One Good Turn | Ep. 284

Ever heard the old saying, “One good turn deserves another”?

What it means is: if someone helps you out, then you should find a way to help them out.

But in today's tale, we’ll hear what happens when “one good turn” turns bad!

Our story is called “One Good Turn.” We found versions of this tale from so many places, including (and brace yourself; this is quite a list!) India, Korea, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Yemen in Asia; Albania, Denmark, England, Finland, Greece, Italy, Norway, Romania and the Czech Republic in Europe; plus Russia, South Africa, West Africa and the American South.

Voices in this episode include Lulu Miller, Ana González and Alan Goffinksi: respectively the host, producer and “songbud” of “Terrestrials,” the Radiolab for Kids podcast from WNYC Studios. “Terrestrials” is a show for people of all ages that explores the strangeness that exists right here on Earth. Listen for a whole new season starting April 17th!

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!

Think about a time you did something kind for someone, and then they did something kind in return. Then draw a picture of how one good turn brought about another!

Once you’re done with both sides, show your picture to someone you have fun with. And if you’d like, share it with us! Ask a grown-up to snap a photo of you and your drawing 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: Banjo

The stringed instrument known as the banjo has a thin membrane stretched over a frame to form what we call a “resonator.” The membrane is usually circular, and though these days it’s made of plastic, the earliest banjo membranes were made from animal skin.

Many people believe the banjo originated in the United States. However, when enslaved West Africans were brought to America in the 1600s, they carried ancestors of the instrument we’d eventually call the “banjo”: spike-lute instruments such as the ngoni and the akonting.

By the mid-1800s, Black people in the South were playing a more modern banjo in the first modern string bands and bluegrass bands. Today, the banjo is so popular you can find the National Four-String Banjo Hall of Fame at the American Banjo Museum in Oklahoma.

Eric Shimelonis chose a fretless banjo to score this episode for its whimsical, playful character. You can hear Eric playing a different type of banjo – the tenor banjo – in three other Circle Round stories featuring rabbits: “Share and Share Alike,” “Sweet Corn and Clever Rabbit” and “The Most Fabulous Fur of All”!

Story Transcript:

NARRATOR: It was springtime, and Rabbit was hopping through the countryside, basking in the warm sun and grazing in the lush grass.

RABBIT: (munching) What a beautiful morning! And is it just me, or is the clover especially delectable today? Not to mention the dandelion greens! Mm-mm-MMMM!

NARRATOR: Rabbit had just stuffed her fuzzy cheeks with yet another mouthful…

RABBIT: Mmmmm!

NARRATOR: …when she suddenly heard… a voice!

SNAKE: Help me! Somebody help me!

NARRATOR: Rabbits, you may know, have excellent hearing. They can swivel their long ears in every direction to pick up sound – like a radar dish! And that’s exactly what Rabbit did.

RABBIT: Let’s see… The voice seems to be coming from… over there! Near that cluster of bushes! (beat) I must investigate!

NARRATOR: She enjoyed one last gulp of grass…

RABBIT: (ad-lib GULP!)

NARRATOR: …then took off like a shot. When she came to the bushes, she saw something that made her legs wobble and her knees go weak. Poking out from under the bushes was a big rock. And poking out from under that rock… was the tip of a scaly black tail.

SNAKE: [muffled] Is somebody there? I’m trapped!

NARRATOR: Rabbit’s fur prickled. For she knew that scaly black tail could only belong to one creature:

RABBIT: (scared stage-whisper, to herself) SNAKE!!!

NARRATOR: Rabbit’s head told her to run. After all, among Snake’s favorite FOODS were caterpillars, slugs, mice, rats, and… you guessed it… rabbits! 

But Rabbit’s heart told her something different. It was telling her to have a heart, and help a fellow animal in need.

Eventually… her heart won out.

RABBIT: Snake? It’s me! Rabbit! I promise I’ll get you out… if you promise not to eat me. (beat) Do we have a deal?

SNAKE: Absolutely! We have a deal! Now get me out!!!!

NARRATOR: The rock was too heavy to lift. So Rabbit threw her furry body against it, and pushed!

RABBIT: (ad-lib efforting sounds)

NARRATOR: She pushed…

RABBIT: (ad-lib efforting sounds)

NARRATOR: …and she pushed…

RABBIT: (ad-lib efforting sounds)

NARRATOR: …until at last…

RABBIT: (ad-lib having finally moved rock, like…)Yahhhhh!

NARRATOR: …the rock slid aside. And there was Snake, his sinewy body in a coil, his golden eyes shining bright.

SNAKE: Hello, Rabbit! Would you believe I’ve been stuck under that rock all week?

RABBIT: I’m sorry to hear that, Snake! Thank goodness I heard you crying out!

SNAKE: Indeed! Thank goodness! Because after being stuck all week… I haven’t EATEN all week. And I am FAMISHED!

RABBIT: I’m sure you are! How about I help you find a nice juicy caterpillar? Or a soft, slimy slug…?

SNAKE: That’s awfully kind of you, Rabbit. But why waste time searching for creepy-crawlies in the ground… when I already have a mouth-watering meal right here?

NARRATOR: Snake flicked his tongue. Rabbit’s blood turned cold.

RABBIT: Wait a minute! That “mouth-watering meal” you’re referring to isn’t ME, is it? After all, you made a promise! If I got you out from under the rock, you wouldn’t eat me!

SNAKE: Did I promise that…? I’m so faint with hunger, I can’t remember a thing… 

RABBIT: Well you DID. And the least you can do is follow through. After all, I’m the one who saved your life!

SNAKE: And you’re the one who’s going to END it, if you let me die of starvation!

RABBIT: How can you be so un-grateful?

SNAKE: How can YOU be so un-CHARITABLE?

RABBIT: “Uncharitable”? Last I checked, YOU’RE the one who wants to reward KINDNESS with EVIL! By eating the one who saved you! (beat) Haven’t you heard the expression, “one good turn deserves another”?

SNAKE: I HAVE! But I’ve ALSO heard the expression, “It’s a dog-eat-dog world”! Every creature for themselves! (beat) Though in THIS case, I suppose it’s not so much a “dog-eat-dog world” as a “Snake-eat-Rabbit world”...

NARRATOR: Snake let out a menacing hiss…

SNAKE: (ad-lib hiss)

NARRATOR: …and opened his mouth wide. But before he could strike…

RABBIT: I’ve gotta get out of here!

NARRATOR: …Rabbit wheeled around and started to run!

RABBIT: (ad-lib efforting sounds of running)

NARRATOR: She dashed across a meadow…

HARE: (as she runs) Oh dear!

NARRATOR: ...she scurried up a hill…

HARE: (as she runs) Oh boy!

NARRATOR: ...but as she bolted into a deep, leafy forest, do you know what happened?

Her paw got snagged in a vine dangling from a tree!

HARE: Oh NO!

NARRATOR: She scrambled to untangle herself…

HARE: (fighting to untangle) Come on! Come on!

NARRATOR: …but she was still struggling when Snake caught up.

SNAKE: Ha ha! NOW I’ve got you! 

HARE: Please, Snake! Have mercy!

SNAKE: Nahhh. I’d rather have a MEAL!

NARRATOR: Snake uncoiled his tail and pulled back his head. And just as he was about to close in…

Oh! You know what that music means!

We’ll find out what happens next, after a quick break.

[BREAK]

NARRATOR: Welcome back to Circle Round. I’m Rebecca Sheir. Today our story is called “One Good Turn.”

Before the break, Rabbit promised to get Snake out from under a rock… if he promised not to eat her. But the moment he was free, he went back on his word and tried making Rabbit his meal!

Rabbit scrambled to get away. But in the deep, leafy forest, her paw got tangled in a tree vine! And just as Snake was about to close in, who should come leaping down from the branches above…

FOX: What is going on here?????

NARRATOR: …but Fox!

FOX: I was trying to take a nap just now! Owl left behind this super-snuggly nest and it is cozy beyond belief. But how am I supposed to get any shut-eye when you two are carrying on like this?

NARRATOR: Rabbit stared into Fox’s angry eyes… and felt a wave of relief. Because as it happens, Fox was the wisest, cleverest animal around – and that gave Rabbit an idea.

RABBIT: Hiya, Fox! Apologies for the commotion. But Snake and I are having a quarrel – and it’s a matter of life and death!

SNAKE: Uch! So DRAMATIC! (making fun/imitating Rabbit) “A matter of life and death”! Oooo!

RABBIT: Seriously though! We’re having a major debate… and perhaps you can help us settle it, Fox! After all, you’re so very wise and clever…

NARRATOR: Fox’s angry face relaxed into a grin.

FOX: I appreciate the praise, Rabbit. I AM wise and clever. (beat) So sure! I’d be happy to help you settle your dispute. What’s the deal?

RABBIT: Well… I told Snake I’d save his life if he promised not to eat me. He agreed. But the moment I came to his rescue, guess what? He tried to eat me!

SNAKE: That’s because self preservation is the first law of life! You’ve got to look out for yourself, no matter what!

RABBIT: But what about OTHERS? And showing them gratitude? Surely I deserve some thanks after I got you out from under that rock!

FOX: Wait a minute!

NARRATOR: Fox tilted her bright orange head.

FOX: Are you saying Snake was trapped under a rock…?

SNAKE: I was!

FOX: And Rabbit extricated him from that rock…?

RABBIT: Fancy word for it, but I did!

FOX: And where might this rock be?

RABBIT: It’s quite a ways from here.

SNAKE: Down a hill and across a meadow.

FOX: I see. (beat) Listen, you two. Before I can settle this dispute, I need to lay eyes on this rock. Take me there, won’t you?

NARRATOR: Rabbit was eager for justice. Snake was eager for a meal. So, after Fox untangled Rabbit’s paw, she followed Rabbit and Snake down the hill and across the meadow. When they reached the cluster of bushes and Fox spied the rock, her eyes went wide.

FOX: My my my! That’s a very large rock! You moved it all by yourself, Rabbit?

RABBIT: I did! I saw Snake was in trouble and felt it was my duty to save him. ESPECIALLY after he promised not to eat me!

NARRATOR: Fox leaned down toward the rock. She sniffed it.

FOX: (ad-lib sniffing)

NARRATOR: She tapped it.

FOX: Tappety-tap-tap!

NARRATOR: She even gave it a lick.

FOX: (ad-lib LICK)

NARRATOR: Then she fixed Rabbit and Snake with a stare.

FOX: I must confess, you two. This is a tricky case – even for a wise, clever creature like me. (beat) You know what might help? If we could re-enact the scene! Can you show me exactly what it looked like when all of this began?

NARRATOR: Snake and Rabbit did as they were told. Snake slithered under the bush and Rabbit heaved the rock over his coiled body.

FOX: Thank you! (beat) But I’m seeing an awful lot of your tail, Snake! Was it really poking out that much?

SNAKE: She’s right! You need to slide it over more!

NARRATOR: So Rabbit pushed the rock again.

FOX: Terrific! (beat) But I’m STILL seeing a lot of tail… Snake? Does that feel right to you?

SNAKE: It feels terrible, actually! This rock is heavy! But you’re correct. I don’t think this much of my tail was sticking out.

NARRATOR: So Rabbit pushed the rock again, until all that stuck out was the very tip of Snake’s scaly black tail.

FOX: How about now, Snake? How does that feel?

SNAKE: Like I can’t move a muscle! Like I can’t breathe any air! Like the life is being mashed out of me!

FOX: Sooooo… you’re exactly where you were before?

SNAKE: Yes!

FOX: And you’re feeling trapped?

SNAKE: Yes!

FOX: Smushed?

SNAKE: Yes!

FOX: Squashed?

SNAKE: YESSSS!

FOX: In that case, my work here is done! (beat) And next time, I hope you’ll think twice before going back on your word, Snake. Because one good turn DOES deserve another. And Rabbit deserves a far better turn than the one she got.

NARRATOR: And with that, Fox flicked her bushy tail and bounded away, leaving Rabbit free to do as she wished… and leaving Snake stuck between a rock and a hard place.