Two Dragon Tales Written by
Illustrated by
Dawn Casey
Cosei Kawa
Contents Telesik 2 The Dragon Pearl 28
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Telesik
A Ukrainian Folk Tale Once there lived an old man and an old woman who’d never been blessed with a child. One day the old woman said to the old man, “Please, go into the forest, and bring me back a little sapling. Make a wooden cradle for it, then at least I can rock the cradle and sing lullabies as if it were my own baby.” The old man looked at his wife and smiled gently. He went out into the woods and back he came, with a little sapling. To make his wife happy, he made a wooden cradle for it as she’d asked.
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All through the next sun-lit day, the woman rocked the cradle. All through the next star-lit evening, the woman sang: “Liu-lee, Liu-lee, Liu-lee-o. Liu-lee, Liu-lee, Liu-lee-o.” She went on rocking and singing, rocking and singing, until she rocked herself to sleep. And in the morning, when she woke up and looked into the cradle … Oh! That little sapling had turned into a real baby! The old woman lifted the baby up and gazed at him in wonder. She held him and hugged him and breathed in the scent of his hair. Her heart overflowed with love.
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The old man and the old woman called their son Telesik. They loved him dearly, and never told a soul that he’d come from the forest. Telesik ran and jumped and climbed and swung. He ate and grew, as boys do. “Mother,” said Telesik one day, “I’m old enough now to go out on my own. Please, can Father make me a little golden boat, so I can go out on the lake and bring back fish for our supper?” So the old man made Telesik a little golden boat with a silver oar. Then both Telesik’s parents came with him to the lake side. “Now, look after yourself,” said his mother, “the forest’s full of dangers and wild beasts. Don’t go too far. And don’t fall into the lake. And …”
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Telesik’s father laid his hand gently on his wife’s arm and she smiled. She kissed Telesik and gave him a final instruction. “One last thing,” she said. “When it’s time to eat, I will call you. But if you hear a stranger calling, don’t answer. Row away, far away.” Telesik climbed into his little boat and rowed out over the lake. His mother and father stood waving, then walked slowly home.
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Telesik loved his little boat. Day after day, he rowed all around the lake. And as he rowed, he sang: “Row Golden Boat, Row Silver Oar, Carry me, carry me, Far from the shore.”
And the little boat seemed to hear Telesik’s song, for it skimmed lightly over the lake as if by magic. Telesik spent the morning drifting and dreaming, rowing and singing. The sun warmed his face. The water lapped his boat, rocking it softly. Telesik trailed his fingers in the water and watched the dragonflies dancing.
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When the sun was high in the sky, Telesik’s mother came to the edge of the lake with a bundle of good things to eat. She called out: “Telesik, Telesik, Come to your Mama, Come to your Mama.”
Telesik heard his mother and sang, “Row Golden Boat, Row Silver Oar, Carry me, carry me, Back to the shore.” And his little boat skimmed home across the water.
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Telesik gave his mother a string of fine fish, and his mother gave him warm rolls and sweet honey. Telesik ate and drank and shared his bread with the wild water birds. Then he used his silver oar to push out into the lake again. For weeks, this was how Telesik’s days passed.
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But, one day, a dragon was hunting near the lake. Her neck was long. Her scales were red. Her tail was all spines and spikes. And she was hungry. The dragon heard Telesik’s mother and she saw Telesik. She licked her lips. “It’s been a long time since I had a tasty boy to eat. I‘ll call him to shore and I’ll catch him.” So, the dragon hid herself in the bushes, and she bellowed: “Telesik, Telesik! Come to your Mama! Come to your Mama!”
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