The Zoo
From Akita Wiki
Blue Sky English Course 2 (2021) pg. 120-125
| The Zoo | |
|---|---|
| 動物園 | |
| Details | |
| Word count | 461 |
| Book | Blue Sky |
| Grade | 2 |
| Year | 2021 |
| Kiroku: | Hmm, this place looks like a zoo.... Hello, is Mr. Hasegawa here? |
| Hasegawa: | Yes, yes, I am Hasegawa, manager of this zoo. Please sit down. |
| Kiroku: | Mr. Hasegawa, what do I have to do here? |
| Hasegawa: | Well, our tiger just died yesterday. He was very popular among the kids. So now, you'll be the tiger! |
| Kiroku: | What? Be a tiger? |
| Hasegawa: | Yes, a tiger! |
| Kiroku: | But how? |
| Hasegawa: | Easy! I made a tiger costume, so you can wear it. |
| Kiroku: | Well, I don't want to wear that and be a tiger.... Besides, I have some working conditions! I can only start from 10:00 in the morning. |
| Hasegawa: | Fine, the zoo opens at 10:00 a.m. |
| Kiroku: | I can't do any physical work. I just want to hang out. |
| Hasegawa: | Fine, you can just hang out in the tiger's cage. |
| Kiroku: | I need a nap. |
| Hasegawa: | Fine, sleep all you want. |
| Kiroku: | I want to get off work at 4:00 p.m. |
| Hasegawa: | The zoo closes at 4:00 p.m. And I'll pay you 10,000 yen a day. |
| Kiroku: | Hmm. I guess it's not a bad job. OK. I'll take it! |
| Hasegawa: | Well, good. Then put this costume on. |
| Kiroku: | Oh, Mr. Hasegawa! |
| Hasegawa: | What? |
| Kiroku: | What about my lunch? |
| Hasegawa: | I will bring you some chicken or something. |
| Kiroku: | Alive? Or dead? |
| Hasegawa: | It won't fly. It's fried. Now be quiet. People are coming soon. |
| Kiroku: | OK. I'll call you if I need anything. |
| Hasegawa: | No, don't call me! A tiger in the zoo doesn't call the manager! |
| Kiroku: | Wow. There are a lot of kids. What? Ha-ha, this kid is scared of me. He doesn't know I'm not a real tiger! Oh, this kid has ice cream in his hand. Looks good. I'm getting hungry now. Hey, kid, give me that ice cream! |
| Kid: | Mom, this tiger said he wanted my ice cream. |
| Mother: | No, a tiger doesn't eat ice cream. A tiger eats meat. |
| Kid: | But he wants it. I'll give it to him. |
| Kiroku: | Good! But this is hard to eat without a hand. |
| Kid: | Mom, this tiger is holding ice cream in its paw. |
| Mother: | Yeah, a weird tiger. |
| Kiroku: | Ha-ha, they ran away. |
| Announcement: | Ladies and gentlemen! And boys and girls! Please gather around the tiger's cage! It's showtime! |
| Kiroku: | A show? Here? No, no, I didn't hear about that! What show? |
| Announcement: | Thank you very much for coming today. Now we have a special event for all of you. We'll bring the lion's cage over here, and put the lion into the tiger's cage. The greatest fight between the lion and the tiger! Gather around! |
| Kiroku: | What? No way! 10,000 yen a day isn't good enough for this! I'll get hurt every day! No, no! Don't bring the lion's cage here! Don't! Aaah, the lion is coming! Help me! Help me! |
The cage opened and the lion came closer to Kiroku. Then the lion whispered in Kiroku's ear.
| Lion: | Don't worry, it's me. Hasegawa, the manager. |
[461 words]
