The River

I am the river. Perhaps you would like to know my name, but my name isn’t important. I’m much older than people. They have given me many names over the years. Tonight, before you go to sleep, I’m going to take you on a trip and show you all of the beautiful places I have been watching over all of this time.

Let’s begin our journey in a forest. It's where I sprung up from the ground. If you listen very carefully, you can hear the soft burbling of my water. That’s me!

You just have to follow the sound and then look through the fallen needles on the ground. You will find a tiny brooklet slowly making its way down the hill. It's part of me. But let’s move on. Follow me downstream.

We’re leaving the forest behind. I have already made a narrow, but firm stream bed for myself. My water helps irrigate the surrounding fields, and people treat me well for it. They make sure my banks are always clean and plant wonderful trees for me. When I let a wavelet rise up a little, I can marvel at the beauty of the golden ears of wheat.

Look, we’re entering a village and my path takes me right through its center. The people here cherish me and look after me as well. Thanks to me, they have a natural swimming pool, which they fill with my water.

Let’s take a peek - we just need to take a turn and go underground for a little while. And here we are! People enjoy my fresh and cool embrace. Let’s send them a ripple. And another one! Now it’s time to rush back and rejoin the stream.

We’re entering the fields again. Corn grows all around us,…