Support WBUR
In the Willow Tree | Ep. 283
Think about a time you returned a favor: a time when someone did something kind for you, so you turned around and did something kind for them.
In today’s tale, when a tiny critter has the chance to return a favor, she finds a colossal way to give back!
Our story is called “In the Willow Tree.” Versions of this tale come from the East Asian country of Taiwan.
Voices in this episode include Stephanie Koenig and Patrick Luwis. Grownups, you may know Stephanie Koenig from “The English Teacher” on FX and the Apple TV+ miniseries, “Lessons in Chemistry.” And Patrick Luwis stars as Axel in “Cobra Kai,” the “Karate Kid” sequel series on Netflix.
This episode was adapted for Circle Round by Rebecca Sheir. It was edited by Dean Russell. Original music and sound design is by Eric Shimelonis. Our artist is Sabina Hahn.
GROWN-UPS! PRINT THIS so everyone can color while listening. We’re also keeping an album so please share your picture on Facebook and Instagram, and tag it with #CircleRoundPodcast. To access all the coloring pages for past episodes click HERE. Our resident artist is Sabina Hahn and you can learn more about her HERE.
Now it’s your turn!
A fun way to keep track of the kindness we show others is by playing Kindness Bingo.
A fun way to keep track of the kindness we show others is by playing Kindness Bingo.
- Find a big piece of blank paper, or poster board, and draw a big square.
- Divide your square into nine little squares (three rows of three).
- In each square, write down or draw one kind thing you can do for others. It could be as simple as greeting a neighbor with a smile or wave, taking turns with friends, or offering someone some encouraging words – or a hug or a high-five.
- Once your nine squares are ready, hang your Kindness Bingo on the wall or fridge.
- Each time you complete an act of kindness, put a check mark or sticker on that square. Your goal is to have all the squares filled in.
Once your Kindness Bingo board is complete, we’d love to see it! Ask a grown-up to snap a photo of you and your creation and email it to circleround@wbur.org. With your permission, we may feature you in “The Lion’s Roar,” the monthly newsletter of the Circle Round Club. Sign up for this super-fun super-fan opportunity here!
Musical Spotlight: Erhu
Originally from Central Asia, the fiddle known as the erhu and was introduced to China more than 1,000 years ago. The erhu’s body is usually made of wood: ebony, sandalwood, or rosewood. The bow is traditionally made from bamboo and horse hair. The erhu’s strings used to be made from silk, but the modern erhu has steel strings.
To play the erhu, you hold it on your lap and place the bow between the instrument’s two strings (which are tuned to a fifth). Unlike other string instruments, the erhu has no fingerboard; you use different degrees of pressure as you place your fingers on the strings without pressing them against the wood neck.
The erhu often plays an important role in Asian orchestras – much like the role of the violin in western orchestras. Smaller orchestras usually have two to six erhu players; larger ensembles can feature up to a dozen. You can hear Eric Shimelonis playing the erhu in our episode, “Like Oil and Water.”
Story Transcript:
NARRATOR: In the middle of a forest… beside a swift, sparkling stream… there grew a graceful willow tree.
On the forest floor beneath the tree, inside a rotting log that had been moldering for ages, there lived a humble ant.
Though Ant lived below the willow tree, she spent a lot of time scurrying up and down its trunk, so she could feast on the “honeydew.”
ANT: Mmmm! Yummy yummy yummy!
NARRATOR: Now, you may know “honeydew” as a juicy melon. But a tree’s honeydew is different. It’s actually the sticky liquid left behind after itty-bitty insects called aphids feast on the tree’s sap. And Ant couldn’t get enough of the stuff!
ANT: (as she eats honeydew) Oh boy! This honeydew is so scrumptious, I could eat it up all day!
NARRATOR: One morning, as Ant was guzzling down some particularly luscious honeydew…
ANT: Mmm! Mmm! MMMM!
NARRATOR: …the wind suddenly picked up…and a great gust of air swept Ant right off the tree!
ANT: (as she gets knocked off tree) Yikes!
NARRATOR: Next thing she knew, she was tumbling downward…
ANT: (as she tumbles through air) Whoooooaaaa!
NARRATOR: …and heading straight for the sparkling stream!
ANT: (as she tumbles through air) This is bad. This is very bad. I…! CAN’T…! SWIIIIIIIMMMM!
NARRATOR: Once Ant hit the water, she floundered around, trying to make her way to shore.
ANT: (as she flounders) Can somebody help me??? Please???? I don’t think I can make it!
NARRATOR: Now remember. Ant was a teeny-tiny thing: no bigger than the nail on your pinky finger. So as you can imagine, since her body was so teeny-tiny, her voice was too! And though she was calling out with all the energy she could muster…
ANT: Help meeeeee!
NARRATOR: …no one in the forest could hear her.
Well… maybe not no one…
WOOD PIGEON: Huh? Who is that crying for help????
NARRATOR: Wood Pigeon was a big grey bird, about the size of a bowling pin. Like all other pigeons, Wood Pigeon had an extraordinary sense of hearing.
So even though he made his nest in the willow’s tree’s upper branches, he could hear Ant’s desperate cries. Without missing a beat, he opened his wings and swooped down to the water, where Ant was still flailing around.
ANT: Wood Pigeon! Can you help me? Pleeeeease?
NARRATOR: Wood Pigeon thought fast. He grabbed a twig with his beak, then tossed the twig into the water.
WOOD PIGEON: See that twig, little one? Climb onto it! With any luck, it will float you back to dry land!
NARRATOR: After some scrabbling and scrambling, Ant managed to pull herself out of the current…
ANT: (ad-lib efforting sounds of scrambling onto stick)
NARRATOR: …and onto the twig.
ANT: (relief) Phew!
NARRATOR: To her delight, the twig eventually drifted to the edge of the stream, and within moments, Ant was back on dry land.
ANT: My goodness! That was a close one! Thanks for saving my life, Wood Pigeon!
WOOD PIGEON: Oh, don’t mention it. It’s what any self-respecting animal would do.
ANT: Maybe. But listen, Wood Pigeon. I promise you. Someday I’m going to return the favor… and save YOUR life!
NARRATOR: Wood Pigeon fixed Ant with a stare. Then he tossed back his head, stretched open his beak…
WOOD PIGEON: (ad-lib laughing)
NARRATOR: …and laughed.
WOOD PIGEON: (laughing) That’s a good one, Ant! How could a creature so small possibly “save the life” of a creature so big? I mean, what did the Narrator say before? I’M the size of a bowling pin? While YOU’RE the size of a fingernail?
ANT: A PINKY fingernail, to be precise.
WOOD PIGEON: And that proves my point! (beat) I’m big. You’re small. You could never save my life. So don’t go making promises you can't keep.
NARRATOR: And with that, Wood Pigeon turned around, spread his wings, and flew away.
A few days later, Wood Pigeon was napping in his nest when a dark shadow fell over the willow tree. The shadow belonged to Hawk: a fierce bird of prey even larger than Wood Pigeon, with broad wings, razor-sharp talons, and a beak to match.
Hawk had excellent vision. And when she caught sight of Wood Pigeon snoozing away, she began circling over the tree. She circled lower and lower, before settling on a branch above Wood Pigeon’s nest.
Ant happened to be crawling around the willow’s trunk, eating honeydew. And when she spied Hawk feasting her hungry eyes on the sleeping Wood Pigeon, the insect shuddered from her antennae to her abdomen.
ANT: (GASP!) Oh no! It looks like Hawk is set on making Wood Pigeon her next meal! (beat) I did promise Wood Pigeon I would save his life one day… and now it's my chance to make good on that promise. The only question is… HOW?
NARRATOR: How do YOU think Ant will protect Wood Pigeon from Hawk’s hungry clutches? What would YOU do if you were the teeny-tiny insect?
We’ll find out what happens, after a quick break.
[BREAK]
NARRATOR: Welcome back to Circle Round. I’m Rebecca Sheir. Today our story is called “In the Willow Tree.”
Before the break, Wood Pigeon saved Ant from drowning. When Ant promised that someday she would return the favor, Wood Pigeon dismissed the eensy-weensy insect with a laugh.
Some time later, Wood Pigeon was napping in his nest in the willow tree when who should come winging over, eager to make the sleeping bird her next meal, but Hawk! Ant was feasting on the tree’s honeydew at the time. And the moment she spotted the ferocious bird of prey, she knew she had to do something.
ANT: My voice is too quiet to scare Hawk away. And I’m too weak to fight her off. But I must find a way to save Wood Pigeon! I must!!!!
NARRATOR: She swallowed one last gulp of honeydew, then scuttled up to the branch where Hawk was perching. She edged closer and closer to the fierce predator. When she was just inches away, she took a running leap, then sprang into the air…
ANT: (ad-lib running, then leaping)
NARRATOR: …landing smack dab in the middle of Hawk’s belly! Ant quickly got to work burrowing through the thick layer of belly feathers. And once she was touching Hawk’s skin, do you know what she did?
She opened her tiny jaws as wide as she could… and bit down! Hawk’s eyes bulged as she cried out in pain.
HAWK: Owww! Something just bit me!
NARRATOR: The great bird began writhing around, trying to shake off her invisible attacker. But Ant held on tight. Then she opened her jaws and took ANOTHER bite…
HAWK: Ouch!
NARRATOR: …then another…
HAWK: Youch!
NARRATOR: …Then she began crawling all over Hawk’s body, taking sharp, tiny bites as she scuttered around.
HAWK: Ouch! Eeek! Ow! Yow!
NARRATOR: All the yelping and yowling roused Wood Pigeon from his sleep. The moment he laid eyes on Hawk, he urgently beat his wing and rocketed into the sky.
NARRATOR: Once he was a safe distance away, Ant took one final chomp…
HAWK: OWWW!
NARRATOR: …then leaped off of Hawk’s body and onto the branch. Hawk let out one more cry…
HAWK: Gahhh!
NARRATOR: …then took to the air, flying away faster than you can say “honeydew.”
HAWK: I am outta heeeeeerrre!
NARRATOR: The next morning, Ant was hanging out in her rotting log beneath the willow tree when she heard a familiar voice.
WOOD PIGEON: Ant? Are you in there?
NARRATOR: Ant crept out into the open air and there was Wood Pigeon, his round eyes shining bright.
WOOD PIGEON: All the forest animals are talking about how YOU saved me from Hawk! Is that true? Are you the one who scared him away?
NARRATOR: Ant drew herself up to her full height and smiled.
ANT: Indeed! I AM the one who scared Hawk away. Though that’s probably pretty tough to believe, given that I’m no bigger than a fingernail…
WOOD PIGEON: Don’t you mean a PINKY fingernail…?
NARRATOR: A sheepish grin flickered across Wood Pigeon’s face.
WOOD PIGEON: Look, Ant. It turns out I misjudged you. And it wasn’t fair. So that’s why I came over here today. I wanted to say thank you. And sorry. And I'll never underestimate you again.
NARRATOR: Well, I’m happy to say that Wood Pigeon stayed true to his word. What’s more, he and Ant wound up becoming the closest of friends. And even though one was as large as a bowling pin, and the other was as small as your pinky nail, the two pals always found a way to see eye to eye.
