Stories for Storytelling Contest (Category : Junior High School)

Hello, young storytellers!

These are the stories for Storytelling contest in Junior High School Category.

Remember that the participants are not going to choose the stories by themselves.

To get information of which story that you are going to perform, you have to register yourself by contacting Kak Ipit (089692167612). And you will get a lottery that reveals the story destined for you!

1. The Red Dragons versus the White Dragon

   

Folklore from South Kalimantan

ONCE upon a time in South Kalimantan, there was a family. The father was a fisherman. The fisherman had a wife and a son. His son was still a little boy. The fisherman and his wife loved him very much.

The fisherman made living from catching fish in the river. He had a small sampan and a net. Everyday he rowed his sampan along the river. He threw the net and caught the fish.

However, one day he could not catch any fish. He was curious why the fish was gone. He threw his net once again. Then as he felt the net was heavy, he pulled it carefully. When he saw his net, he was disappointed. He did not catch any fish but instead, there was a big egg in his net. He threw the egg back to the river. He threw his net again.

Suddenly, he felt the net was heavy. This time he really hoped he caught a lot of fish. Sadly, there was no fish at all. Again, he found a big egg in his net. And he threw the egg back to the river.

Later, he threw the net back to the river. And it happened again. He did not catch any fish, but he caught a big egg. The fisherman gave up. He did not want to go home with empty hands. So he brought the egg home.

When he arrived at home, he told his wife that he could not catch any fish. Instead, he caught a big egg. He asked his wife to boil the egg. When it was cooked, they both ate the egg.

Meanwhile, their son was sleeping. They did not eat the whole egg. The rest of the egg was still on the plate. Later, the fisherman and his wife went to bed.

In the morning, they both woke up. They felt something very strange with their body. They had red scales all over their bodies. They also had tails. Their bodies grew bigger. The fisherman and his wife had changed into red dragons.

They were shocked! They ran away from the house and jumped to the river. They swam and they found another dragon. And it was a white dragon.

“Ha ha ha.. You have eaten the egg.And now you have changed into a dragon like me!” said the white dragon.

“What do you mean?” asked the fisherman.

“I hate you. I know you always catch the fish here..The fish is my food too. I want to stop you catching the fish. So I put the egg in your net. The egg is a magic egg. Anyone who eats the egg will change into a dragon” said the white dragon.

The fisherman was angry. He wanted to attack the white dragon. Suddenly he remembered his son. He asked his wife to go back home and told him not to eat the egg.

The fisherman’s wife immediately went home. When she arrived, her son already woke up, He was crying looking for his parents. He was so scared when he saw a dragon at home.

“Don’t be afraid, my son. It’s me. I’m your mother. Your father and I have changed into dragons. Please don’t eat the egg on the plate. Otherwise you will change into a dragon too. Right now, your father is fighting against the white dragon. I will follow him. After this, you go to the river. If you see the water in the river changed into white, it means your father and I already kill the white dragon. But if you see the water is red, it means we are dead,” later she went back to the river.

The boy then went to the river. He was waiting for days. After a while, he saw the water changed into white. After that, his parents appeared and swam to the river side.

The father said, “My son, we cannot be together anymore. Your mother and I will stay in the river forever. But don’t worry, we will always guard you.” Then they swam back to the river and disappeared.

Until now, the people in Kalimantan believe that dragons still live in the rivers. People from Dayak Tribe also believe that when a dragon shows up in the river, the rain will fall down heavily and flood the area.

2. The Legend of Batu Hapu Cave

Folklore from South Kalimantan

IN Tapin, South Kalimantan, there is a tourist destination. There is a cave and people name it Batu Hapu Cave. The locals say that there is a legend how the cave was made. Do you want to know the story? Read on!

Once upon a time, there was an old woman named Nini Kudampai who lived with her only son. The name of her son was Angui. Angui’s father died when he was a baby. Nini Kudampai and Angui were really poor. Though Angui was very young, he behaved like an adult. He was kind and very helpful. He knew he had to help his mother to earn a living, and that made his mother loved him very much.

Angui had three pets. They were a white pig, a white dog, and a white rooster. He liked to play with them after helping his mother. It was a beautiful day when Angui was playing with his three pets. Suddenly, a rich merchant was passing Angui’s house. The rich merchant stopped and paid attention to the kid. He liked Angui very much. He asked some people about Angui. And when he knew that Angui came from a poor family, he wanted to adopt Angui.

The rich merchant came to Angui’s house. He talked to Nini Kudampai. He told him that he wanted to adopt Angui. He promised that he would let Angui go home and live with her when Angui become an adult. And he also promised that he would give Angui a good education.

Nini Kudampai was so touched. She was in a big dilemma. She was happy that her only son would get a good education, however she was also sad that she would not see her son anymore. She agreed with the merchant’s plan. She let him adopt her son.

With a big ship, the merchant and Angui sailed to the city. The merchant raised Angui very well. He sent Angui to the best school. And he also taught him how to do business. Angui was smart. He could understand everything quickly. The merchant was very happy. He slowly gave some of his business to Angui. And Angui paid the trust by giving the merchant a lot of profit.

Soon, Angui became an adult. The rich merchant then planned to give all his business to Angui. However, the rich merchant asked Angui to get married first before he could receive the entire merchant’s business, and Angui agreed.

Angui had fallen in love with a girl. He knew it was time for him to get married, especially when the merchant had promised to give him all the business. He did not waste much time. Angui proposed the girl and the girl happily accepted him.

Angui and his wife were very happy. Also, they were very rich. The merchant remembered his promise to Nini Kudampai. He told Angui to go home, but Angui refused. The merchant then reminded Angui about his promise. His wife also asked Angui to go to his hometown. Angui gave up. He asked his crew to prepare his ship. They would sail to Tapin.

The news spread very fast. People in Tapin were spreading the news that Angui would go back home. His mother finally heard the news, so she brought Angui’s pets: the white pig, the white dog, and the white rooster, to the harbor.

Nini Kudampai was standing at the harbor. When she saw Angui, she called out his name. Angui saw his mother who looked very old and shabby. He was ashamed. His wife asked him who the old woman was, but he said that he did not know her. He then asked his crew to continue sailing. The ship did not stop.

Nini Kudampai was so sad, and she was also very angry. She cursed Angui for ignoring her. She had been waiting for her son to come back. And when he arrived, he ignored and did not want to admit her as his mother.

God heard the old woman’s praying. Suddenly the rain fell down heavily. Thunder attacked the ship. It turned upside down! The ship finally stranded. Slowly the ship changed into a big stone. Later, the big stone slowly changed into a cave. People then named the cave as Batu Hapu Cave. ***

3. Ambun and Rimbun

Folktale from Central Kalimantan

AMBUN and Rimbun were brothers. People always thought they were twins, they both looked alike. Actually, Ambun was one year older than Rimbun.

The two brothers lived with their mother in a hut. Their father had died when they were kids. They always helped their mother finding some firewood and then sold them at the market.

They were poor and Ambun was upset with his condition. He wanted to go to some place and worked. He hoped he could get lots of money and give it to his mother.

He talked to his mother about his plan. His mother could not stop him. However, Rimbun also wanted to join his older brother. Apparently he also had the same feeling about their poor life. The mother could not do anything. She knew how good they were. She also knew that they just wanted to make her happy.

Before they left, their mother gave them two traditional knives, one was wrapped by red cloth and the other one was wrapped by yellow cloth. Ambun got the red one, while Rimbun got the yellow one.

The two brothers started their journey. When they crossed a jungle, suddenly Rimbun fell down. Ambun was panicked.

“What happened? Are you all right?”

Rimbun didn’t say anything. He looked very pale. Ambun brought him to sit under a big tree. Rimbun suffered a strange illness. His physical condition was getting weaker. And finally, Rimbun died.

Ambun was extremely sad. He felt guilty. He thought that he should not have let his brother join him. Ambun then buried his brother. He took his brother’s knife and stabbed it on his grave.

Ambun continued his journey in the jungle. It was getting dark and he did not have a place to stay. From a distance, he saw a house. He knocked the door, not long after that an old woman greeted him. Ambun asked her permission to stay in her house. Luckily she welcomed him to stay.

Ambun introduced himself to her and told her about his mother and his brother, who was just dead in the jungle. He also told her that he wanted to work so he could have lots of money. He wanted to make his mother happy.

The old woman was amazed to hear how Ambun wanted to make his mother happy. She then told him great information.

“I heard that the king is looking for a man to marry his daughter. Later he will also ask the man to be the next king to replace him. But there is one condition. The man has to be able to jump from the front yard of the palace to the roof of the palace to pick a jasmine flower.”

Ambun wanted to participate. He believed he could do it. When his father was alive, he had taught his sons some skills.

Ambun and the old woman arrived at the palace. People mocked Ambun. Previously, some princes from other kingdoms had tried and they all failed. They thought how a poor man like Ambun could win the competition.

Fortunately, the king let him try. Ambun concentrated. He was thinking of his father. Then wooosshhhh. He could easily jump and pick the jasmine. People were astonished! They applauded and cheered for Ambun. The king was also happy that he finally found the winner.

Before his wedding to The King’s daughter started, Ambun went home. He wanted to ask his mother to stay in the palace. However, Ambun’s mother was extremely sad when she knew Rimbun was dead. She asked Ambun to find ‘the water of life’ in the top of the mountain.

After he got the water, his mother asked Ambun to dig Rimbun’s grave. She poured the water into Ambun’s dead body. Amazingly, Rimbun was back to life. The family was reunited. Ambun got married and later he became the king. He also asked the old woman to stay in the palace. Since then they all lived happily ever after. ***

4. The Hidden Treasure

Folklore from Bali

A long time ago, there lived a farmer with his five sons. The farmer’s wife died when the youngest child was a baby. The farmer was rich. He had a spacious rice field. He had a big house and lots of money. The five sons were teenagers. Sadly, they did not like to help their father. They only played and wasted their time having fun with their friends. They always asked money to their parent and wasted it by gambling.

The father had repeatedly told them to work hard and not to waste the money.

Unfortunately they never listened to their father. They always ignored him. The father was sad. He always thought about his children’s bad behavior. It made his health get worse. He suffered an illness.

What did the children do when they knew their father was sick? They did not care at all! They kept on wasting their father’s money.

The father was not able to work. He did not have any income. He spent all the money to buy the medicine. Slowly, the farmer was getting poor.

The father was in the critical condition. He thought that he would not be able to live any longer. He asked all his children to meet him.

“My health is getting worse and I think I cannot live any longer. Before I die, I want to tell you a secret. Promise that you will never share this secret to any other people,” said the father.

“What secret, Father?” asked the oldest son.

“I have a great treasure. The value is so expensive. Ifyou sell it, you will have Iots of money,” said the father.

“Really? Where is the treasure, Father?” asked the second son.

“I buried it in my rice fleld. I forget which side of the field. You haVe to hoe and dig all areas,” explained the father. Not long after he. told them the secret, the father died.

Later, those flve sons went to the rice fields. It was not in a good condition. It was dried.and there was no rice plant at all. They brought some hoes and crowbars.They started to dig the rice field.

The rice fleld was so spacious. It was almost dark and they had not got any signs of the treasure.

“I think it’s enough for today. Let’s go home and we will continue tomorrow” suggested the oldest child. The others agreed.

They all went home. The next morning, they went back to the rice fleld. They hoed and dug the land. Again, until it was almost dark, they could not find the treasure.

On the third day, they had completed hoed and dug the land..They were confused.

“Do you think our father lied to us? He said that he buried the treasure in this fleld. We have dug all areas but we cannot flnd it,” said the oldest son.

‘Yes, you are right! I think our father lied to us,” said the third son.

The youngest son interrupted. He said, “No! You are wrong! Our father did not lie to us. He was right when he said the treasure is inside this field. In fact we are now looking at the treasure.”

“What do you mean?” asked the fourth son.

“This rice field is our treasure. You see… this field is so spacious. When it is time to harvest, the field will give us lots of money. Where do you think our father had tots of money? The money is from this field! Come on, let’s work hard and cultivate this field. I’m sure we will have lots of money during the harvest,” explained the youngest child.

All the other sons understood. They also realized their mistakes. They knew they had been wrong and they had to stop their bad habits. Since then, the five sons worked hard. Slowly they became rich again. ***

5. La Golo and His Friends

Folklore from Nusa Tenggara Barat

THERE was a rich family with only one child. The name of the child was La Golo. The parents really loved him. Whatever the child asked, the parents always said yes. Indeed, the parents really spoiled him.

La Golo grew as a spoiled boy. He was lazy and disobedient to his parents. He only loved to play and never wanted to help his parents.

The father was so upset to see La Golo’s behavior. He was so disappointed with him. He wanted La Golo to leave the house! The father had a plan.

“I want to ask him to accompany me to go hunting in the jungle. Later I would leave him alone there said the father to himself.

La GoIo was happy when his father asked him to go hunting. He loved hunting. He brought his arrow. He was ready to catch some animals.

They arrived in the jungle. When La Golo was busy looking for the animals, his father slowly left him.

La Golo was lost! He was looking for his father.

“Father! Where are you? Father!”

No answer. La Golo suddenly realized that his father had planned this. He was so sad. He regretted his bad behavior.

La Golo kept on looking. Suddenly, he met a boy. His name was Sandari. They introduced themselves and together they were looking for the way to go home.

They met two other boys who were also lost. Their names were La Ngepe and La Bonggo. The four boys became friends. They all had one thing in common. They all were children who were left by their fathers in the jungle. The four of them were naughty and spoiled boys who were not wanted by their fathers!

They boys saw a deer. They were amazed with the deer’s speed. The boys wanted to learn how to run like a deer. They asked the deer to teach them how to run. The deer agreed but they had to promise not to hunt and to behave well. The boys agreed.

Later the boys saw a monkey. They were impressed to see how the monkey climbed a tree. They asked the monkey to teach them how to climb trees. The monkey agreed and he also asked the boys not to hunt and to behave well. The boys agreed.

The boys already got the skills of how to climb trees. Then they met a buffalo. They were impressed when the buffalo smashed his head. The buffalo was so powerful. They asked the buffalo the skill to smash heads.

The same as the deer and the monkey, the buffalo also asked the boys to do the same things. They boys were not allowed to go hunting and to behave i well. The boys promised.

The four boys continued their journey. They arrived in one kingdom. The king held a competition. It was running and head-smashing competitions. The prize was gold!

“I want to join the competition. I want to use the prize as gifts to our parents, to show them that we are no longei spoiled children,” said La Golo to his friends.

They liked La Golo’s idea and they all supported him.

Running was the first competition. La Golo used the skills taught by the deer on how to run fast. He won! All La Golo’s friends cheered him.

“Hooray! Hooray!”

The next competition was head-smashing competition. All the participants had’to smash their heads against the king’s best soldier. One by one, the participants lost the match. It was La Golo’s time. He used the buffalo’s skill He won! La Golo received the gold. He shared the gold with his friends.

“It is time for us to go home. Give this gold to our parents. Tell them that we are sorry and we want to apologize,” said La Golo.

The king helped the boys to find their homes. He asked his soldiers to accompany the boys to go home. ***

6. The Magic Traditional Drum

Folklore from Riau

ONCE upon a time in Pelalawan Kingdom, Riau, there lived a poor fisherman with his wife and children. The fisherman had a special ability. He could cure sick people. People liked him very much. The fisherman was kind and helpful. He never asked for anything when he healed the sick people.

How did the fisherman cure the sick people? Well, he used a magic traditional drum. He spelled some magic words and then hit the magic drum harmoniously. And it always worked! The sick people were always cured after they heard the rhythm of the drum.

The fisherman got the skills from his teacher. His teacher said that the magic drum could do anything even brought back the dead people to life. However he was not allowed to do that, he could only cure sick people. If he used the drum to bring back the dead, the fisherman would die!

The fisherman was so famous. Everyday sick people always came to his house to ask for his help. Although he became very famous, the fisherman was still humble. He always did his job as a fisherman.

One day a soldier came to the fisherman’s house. “The king wants to see you now,” said the soldier. The fisherman then followed the soldier to go to the palace.

“How can I help you, Your Majesty?” asked the fisherman to the king. “I heard you have a magic drum that can cure sick people. I want you to do something for me,” said the king.

“What do you want me to do, Your Majesty?”

The king took a deep breath. He looked at the fisherman closely then said, “My daughter just died. I love her very much and I don’t want to lose her. I want you to use your drum to bring my daughter back to life.”

The fisherman was so shocked when he heard the king’s order! “I cannot do that, Your Majesty. I am not allowed to do that ” said the fisherman nervously.

“I don’t care! If you don’t help me, I will hang you and all your family!” yelled the king. The fisherman was speechless. He was in great dilemma. He loved his family and he did not want them to die. “All right, Your Majesty… I will help you,” said the fisherman weakly.

The king brought the fisherman to his daughter’s bedroom. She was lying on the bed. The fisherman was sitting on her side. He spelled some magic words and started to hit the drum harmoniously. After a while, the princess moved her hands. Yes, the king’s daughter was back to life! The king was extremely happy. He hugged his daughter.

The fisherman secretly left the palace. He went to his house and talked to his family about the dead princess.

“I have already broken my teacher’s advice and I will not see you anymore.”

“Can we meet you again?” asked the wife sadly.

‘Yes, you can. During rain, please go to Selempaya River and you can see me again there,” said the fisherman. He then brought his drum. He went to the river and rowed his sampan.

At the river, he dropped his drum and it was sinking. Slowly the fisherman disappeared. .

Days later it was raining. The flsherman’s wife and her children went to the river. From the distance they saw the image of the fisherman playing and hitting the drum. They were so happy, at least for a moment they could see him.

Until now people still believe that the fisherman still ‘lives’, in Selempaya river. They often hear the sound of the drum being played when rain falls down. ***

7. The Cat and the Tiger

Folklore From Lampung

Long time ago, animals were able to talk to one another. They talked just like humans talk to other humans. All the animals lived peacefully in the jungle. They had a king, and their king was the cat.

All animals chose the cat as their king because he had all the knowledge and the skills. He was the wisest and the cleverest animals in the jungle. Other animals became his students. The cat was a generous and kind animal. He was willing to teach them everything.

One of the cat’s students was the tiger. He was the most obedient student. Whatever the teacher asked, the tiger was always willing to do. Days and nights, the tiger was with the cat. He wanted to master all the cat’s skills. He wanted to be the best animal in the jungle.

“Master, there is one skill you haven’t taught me yet,” said the tiger. “It’s the skill of how to climb trees. You are good at climbing trees, Master, and I want to have that skill,” said the tiger.

Actually, the cat had a bad feeling about the tiger. The cat did not really believe the tiger’s sincerity in becoming his student. The cat did not want to teach him the skill of how to climb trees. He felt the tiger would be a super animal if he mastered the skill.

The cat knew the tiger’s potential. Therefore he always prolonged the tiger’s request. “You have to wait. You are not ready to study how to climb the tree. Let me teach you another skill.

It’s how to sneak,” said the cat.

In a very short time, the tiger mastered the skill. He could sneak perfectly. He was very happy. Then he asked his teacher to teach him how to climb the tree. And again the cat prolonged his student’s request.

“Wait, you haven’t mastered the skill of how to swim,” said the cat. He hoped the tiger could not study the skill easily. He knew it’s very difficult to swim. But the cat was wrong. Indeed, the tiger was a great animal. He could swim in just a minute.

The tiger became restless. He had a feeling that his teacher did not want to teach him how to climb trees. However he just kept his feeling in his heart. And when the cat again prolonged his request to teach him how.to climb trees, the tiger became very angry.

“Master, I am your best student. And not only that, I’m your most obedient student compared to the other animals. I’m always next to you days and nights and I’m willing to do anything you asked me, but why don’t you teach me how to climb trees?” asked the tiger. The cat knew he could not always hide it anymore. Sooner or later he had to tell the truth. “My student, I have a reason. I don’t really believe in you. I am afraid you will use the skill to do something bad,” explained the cat.

“What?!” the tiger was angry.

“Teach me now! Otherwise I will kill you!”

The tiger attacked the cat. And the fight could not be avoided. The tiger was bigger and had much more strength than the cat. Slowly the cat was cornered, and he had no other choice but to save himself.

The cat ran away and when he found a big tree he immediately climbed it. The tiger chased him, but because he did not know how to climb trees, he just waited under the tree.

The tiger screamed, “Wherever you go, I will chase you. And not only that! When you defecate, I will eat your feces!” The tiger once heard that the cat’s power was in his feces.

And it has happened until now. That’s why every time cats defecates, they always bury their feces with sand or soil. They are afraid tigers will eat their feces!***

8. The Greedy King

Folklore from South Kalimantan

ONCE upon a time there was a kingdom in South Kalimantan. The name of the king was Sang Hiyang. He liked eating. His favorite food was fish intestine. He often asked the palace chef to provide him fish intestine in a big portion. The King Sang Hiyang would be angry when the chef only gave him a small portion. The chef did not have any problem preparing the fish intestine because there was a big river near the palace. She always asked the soldiers to catch the fish.

One day, the chef was restless. The soldiers just gave her a few fish. The soldiers said that it was not a good season to catch the fish. The chef immediately cuts and cleaned the fish from the river. She was thinking about the punishment from the king. She was really worried and she did not concentrate when cutting and cleaning the fish. Accidentally, she dropped the fish intestine to the river. The current was very strong. In just a minute, she lost the entire fish intestine!

The chef was really shocked. She talked to her husband about the problem. He had an idea. He dug the land and collected a lot of worms. He gave the worms to his wife and asked her to cook. At first his wife refused. But the husband convinced her that the worms looked like the fish intestine. The King Sang Hiyang would not recognize the difference.

The chef immediately cooked the worms and prepared it to the king. When it was done, the king ate the worms. He was very happy. He felt that the ‘fish intestine’ was more delicious. He called the chef and asked her to always provide him the delicious fish intestine.

The chef was very worried. She knew sooner or later the king would find out. She did not want to lie. And finally she told the king about the truth. She did not cook fish intestine, instead she cooked worms!

And after King Sang Hiyang knew the truth, he was not angry. He loved to eat the worms. He asked the chef to always prepare the worms in big portions.

Everyday the soldiers dug the land to find the worms. Soon, the numbers of worms were decreasing. The king of worms was angry. He was sad to see his people were gone. He asked the worm soldiers to attack King Sang Hiyang.

The worm soldiers went to the palace. They finally found King Sang Hiyang. The king was so scared to see a lot of worms came to him. Amazingly, the King was the only one who could see the worms. Other people could not see the worms. Therefore, they were wondering why the king looked so scared.

The king ran out of the palace. The worms followed him. They slowly chased King Sang Hiyang. The king did not know where to go. He finally found a big tree. He then climbed the tree. Later the worms surrounded the tree. They could not climb the tree. They just waited on the ground. It has happened for many days. And the king was beginning to be frustrated. He just wanted to die. He wanted to commit suicide!

King Sang Hiyang tore his shirt and he made it as a rope. He already made up his mind. He wanted to hang himself! And after it happened, the people were shocked. They saw King Sang Hiyang was hanging. They said, “Sang Hiyang tergantung! Sang Hiyang tergantung!” It means Sang Hiyang is hung.

Soon the area of the incident was named Sang Hiyang Tergantung and now it slowly changes into Siang Gantung. It is an area in Hulu Sungai Selatan, South Kalimantan. ***

9. My Nest Is Better Than Yours

Folklore from Riau

A quail and a weaver bird were best friends. Although they were very much different, they always helped each other. They always looked for food together. They met in the morning and looked for food until in the afternoon. At night they separated and went home to their own nest.

It was raining. The quail and the weaver bird were under a big tree. While they were waiting for the rain stop, they were talking about their nests.

“My nest is great. It is very clean and strong. I made it by arranging the old leaves and the twigs. I’m really comfortable living in my nest,” said the weaver bird.

“Well, my nest is great. It is also very strong. And I don’t have to be bothered making it. I just need to find a big broken tree and I can live there,” said the quail.

“But compared to your nest, my nest is better,” said the weaver bird.

“I don’t think so. My nest is better than yours,” said the quail.

They kept arguing. Each of them said to have a better nest. What started as a little argument then turned to almost a fight. To prove whose nest was better, they agreed to stay in their nests.

“Let’s stay in my nest tonight. Tomorrow we will stay in your nest,” said the weaver bird.

“I agree!” said the quail.

It was a late in the afternoon. They were going to the weaver bird’s nest.

The nest was at a branch of a tree. It was high. The weaver bird did not have any problem reaching the nest. He was flying and in just a minute he arrived at his nest. Meanwhile the quail had problem arriving at the nest. He could not fly well. Instead, he tried to climb the tree. Finally he succeeded. He arrived at the weaver bird’s nest.

The weaver bird and the quail shared the nest. They started to sleep. Suddenly, the rain fell down heavily. The wind was blowing strongly. The branches of the tree were moving back and forth. The The quail was terrified. He was afraid he would fall down.

“Do something! The branch is swinging. I don’t want to fall down.”

“Don’t worry. We are not going to fall down,” said the weaver bird calmly.

The weaver bird continued to sleep. However, the quail could not sleep at all. He regretted his decision to spend the night at his friend’s nest.

In the morning, they looked for food as usual. And in the afternoon they went to the quail’s nest. And when they arrived, the weaver bird was surprised.

“You live here? Under the big broken tree?” asked the weaver bird.

“Yes. And you don’t have to worry with the wind. The tree is lying on the ground, so it won’t swing.”

Later, they started to sleep. Then rain was falling down heavily. Unfortunately, water was slowly approaching the nest. And they were finally wet.

“I’m so cold,” said the weaver bird.

“Don’t worry, you will dry soon. Let’s continue sleeping,” said the quail.

In the morning, the weaver bird complained about the quail’s nest. The quail also complained about the weaver bird’s nest. Then they realized that their life were different. Since then, they never say to have the better nest.

10. Talaga Warna (The Lake Of Colors)

translation by Lanthanoider

Once upon a time there was a kingdom in West Java. There used to live a wise and kind king named His Majesty Prabu and his wife, the queen. The kingdom was very prosperous under his rule.

Everything went perfect in the kingdom. But there was one thing that made Prabu and the queen sad. They had not a single child. Many people suggested them to adopt a child, but they did not want to as they believed their own son or daughter was better than any adopted child.

The queen got very sad and often cried. Seeing his desperate wife, Prabu decided to leave for the jungle to pray to God. He prayed so that he and her wife could be gifted a child. Somehow, God heard his prayer and made his dream come true. A few months later after his prayer, the queen got pregnant. Everybody in the kingdom was glad to hear that. Their beloved king was finally gifted a child. To express their happiness, they sent His Majesty lots of presents for the baby.

Nine months had passed and a princess was born. The baby later became a very beautiful teenager. Prabu and the queen really loved her. They always fulfilled whatever the princess wanted. Because of that, the princess became a very spoiled girl. Her every wish had to be fulfilled, if not she would be very angry. She became ruder and behaved worse as she started to say bad things. She was not like a true princess at all. Even though, their parents and all the people in the kingdom still loved her.

When she almost turned 17, she became more and more beautiful. No girl could compete her beauty against her. Prabu and the queen had arranged a birthday party, inviting all people in the kingdom to the palace. Hearing that, the people sent lots of presents for her. Prabu stored them in a building and only took some gold and jewels. He later went to the goldsmith and asked him to make the best necklace ever. The goldsmith, of course, gave his best to make the best necklace as he also loved the princess.

The day came where the princess turned 17. All people gathered on the palace field to celebrate her birthday. Prabu and the queen were already out when the princess with her fabulous pretty face appeared, enchanting all the people with her beauty. Then a lady came with a pillow in her hands, a very beautiful necklace on it. Prabu took the necklace and addressed it to the princess. “My beloved daughter, today I give you this necklace as a birthday gift. This necklace is given by all the people in this country. They love you so much. Please, wear this.”, said Prabu. She took the necklace and looked at it for a while. The princess response was unbelieveable. She did not like it. “I don’t want to wear this thing! It’s so ugly!”, she cried and threw the necklace away. It landed on the ground – broken – and its jewels and gold spread on the floor.

All the people were astonished. They could not believe what the princess had done. They could not believe that the princess would do such a cruel thing. It hurt their hearts, also the king’s and the queen’s. In the silence they heard the queen crying. Later, all women started crying. Then, everybody cried. It was not long until a miracle happened. The Earth was also crying. Suddenly, a from the underground, a spring emerged. It made a pool of water and filled the whole place. The whole kingdom sank and soon the place became a very big lake.

Nowadays, the lake still exists, but not as big as it was before anymore. It is located in Puncak, West Java. On a very sunny day, the lake is full of beautiful and amazing colors. The colors actually come from the shadows of forest, plants, flowers, and the sky around the lake. But many people believe it is the jewels of the necklace that bring the colors. So is the lake called “Talaga Warna” or “The Lake of Colors.”