Chicken Little

The Chick Who Worried

One day, Chicken Little was walking under a big oak tree.

BONK!

Something fell on her head. It was small. It was hard. It was round.

"Oh no!" said Chicken Little. "The sky is falling! The sky is FALLING! I must tell everyone!"

She ran down the path. Pit-pat-pit-pat-pit-pat.

She met Henny Penny.

"Henny Penny! The sky is falling!"

"Oh no!" said Henny Penny. "How do you know?"

"A piece fell on my head!"

"Let us run and tell Ducky Lucky!"

Pit-pat-pit-pat-pit-pat. They ran together.

They met Ducky Lucky.

"Ducky Lucky! The sky is falling!"

"Oh no!" said Ducky Lucky. "How do you know?"

"A piece fell on Chicken Little's head!"

"Let us run and tell Goosey Loosey!"

Pit-pat-pit-pat-pit-pat. They ran together.

They met Goosey Loosey.

"Goosey Loosey! The sky is falling!"

"Oh no!" said Goosey Loosey. "How do you know?"

"A piece fell on Chicken Little's head!"

"Let us run and tell Turkey Lurkey!"

Pit-pat-pit-pat-pit-pat. They ALL ran together.

They met Turkey Lurkey.

"Turkey Lurkey! The sky is falling!"

"Oh no!" said Turkey Lurkey. "How do you know?"

"A piece fell on Chicken Little's head!"

Turkey Lurkey looked at the sky. He looked for a long time. The sky was blue. The clouds were fluffy. Nothing was falling.

"Hmm," said Turkey Lurkey. "Are you SURE?"

They all walked back to the big oak tree. They looked up. An acorn was hanging from a branch. As they watched — BONK! — another acorn fell. It landed right on Henny Penny's head.

"OW!" said Henny Penny.

"That's not the sky," said Turkey Lurkey. "That's an acorn."

Chicken Little looked at the acorn. She looked at the sky. She looked at the acorn again.

"Oh," said Chicken Little.

Everybody laughed. Even Chicken Little. Because acorns are not the sky. And worrying is tiring. And sometimes you just need a friend who says "hmm, are you sure?"

That night, all five friends sat under the big oak tree. Chicken Little sat in the middle. Henny Penny sat on her left. Ducky Lucky sat on her right. Goosey Loosey sat behind. Turkey Lurkey sat in front, keeping watch — just in case.

The sky was still up there. Right where it belonged.

The stars came out. One... two... three... so many stars. The oak tree rustled softly. Shhhh, shhhh, shhhh.

Chicken Little closed her eyes. Henny Penny closed her eyes. Ducky Lucky closed her eyes. Goosey Loosey closed her eyes. Turkey Lurkey closed his eyes — one eye first, then the other, because turkeys are careful that way.

And the sky stayed right where it was... up above... big and dark and soft and full of stars...

Not falling. Not even a little.

Shhhh.