod and my brother brought his sport equipment. When everything was ready, we left for the camping site in countryside.

There were many campers when we arrived at the camping site. Unfortunately, the good location near the river had been occupied by other campers so we had to look for another place. Finally, we found a good place little bit further. It was near a big tree. After setting up the tent, my father and I went fishing. We joined other people sitting on the rock near the river.

In the evening, father made a fire. Mother cooked the fish we caught. I could say that it was the best fish I had ever tasted. Sleeping in the tent was a very wonderful experience. I woke up early in the morning. I felt fresh. Then I accompanied my brother playing ball.

                 In the afternoon, we came back home.

My Daughter's 1st Birthday

On my daughter's 1^st  birthday, I made a cake for her. I decorated it with the Disney characters, Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. It was such a wonderful experience for me. My wife inspired me to make this special birthday cake. She is very good at making cakes.

On that day, I went and got all items for the cake. I had never made a cake before, so I felt a little bit nervous. Before I made the cake, I imagined how to decorate it, then I started right away. I chose the flavour. I made a cake with chocolate flavour. I followed the steps in the recipe carefully. And finally I could make it. It was not bad at all. All the people and the children who were invited to the birthday party liked the cake. I was very proud. My wife told the guests that I made the birthday cake. I felt satisfied when they were surprised that I could make a cake. Since then making cakes has become one of my hobbies. 

BEES

Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. There are nearly 20,000 known species of bees in nine recognized families though many are indescribable and the actual number is probably higher. They are found on every continent except Antarctica, in every habitat on the planet that contains insect-pollinated flowering plants.

Bees have a long proboscis (a complex "tongue") that enables them to obtain the nectar from flowers. They have antennae almost universally made up of 13 segments in males and 12 in females, as is typical for the super family. Bees all have two pairs of wings, the hind pair being the smaller of the two; in a very few species, one sex or caste has relatively short wings that make flight difficult or impossible, but none are wingless.

The smallest bee is Trigona minima, a sting less bee whose workers are about 2.1 mm (5/64") long. The largest bee in the world is Megachile Pluto, a leaf cutter bee whose females can attain a length of 39 mm (1.5"). Members of the family Halictidae, or sweat bees, are the most common type of bee in the Northern Hemisphere, though they are small and often mistaken for wasps or flies.

KOMODO DRAGON

Do you know what is the largest lizard? This lizard is called komodo. It lives in the scrub and woodland of a few Indonesian islands.

Komodo dragon is the world's heaviest lizard, weighing 150 pounds or more. The largest Komodo ever measured was more than 10 feet (3 meters) long and weighed 366 pounds (166 kg) but the average size of komodo in the wild is about 8 feet (2.5 meters) long and 200 pounds (91 kg)

Komodo has gray scaly skin, a pointed snout, powerful limbs and a muscular tail. They use their keen sense of smell to locate decaying animal remains from several miles away. They also hunt other lizards as well as large mammals and are sometimes cannibalistic.

The Komodo dragon's teeth are almost completely covered by its gums. When it feeds, the gums bleed, creating an ideal culture for virulent bacteria. The bacteria that live in the Komodo dragon's saliva causes septicemia, or blood poisoning, in its victims. A dragon will bite its prey, then follow it until the animal is too weak to carry on.

This lizard species is threatened by hunting, loss of prey species and habitat loss.

THE LEGEND OF TOBA LAKE

Once upon a time, there was a man who was living in north Sumatra. He lived in a simple hut in a farming field. The did some gardening and fishing for his daily life.

One day, while the man was do fishing, he caught a big golden fish in his trap. It was the biggest catch which he ever had in his life. Surprisingly, this fish turned into a beautiful princess. He felt in love with her and proposed her to be his wife. She said; "Yes, but you have to promise not to tell anyone about the secret that I was once a fish, otherwise there will be a huge disaster". The man made the deal and they got married, lived happily and had a daughter.

Few years later, this daughter would help bringing lunch to her father out in the fields. One day, his daughter was so hungry and she ate his father’s lunch. Unfortunately, he found out and got furious, and shouted; “You damned daughter of a fish”. The daughter ran home and asked her mother. The mother started crying, felt sad that her husband had broke his promise. 

Then she told her daughter to run up the hills because a huge disaster was about to come. When her daughter left, she prayed. Soon there was a big earthquake followed by non-stop pouring rain. The whole area got flooded and became Toba Lake. She turned into a fish again and the man became the island of Samosir.

CLEOPATRA

One of the most famous women in world history was Cleopatra VII. She was the brilliant and beautiful last Pharaoh of Egypt. Historically, she became queen of Egypt in 51 B.C. at the age of eighteen. She was a Ptolemy, descended from one of Alexander the Great's generals. When she was twenty-one, Julius Caesar became her lover. Seven years later she met Antony. The romantic tragic relationship continued until they died by suicide in 30 B.C.

Cleopatra was legendary. She was famous not only for her breathtaking beauty but also for her great intellect. She had brown eyes and they were shaped like cat eyes. Her skin was in fact an olive shade, darker than Hollywood actress Liz Taylor who portrayed her in the film 'Cleopatra' in 1963. She had medium dark brown hair, about to the middle of her shoulder blades. She had a reputation as an extraordinarily sensuous woman.

Cleopatra was a woman of remarkable poise and unusual intelligence. She was highly educated. She spoke proficiently in nine languages and also skilled in mathematics. She is often considered to be a stunning seductress though she was studying to be a nun. Cleopatra was a very intelligent queen and a politician with a great charisma.

AGLONEMA

Aglonema is a genus of about 40 species of foliage plant in the Araceae family, native to the tropical swamps and rainforests of south eastern Asia from Bangladesh east to the Philippines and north to southern China.  No common names are widely used, though they are sometimes called ‘Chinese evergreen’.

They can grow to 20-50 cms in height. The leaves are alternate on the stems, lanceolate to narrowly oval, dark to medium green, 10-40 cm long and  4-16 cm broad, depending on the species. The flowers are  relatively tinconspicuous, white or greenish-white spathes that can give way to red berries.

The sap of this plant is poisonous to health. It causes irritation in skin and if taken orally causes irritation of mouth, lips, throat and tongue.

The Goose that Laid Golden Eggs

Once up on a time, there lived a happy family in a village. A man and his wife lived happily on a little farm, tending their flock of geese and selling their eggs at the market. They were not rich, but they were happy with their life together.
         Then one day a new goose flew in among their flock. The couple was surprised to find a shiny golden egg in her nest. Each and every day after that, the goose laid another egg of solid gold.

The couple was soon richer than they had ever dreamed of, but they were not happy. They grew impatient with only one golden egg a day. The farmer said to his wife, “Our goose must be full of gold. Why should we wait to have more eggs?”

“If we cut her open,” his wife agreed, ”We can get all the eggs at once .” So they killed the goose! They were very surprise to find that it was just like any other goose inside. Even worse, there would never be any more golden eggs!

Octopus

The Octopus is a sea animal with eight powerful feet which it uses as hands. These are called tentacles. The word “Octopus” comes from two greet words that mean “eight feet”.

                The octopus, the squid and the cuttlefish belong to the same family that has no outside shells. Their bodies are covered entirely with skin. Therefore the body of an octopus is soft. It looks like a big balloon. A fully-grown octopus can be as large as 8,5 metres from the tip of one tentacles to the tip of another. It can weigh as much as 45 kilograms.

                Besides using its tentacles to catch small fish, sea plants, crab and lobsters, the octopus also uses them against its enemies. The octopus wraps its tentacles around the victim and squeezes it before eating it.

                The octopus escapes from its enemies by giving out a thick dark fluid to darken the water. It can also change the colour of its body to match its surroundings. It hides from its enemies by doing this. 

The Wax Palace

When you go to Jakarta, please visit this unique palace, “Istana Lilin” (The Wax Palace) in the Ciputat area.

                Entering the building, you will be welcomed by beautiful yellow sunflowers. They are not the real ones, of course. They are wax sunflowers. However, you will not realize it until you touch them because they look so real.

                Inside the palace, you can find many things made of wax. There are wax balls, wax fish, wax rice, wax ice cream, wax cakes, and many more. Many restaurants order models of food and drink made of wax to be put in their displays.

                In addition, to the beauty of the wax objects, you can also see the process of making them. If you are interested in learning how to make the wax things, you can join a one-day course there.

Papua

Papua is the largest province of Indonesia. It lies south of the equator and it is known as a naturalist’s paradise.

          Papua is predominantly mountainous. The Maoke Mountains run from west to east and contain the province’s highest peak, Puncak Jaya (5,03 m/16,503 ft), which is also the highest peak in Indonesia. The beauty of Puncak Jaya has amazed lots of climbers. Once in a while it shows them all of its beauty, only to be covered in the veil of mist a minute later.

          Papua is also known for its amazing forest fauna. Animal life in the province includes many species of marsupials such as tree-kangaroos, wallabies, possums, and cuscuses. There are more than 200 species of frogs and as many as 100,000 species of insects, including many beetles and spiders. Papua is especially noted for its flying fauna. Birdwing butterflies are found in many areas, and more than 600 species of birds have been identified, including the brush turkey, the bowerbird, the cassowary, and the spectacular birds of paradise.

          Indeed, Papua is a province of outstanding, natural interest and beauty.                                                                                                          

                                                                                                       (Adapted from: Microsoft ®Encarta ®2006)

My Grandmother

My Grandmother is a very gentle, loving, and caring person. She never raises her voice at anyone. She has lived with me for as long as I can remember. She takes care of me when Mom and Dad go to work.

          My Grandmother is a very neat and tidy person. She has very dry grey hair which she usually pulls up into a bun. She has dark brown eyes that twinkle whenever she sees me. I hardly ever see them wet.

          Grandmother likes to tell stories. She usually tells me brief stories of her childhood and expresses them very well with her tired, old, wrinkled hands. Sometimes, she also tells story about my Grandfather who has passed away. My dear Grandmother always says good things about him. She once told me that he was the nicest person she had ever met.

          I really love my Grandmother.

Tomb of King Tongmyong

One of the places to visit in Korea is the Tomb of King Tongmyong. He was the founder of the Koguryo dynasty.

                In this place, visitors can observe the story of the great king from the exquisite paintings in the Memorial Service Hall. In the building, the red color of the pillars dominates the scene.

                The tomb, or the complex of tombs to be exact, as there are also tombs of generals and ministers, is situated outside the city of Pyongyang. It is a verdant and cool place. There are lines of pine trees, which people believe to be being centuries-old, on the left and right sides of the tomb. Like a lot of other historical buildings, the tomb has also been renovated.

                What are special in this tomb complex are the murals on the tomb walls. UNESCO has registered the murals in its world cultural heritage list.

                                                            (Adapted from “Travelongue-Jakarta International Airport Magazine”)

Disney World Resort

Disney World Resort is one of the most visited and largest recreational resorts in the world. It has four different theme parks: The Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney-MGM Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

The Magic Kingdom theme park is the park first built in the resort. These theme park is represented by Cinderella’s castle. It has about forty-eight attractions in seven themed lands.

Unlike the Magic Kingdom, Epcot contains tunnels underneath the buildings. The tunnels are used primarily for the support facilities necessary for merchandise shops and restaurants. Spaceship Earth is the icon of Epcot. At Epcot, guests can visit Future World that offers innovative aspects and applications of technology. Guests can also visit pavilions representing eleven countries such as China, United Kingdom, France, Morocco, Japan, and Italy in World Showcase.

The other two theme parks at Disney World Resort are Disney-MGM Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom. At Disney-MGM Studios, guests can enjoy rides and shows based on Hollywood movies. At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, guests can take a safari ride to see elephants, giraffes, hippos, rhinos, and lions. There are also two Disney water parks: Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon. Both parks have water slides and other adventures.

                                                                             (Adapted from: Microsoft ®Encarta ®2006)

A Folktale from Minahasa

   

  

A long time ago in Minahasa lived an old man with his grandson, Nando. Nando was limped. He could not walk well. His grandfather loved him very much. He never permitted Nando to go out alone. Nando's grandfather's job was looking for wood in the jungle. Nando really wanted to go to the forest with him but he never gave permission. But finally he let Nando to go to the forest with him.

In the forest, Nando walked slowly behind his grandfather. He was very excited. He saw some monkeys. When his grandfather looked back, he was shocked. Nando was lost. He looked for him everywhere but he couldn't find him. Sadly, the grandfather went back home.

The following day, the grandfather was back to the jungle. When he was walking, he heard a strange bird making sound "Moo poo ... Moo poo". He felt the bird said, "Opoku ... Opoku". It means "My grandpa ... My grandpa ...... The grandfather was surprised. He approached the bird. It was limped. There were tears in the bird's eyes. He knew that Nando had changed into a bird.. 

THE LEGEND OF PARI TEMPLE

A long time ago, there lived an old man in Penanggungan Mountain. His name was Kiai Gede Penanggungan. He had supernatural power. Kiai Gede Penanggungan had a beautiful daughter named Dewi Walangangin who hadn't married yet. Kiai Gede Penanggungan prayed days and nights for her daughter to have a husband. One day, a young handsome man came to his place. The name of the man is Jaka Pandelengan. He wanted to be Kiai Gede Penanggungan's student. Kiai Gede agreed to have Jaka as his student with one condition that he would marry her daughter. Jaka Pandelengan and Dewi Walangangin soon got married. Kiai Gede Penanggungan taught Jaka many things.

After several years, now it was time for the couple to live separately with Kiai Gede Penanggungan. They would move to another village. Kiai Gede gave some seeds of pari or paddy to the couple. He asked the couple to plant the seed. He also warned the couple not to be arrogant when they were rich from planting the seed. He wanted the couple to helped poor people. The couple started a new life. They planted the seed. Soon, the seeds grew a lot of rice. Now the couple became very rich. The poor neighbours came to the couple to ask for some pari seed. But the couple refused to help them.

Kiai Gede heard the couple's bad behavior. Soon he visited the couple. He met them when the couple was working in the field. Kiai Gede talked to the couple. He reminded the couple not to be arrogant. But the couple ignored him. They said nothing to Kiai Gede. Kiai Gede got very angry. Then he said, "You two are like temples. You cannot listen to me." Right after he said those words, an incredible thing happened. Slowly, Jaka and Dewi turned into temples. Because the temples stood among the pari, people then named them as Pari Temple.

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One day a big ship wrecked near a small island. The only survivor of the shipwreck washed up on a small, empty island. He prayed for God to rescue him, and very day he watched the horizon for help, but no one seemed coming. He built a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the bad weather and to keep his few possessions. One day, after looking for food, he arrived home to find his little hut on fire, the smoke rolling up to the sky. The bad thing had happened; he lost everything. He was very sad. "God, how could you do this to me!" he cried.

             Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him. "How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man to his rescuers. "We saw your smoke signal," they replied. The man thanked God for that.

THE LEGEND OF TANGKUBAN PERAHU

Long time ago in West Java, lived a woman named Dayang Sumbi. She lived alone in the forest. One day Dayang Sumbi was quilting when suddenly, her quilt fell off from her house. Then she prayed to Gods, "If a man picks up my quilt, he will be my husband. If a woman, she will be my sister." Then, a male dog picks it up. For keeping her words, Dayang Sumbi married the dog and called him Tumang. Dayang Sumbi gave birth to a baby, named him Sangkuriang, but never told him who his father was.

One day, Sangkuriang was hunting with Tumang in the forest and he found nothing. He blamed Tumang for the failure and killed him. When Dayang Sumbi knew that, she hit Sangkuriang's head with a big spoon and asked him to go.

Many years later, the wandering Sangkuriang found a house in the forest, and an old beautiful woman was in the house. The woman, Dayang Sumbi, recognized the adventurer as Sangkuriang. Sangkuriang forced her to marry him and Dayang Sumbi asked him to make a vast boat in one night. In the night, Sangkuriang called his friends, ghosts and forest fairies to help him. Dayang Sumbi feared the boat could be finished on time, so she asked some women nearby to help her. The woman hit the grains with grain puncher to make noise which disturbed the ghosts and the fairies. The ghosts and the fairies ran away before completing the boat. Sangkuriang was very angry. He kicked away the boat upside down, and it turned into a mountain called Tangkuban Perahu. It means the downside boat, which stood in the north of Bandung.

THE FOX AND THE CROW

Once upon a time, there lived an old lady crow who was mean and ugly. One day, Miss Crow had stolen a big piece of cheese. And then, she flew on to a branch to enjoy it.

On the other place, under the three, a sly creature, Mr. Fox, who wanted the cheese for himself, came up and spoke politely to her.

“Oh. Miss Crow, how beautiful you are! What a lovely beak, what lovely feathers you have! What pretty eyes! If only you could sing, you would be the most beautiful bird in the world!”

Very pleased to hear all of this about herself, Miss Crow gave a loud croak to show that she could sing.

Of course, the moment she opened her beak, the cheese fell down, and Mr. Fox ran away with it, laughing loudly.

The Stingy and the Generous

Long, long time ago, there lived two brothers. They had completely different characters. The big brother was very stingy and greedy.  He never shared his wealth with poor people. The little brother was exactly the opposite. He was generous and kind to poor people. He even had no money left because he had shared it with the poor.

One day, the generous brother was sitting in his garden when suddenly a little bird fell on his lap. It was wounded. He took care of it, fed it and put it in a nice cage. After the bird was healthy, the generous brother let it fly.  After sometime, the bird returned to him and gave him a watermelon seed.

The generous brother, then, planted the seed and watered it until it grew into a good watermelon plant.  it until it grew into a good watermelon plant. Yet, the plant was very strange. It had only one fruit, a big and heavy one. When the water melon was ripe enough, the generous brother pick it and cut it into two. How surprised he was. The watermelon was full of gold.

The generous brother sold the gold and became very rich. He built a big house and bought a very large field. Still he never forgot to share his wealth with the poor.

MAGIC CANDLE

Once upon  a time, there was a young wanderer who got lost in the woods. The young wanderer walked slowly around the woods without a clear directions night and day. One day, he saw a light from an old hut and found an old woman crying.

“What happened to you, old woman? Why are you crying?” asked the young wanderer.

“My…oh…my…. I had a magic candle that could grant anything I asked. But, the devil stole it from me and took it the castle. Now, I do not have anything left. I will be starving to death. My….oh….my…..!” said the old woman.

“Don’t worry old woman,” said the young wanderer, “I’ll go to the castle and take the candle and give it back to you real soon. I promise.”

Then the young wanderer went to the castle where he found the devil. The devil looked mean but he was old and weak. The young wanderer quietly stepped into the room and quickly grabbed the magic candle from the devil’s table. Then he ran away as fast as he could.  

The young wanderer, however, was not a kind man. He didn’t return the candle to the old woman, but kept it for himself. He lit the candle and made a wish, ”I want to go far away from here.” Suddenly, the genies appeared and took him to a beautiful palace. He met a beautiful princess and fell in love with her. He told her about his adventure and the magic candle. After listening to his story, the princess was disappointed and got angry at the same time. At night, she lit the candle and made the wish. “Let the wanderer pay for his mistake,“ whispered the princess. In the morning, the wanderer awoke and found himself lying back in his ugly house in the village. 

The Prince and His Best Friend

Once upon a time, there lived a kind young prince named Jonathan. He was loved, and adored by his people. His two close friends were Peter Piper, the servant of the palace and Franklin Greedy, the son of an Aristocrat.

        One day, The Prince, Peter Piper, and Franklin Greedy were walking through the forest. Suddenly a group of bandits attacked the three boys near an old house. They entered the old house and blockaded the gate doors. The three boys were trapped inside the house.

        Franklin was very terrified and asked the Prince to surrender immediately, but Peter was not afraid. He urged and supported the Prince not to give up. The Prince decided not to surrender because he realized that he would become a hostage for the bandits to ask for ransom to his father, but Franklin was scared and wanted to make a deal. It made Peter suspicious about Franklin’s behavior.

So, he quietly made up a plan for him and the Prince to escape.

        Early at dawn, Franklin opened the front gate and unlocked the doors. The bandits entered the house in search of the Prince. When they came to the room where the Prince was supposed to be sleeping, no one was there. Suddenly they heard a horse running outside the house and saw over the window that Peter Piper and the Prince were riding on one of the bandit’s horses.

        It turns out. Peter Piper sneaked out of the house and waited in the yard, while the Prince was hiding behind he house. The bandits were very angry at Franklin and took him with them while the Prince and Peter went safely going back to the Capital.

THE LION AND THE MOUSE

A lion was sleeping one day when a little mouse came along and ran up and down over his face.

This awakened the lion and made him very angry. He put his paw over the mouse and said, “What do you mean by waking me? You shall pay for this,” and he opened his big mouth to swallow the mouse.

“Oh, do not kill me, Mr. Lion!” squealed the mouse.  “I did not mean to waken you. Do let me go and I will never trouble you again.”

“No, I will not let you go,” roared the lion.

“Please do,” cried the frightened mouse. “If you let me go perhaps I can do something for you sometime.”

This made the lion laugh. “You do something for me,” he said. “What a joke! Well, you are such a little fellow that I will let you go this time, but never let me see you about here again,” and he lifted his paw.

As the little mouse scampered off, he said, “Thank you, kind lion, I shall not forget your kindness.”

Some time after this, the lion was caught in a trap. The hunters tied him to a tree then they went to get a wagon to carry him away.

The lion roared so loud that the ground shook. The little mouse heard him.

“That lion is in trouble,” he said. “I will see what I can do to help him,” and he ran to the lion.

When the mouse saw that the lion was tied with ropes, he said, “Cheer up, Mr. Lion. Be quiet and I will set you free,” and he began gnawing the ropes. He worked long and hard and at last, the lion was free.

                                      ( from “Fifty Famous Fables” by Lida Brown McMurry)

LITTLE BROTHER, LITTLE SISTER

Maltreated by their stepmother, who was a witch, a little brother and sister fled into the woods. After running for a while, the brother said, “I’m so thirsty. Let’s find a spring and have a drink.”

        However, as the young boy bent down to drink, his sister heard a voice which said, “Who drinks from me will turn into a fawn.” It was the witch! Too late, the sister tried to prevent her brother from drinking. The young boy hanged at once into a fawn. In tears, the little girl made a lead and collar out of her belt, and led the fawn off into the woods. There they found an abandoned cottage and lived together, far from any danger.

        One day, however, the king was hunting in he woods, and he spied the fawn, which could not resist the urge to wander away from the cottage. The king and his hunters chased the fawn all the way back home. There, the king followed it into he cottage, where he found a young girl stroking the frightened animal. She was so beautiful and gentle that the king fell in love with her at once. He asked her to be his wife, and his words caused the maiden to cry for joy. When one of her tears fell on the fawn, it changed back to her brother once more. Their goodness and love had overcome the witch’s evil spell, and they lived safely and happily with the king for ever after.

                                                                         Taken from “366 and More Fairy Tales”, 1990.

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Once upon a time, there lived a woman who had two daughters. The younger daughter was generous and kindhearted, but her older sister was greedy and mean. She always bullied her younger sister.

One day, both of them went to the forest, looking for firewood. When they were taking a rest, a poor old woman came to them and begged for a drink. The older girl said sharply ,”Go away! I don’t have anything to share with you!” But the younger sister said kindly, “Drink as much as you like.” She poured water into a tin cup for the old woman.

“Thank you child. I will repay your kindness with a gift.” She gave the older sister a gift too. And suddenly the old woman disappeared.

The two girls went home and met their mother. When the younger daughter explained what had happened, the jewels dropped from her mouth. And when the older one began to speak, out of her mouth came three snakes every time she spoke.

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One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people lived.

            They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.

     On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, “How was the trip?”

“It was great, Dad.”

“Did you see how poor people live?” the father asked

“Oh yeah,” said the son

“So,can you  tell me what you learned from the trip?” asked the father.

The son answered: “I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches us, to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them.”

The boy’s father was speechless.

Then, his son added, “Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are.”

The Legend of Banyuwangi

      Once upon a time, in Eastern part of java Island, there was a kingdom ruled by a king. The king’s name was Prabu Menak Prakoso. One day, Prabu Menak Prakoso and his soldiers invaded the Kingdom of Klungkung in Bali. The king of Klungkung was killed on the battlefield, yet his daughter, Made Surati, and his son, Agung Bagus Mantra, were able to escape and hide in the jungle.

      Prabu Menak Prakoso had a son named Raden Banterang. He was such a handsome young man. One day, Raden banterang went to the jungle for hunting. It was in the jungle that Raden Banterang met Made Surati. She was then taking to Blambangan to be his wife. Raden Banterang and Made Surati enjoyed  a happy life in the palace.

      When Raden Banterang was hunting one day, Made Surati was surprised by the arrivealof a dirty beggar asking for her pity. The princess was surprised to find that the beggar was her older brother, Agung Bagus Mantra. She promptly squatted and embraced her brother’s legs. However, her great respect of her brother was not well accepted. Instead, Agung Bagus Mantra asked his sister to kill Raden banterang, but such a request was rejected. He was very angry with her and came up with a sky idea to slander her.

      Slowly but surely, Agung succeded in convincing Raden Banterang that his wife had been involved in a scandal with another man. Asking for compassion, Made Surati tried to tell the truth and denied her husband’s accusation. Hearing his wife’s explanation, the king became angrier and angrier. As a proof of her sacred love, she asked her husband to kill her. As a last request. She asked her husband to throw her dead body into the river. She said that if the water in the river smelled terrible, it meant that she had ever been sinful, but if it smelled fragrant it meant that she was innocent.

      Raden Banterang who was unable to control his emotions soon stabbed his keris (dagger) into his wife’s chest. She died instantly. The dead body of Made Surati was quickly thrown into the dirty river. Raden Banterang was shocked to see the river suddenly become clean and as clear as glass with a fragrant smell. Raden Banterang screamed crazily and regretted his deed. He walked unsteadily and fell into the river screaming, ‘Banyu...Wangi...Banyuwangi!’ This means “Fragrant water”.

      Banyuwangi was born from the proof of noble and sacred love. From then on, the place is called Banyuwangi.

                                                            (Adapted from : www.eastjava.com/tourist/banyuwangi)

THE FARMER AND THE DONKEY

One day, an old farmer and his son wanted to sell their donkey at the market. On their way there, they met some girls. “Look at those fools! They are walking instead of riding the donkey,” said the girls. When the farmer heard this, he told his son to ride on the donkey.

A few minutes later, they saw some old men. “Get down, you lazy boy! Get down and let your poor father ride!” said the old men. The father quickly told his son to get down. Then he sat on the donkey while his son walked.

Soon, they met a group of woman. “Poor boy, he looks so tired. He should be riding on the donkey, too,” they said. Upon hearing this, the farmer told his son to sit behind him on the donkey.

They had almost reached town when they saw some villagers. One of them said, “Excuse, me. Does the donkey belong to you?”

“Yes,” replied the farmer.

“Poor animal, he can hardly walk. You lazy people should get down and carry him instead.” Said the villager.

The farmer and his son quickly got down. They tied the donkey’s legs together and carried him. The donkey started kicking. It broke the rope and ran off. They lost their donkey. 

MALIN KUNDANG

Long, long time ago an old woman, Mande Rubiah, lived at a village near Muara Padang.  She had a son, called Malin Kundang.  The old woman loved her son very much.  When he was fifteen years old, he worked as a porter at Muara.

One day a skipper asked him to work on his ship.  Malin told his mother that he liked to accept the offer.  Malin worked hard on the ship.

The skipper liked him.  One day the skipper fell ill.  He called Malin Kundang and his daughter Nilam Sari.  The skipper said, “You must become husband and wife.  I give all my wealth to you, malin.”  He died and Malin Kundang married Nilam Sari.  He became proud and greedy.  He forgot everything.  Mande Rubiah waited for her son nearly ten years.

One day, a beautiful ship came to Muara.  The ship belonged to Malin Kundang.  Malin Kundang got out of the ship proudly.  Made Rubiah was at Muara.  She was sure the owner of the ship was her son.  She shouted, “Malin! Malin! My son!”  She tried to embrace him, but he felt ashamed to confess it.  He instead laughed.  “Insane woman! Stay away!”  He asked his guards to chase her.  She fell down.  Malin got on the ship.  The ship sailed.  When the ship turned to Gunung Padang, the old woman knelt down.  She cried and prayed, “God, show him your power, my son is sinful.”  Then the storm hit Malin’s ship and a lightening stinged him, making him burnt and turned him into a stone.

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Once upon a time in the cave there lived a big and fierce dragon.  He could breathe out fire from his nose.  He was very proud of it because this ultimate weapon could burn down houses and lands.

One day, he heard from his old companions that there was a strong dragon who challenged every dragon to defeat him.  So he flew out of his cave to take the challenge.  Along the way he showed of his strength by burning every house and land he found.  No one could stop him.  He was so proud because he could make everything out of his way.  But, after several hundred miles from his cave, the weather changed.  The cloud became darker.  Then suddenly, a very thick fog approached.  Blindly, he moved his wings to find the right direction, but unfortunately, he hit one giant tree.  He broke his leg and fell to the ground. This made his right wing broken.  Now the dragon should walk on his feet to return home.  Moreover, on the way home the people whose houses and lands were burnt by the dragon ran after it.  Poor dragon!

THE MILKMAID

A milkmaid was on her way to the market to sell some milk from her cow. As she carried the large jug of milk on top of her head she began to dream of all things she could do after selling the milk.

“With that money, I’ll buy a hundred chicks to rear in my backyard. When they are fully grown, I can sell them at a good price at the market.”

As she walked on, she continued dreaming,” Then I’ll buy two young goats and rear them on the grass close by. When they are fully grown, I can sell them at an even better price!”

Still dreaming, she said to herself, ”Soon, I’ll be able to buy another cow, and I will have more milk to sell. Then I shall have even more money….”

With these happy thoughts, she began to skip and jump. Suddenly she tripped and fell. The jug broke and the milk spilt onto the ground.

No more dreaming now, she sat down and cried.

MBOK GENDONG

One day in a village lived an old grandmother. She was called Mbok Gendong. She was widow. She replaced her husband work as a fisher.

One particular day, she brought a fish net to catch fish. She threw the net and drew it back. Once, when she drew the net back, there was a gold snail hooked in her net. She took it home and placed it in clean water. The day after that, she quit as fisher and sold a teak leave again. She was disappointed because it was not saleable.

When she got home, she found there was delicious food on the table. This happened every day, so she was eager to know who made the food. She pretended to leave home. She went back quickly and she was so surprised. There was a princess snail at her house. The princess was Candra Kirana. She told her that she was changed into a snail by a witch.

One morning there was a beggar who asked for food. Candra Kirana gave him some food. Suddenly, he changed into a handsome man. Actually, he was Morgan Kusuma Prince, Candra Kirana’s husband. Finally, the prince and princess lived happily and they took Mbok Gendong with them

UMBUT MUDA

Once upon a time, lived a beautiful young girl in Sumatra. Her name was Umbut Muda. She was very rich because when her father died, she inherited all his money and the house. She became nasty and proud of herself. Even she didn’t respect to her mother. She ordered her mother to clean the house, wash her clothes, and cook for her. One day, there was a feast in another village. Umbut Muda attended the feast. She wore her most beautiful dress and all her jewelries. Her mother was with her, holding the umbrella to protect Umbut Muda from the sun. When they passed a bridge, Umbut Muda dropped one of her bracelets. The bracelet fell into the river. She ordered her mother to go down to the river and get the bracelet, but the river flooded. The bracelet was drowned and could not be seen. The mother failed to get the bracelet back. Umbut Muda was furious. She yelled at her mother, ”You are stupid and lazy woman!” she said. “Go down to the river again and get my bracelet back!  ”she stamped her feet and didn’t   realize that the bridge was slippery. Suddenly she slipped over and fell into the river. She screamed for help. Her mother was trying to help her, but the stream was too fast. Umbut Muda was drowned. Umbut Muda’s mother was very sad. She couldn’t save her daughter’s soul.

Two Frogs

            Two frogs had lived in a village all their lives. They thought they would like to go and see the big city that was about ten miles away.

            They talked about it for a long time, and at last they set off to see the city.

            It was a hot day, and they soon began to feel tired. They had only gone a little way when one said to the other, “We must be nearly there. Can you see the city?”

            “No,” said the other frog; “but if I climb on your back I might be able to see it.”

            So he climbed up on the back of the other frog to see the city.

            Now when the frog put up his head, his eyes could only see what was behind, and not what was in front. So he saw the village they had just left.

            “Can you see the city?”, asked the frog who was below.

            “Yes,” answered the frog who had climbed up. “I can see it. It looks just like our village.”

            Then the frog thoughts that it was not worthwhile going any farther. They went back and told the frogs round the village that they had seen the city, and it was just like theirs.