Short story

A warm heart

Once upon a time, there was a poor little girl called Anna. She was so poor that she was unable to attend school well dressed. Her school dress was a faded uniform, and an old pair of shoes. She didn't have friends in her class. Her classmates ignored her.

She had lost her mother when she was very small. She was brought up by her father who earned a living as a factory labourer.

Her only companion was her little cat called Kitty. Very often, she spent her time speaking to Kitty. One day, she took Kitty to her lap and told her, "Oh dear...! I don't have friends in my class; I don't know why everybody dislikes me. My father really loves me, but he has very little time to spend with me. So you are my only friend, please don't part with me." A tear drop fell on Kitty's head.

The next day, as usual, Anna got up early in the morning, cooked lunch for her father and herself and went to school before the other children arrived. She never waited for the others to arrange the class, sweep the floor, clean the blackboard and so on.

Having performed those duties that day too, she sat down to get ready for the first lesson. The school started and the classteacher began the lesson.

The girl who was seated next to Anna didn't have a pencil to write with. She stood up and asked for a pencil. The teacher, who didn't hear what she said, asked her firmly not to disturb the class. So she sat down not knowing what to do.

Anna saw her helpless face and felt very sorry for her. Anna broke her brand new pencil into two and offered one piece to the girl saying, "Here is a pencil for you!" The girl accepted with surprise and thanked Anna. Both were happy.

When her father returned home in the evening, Anna told him what happened in the morning. He was glad about what his daughter had done and exclaimed, "Oh...darling, I'm very proud of you!

That's the way we must behave. Your mother was also a very helpful person. True enough, we are not rich, but we must not avoid the slightest opportunity to help others. If we do good things, we will be happy some day."

Another day, while Anna was on her way to school through the paddy field, she saw that the same girl was in trouble again; her uniform had been badly soiled as she had slipped and fallen into a muddy pit. Her shoes also looked dirty. She was very sad and about to cry.

She told Anna, "This is my new uniform. My mother presented this to me for my birthday. Now it is stained with mud. I can't go to school like this and I can't return home, because today is the first day of our term test. Oh! There is nobody to help me."

Consoling the girl, Anna said, "Don't worry my friend, let's go to our house and do the needful." They both got together and cleaned the soiled clothes and shoes. When the clothes were dry, both went back to school.

They arrived in school thirty minutes late. The term test had already started. So they had to go to the principal straight away to explain why they were late and be excused for late attendance.

Seeing them coming late, the busy principal signalled them to stand near the office door-a punishment! Anna felt very sorry that she won't be able to do the test. She thought, "I am helping everybody, but there is nobody to care for me. Oh! what an unlucky girl I am!"

While they were standing near the office door, the classteacher who came towards the office accidentally saw them and inquired as to why they were out. Anna had no courage to answer, but the other girl explained to the classteacher what had happened.

The class teacher realised that Anna had done a good deed and it was wrong to punish her; she directly went to the principal and discussed the matter with him. The principal allowed them to go for the test. Anna was so happy that she was able to answer the paper without any hindrance.

The girl whom Anna helped came to her after the test was over and said, "Anna, I am very sorry that you were punished because of me. Thank you for all the help given to me.

I'm ashamed that I couldn't understand your warm heart and kindness. I recalled the proverb that we learnt in the class the other day-A friend in need is a friend indeed."

All the students of the class, who had heard of the incident by then, said, "Anna we neglected you all the time, but don't worry, we are all your friends now." Anna was very happy to hear that.

On the last day of the year, the school prize-giving was held. Anna was surprised to hear her name being announced for the 'Good deed of the year' prize. After that, Anna had many friends ready to help her at any time.

Sent by
Duwani Kanchana de Silva,
Kandawala,
Katana.

An unusual frilled shark

Officials at Awashima Marine Park, located in the coastal city of Numazu, Japan have obtained a rare video recording of a frilled shark. The fish, scientifically named Chlamydoselachus anguineus, had been seen near the surface of the sea after it was captured in nearby waters.

On the afternoon of January 21, a fisherman had spotted the large fish in the shallow water near the park. He had immediately contacted Awashima Marine Park officials, who caught the shark and transported it to the park's dolphin pen, where they turned it loose. Park officials videotaped the weak shark swimming around.

Video recordings of the frilled shark near the sea surface is very rare, and the park officials say it will keep the video for research purposes.

The frilled shark is typically found at a depth of around 600 metres (2,000 feet). Its slender body grows to about 160 cm long, and unlike most sharks, which typically have five sets of gills, the frilled shark has six sets.

It is known as a 'living fossil' for its resemblance to the extinct, Paleozoic sharks. Researchers investigating why the shark was found in shallow waters think it may have surfaced along with deep-sea water pushed up to shallow depths by easterly winds.

Another possibility is that it left the deep waters because of cool water temperatures near the surface. Or perhaps it came in search of food. This rare video is available to everyone on the internet.