The Custodians - a Contemporary Fairytale

A tale within a tale. The twins, bathed and in their pyjamas, settled down on either side of the parent on the comfortable couch in the front room of their home. With a great flourish of ceremony, the parent opened the newly acquired book and began to read. ‘The custodians.’ [Here the parent paused dramatically.] ‘Once upon a time, when animals roamed the lush green land, and birds flew in the clear skies, and fishes* swam in the vast waters upon the earth, there were a wise old man and a cheeky teenager who admonished (that means, "ticked off") the custodians of this magical place for not keeping it shipshape (kept clean like your room should be): ‘Hoopoes arrived early in the garden. It was too hot for them to remain then in their northern summer layover spot, but their food was still frozen and a clot in the ground with all the frost down south. Birds sat on the hard ground with gaping mouths wondering where the next meal would come from. You see, the animals didn’t have a Mom. 'If only climate change did not destroy the habitat and was treated as a toy by the custodians, you would have seen all the colours of the rainbow that’s been recorded; the brightest jewel colours. And everything else your ancestors couldn’t—including the elusive blues†— after all, we all come in different hues. ‘Blue is also the colour of hottest stars in the galaxy, also biggest. Maybe we would one day travel afar and visit the Red Planet (not a star). But what to take with on this adventure; it’s at great cost to nature, this venture. The custodians should choose with greatest care who to take and in what state they leave air. 'THE FUTURE’ ‘Oh,’ said the twins in unison, ‘Shouldn’t it be “The End”?' ‘No,’ said the parent, ‘Not if we act wisely now and do all we could to preserve this precious heritage.’ THE END