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Circle Round Stories, 'Friends in High Places' | Ep. 165 (1)

'Friends in High Places' | Ep. 165 (1)

Think about someone you consider a good friend. If this person were in trouble, how far would you go to help them out?

We're about to meet a character who goes to great lengths to help her friends – quite literally!

NARRATOR: In another time… long, long ago… there came a summer when the rain ceased to fall. A horrible drought spread across the land, withering the grasses, shriveling the bushes, and drying up the waterholes one by one by one.

This “other time, long, long ago” was well before people appeared on earth. Back in those days it was just the animals. And as the drought dragged on, the animals were getting hungrier and thirstier under the sizzling sun. Among those hungry, thirsty animals were two best friends: Rhinoceros and Giraffe.

RHINO: Okay, Giraffe, this is getting ridiculous. The two of us have been wandering the plains all morning, looking for something to eat or drink, but we might as well face it! We're either going to starve or dehydrate! If not both!

GIRAFFE: I know things aren't looking so good, Rhino. But I say we don't give up! If we keep walking just a little bit longer, who knows what we'll find?

RHINO: “Who knows what we'll find”?!? I know what we'll find! Nothing! Zilch! Zero! Look, Giraffe. The grass is dead, the bushes are dying, and when's the last time you saw a waterhole that actually had cool, drinkable water – (interrupts himself as he feels tick biting him) Agh!

GIRAFFE: Let me guess. Another tick bite?

RHINO: Yeah! Another tick bite! Those parasites are the only ones around here who aren't starving! Because they're making a meal out of – (another unexpected bite) Ahgh! – (finishing his sentence) … out of me!

GIRAFFE: You're not the only one, Rhino. With this dense tan and white fur of mine, I get my share of tick bites, too.

RHINO: Yeah… but I get it worse! And I don't even have fur! (beat) I tell ya. Ticks… Droughts… Could this summer get any worse?

GIRAFFE: At least we have each other!

RHINO: Yeah. We do. But listen, Giraffe. I gotta get home. I haven't had a full night's sleep since this drought began; I've been too hungry and thirsty to get any shuteye! So I'm gonna go take a much-needed – (as tick bites him) Aghhh!…A much-needed nap.

NARRATOR: But just as Rhino turned to go…

GIRAFFE: Rhino! Wait! Look over there!

RHINO: Look over where? !

GIRAFFE: Over there! Those trees! Their canopy – their topmost branches – they're covered with tender green leaves! Leaves we could eat! (Sigh) If only we could reach that high.

NARRATOR: Okay, so I know what you're thinking. Of course Rhino can't reach the top of the tree. His wrinkly body isn't tall enough.

But what about Giraffe? Don't giraffes have those long graceful necks and long spindly legs?

Well, remember: our story takes place “In another time… long, long ago”! And back in that “other time,” Giraffe did not have a long neck or long legs. Her neck and legs were all short and stumpy.

GIRAFFE: Gosh, Rhino! Can you imagine? Being tall enough to just stride on over to those beautiful trees and start gobbling up tender green leaf after tender green leaf?

RHINO: That would be amazing, Giraffe! But it'll never happen. Not without working some sort of magic, anyway... A-HA!

GIRAFFE: Let me guess. Another tick bite…?

RHINO: No! An idea! Why didn't I think of this earlier?!? You and I will work some magic!

GIRAFFE: “Magic”…?!? But how?

RHINO: It's simple! We'll go see… Hyena!

NARRATOR: Hyena was a wise, crafty creature who, in those long-ago days, possessed magical powers. So Giraffe and Rhino summoned their strength and set off across the dusty plains to find her.

After walking all day, they reached Hyena's den. When they told her how they wished they could be tall enough to reach the tops of the beautiful green trees, the wise creature smiled a knowing smile.

HYENA: Ah, yes! The acacia trees! Amazing, aren't they? Acacias are very hardy. They can survive even the driest conditions!

RHINO: But can you make us tall enough to reach their leaves, Hyena?

GIRAFFE: Is such a thing even possible?

HYENA: Actually… it is. I just need to collect some special ingredients: magical herbs that will make whoever eats them grow nice and tall. Given the drought, the herbs will take a while to track down, however. So how about you come back tomorrow? Be sure to arrive at noon, on the dot – when the sun takes its highest seat in the sky!

NARRATOR: So, with hope in their hearts – if not food or water in their bellies – Rhino and Giraffe headed back to their part of the plains.

RHINO: Am I a genius or what, Giraffe? Like I said, you and I are going to work some magic!

GIRAFFE: We just have to make sure we get to Hyena's on time. How about I stay with you tonight, then we head back to her den together?

RHINO: Nah, I don't think so, Giraffe. I need to snooze. If you sleep over we'll stay up all night gabbing… and gossiping… you know how it goes. I'll just meet you tomorrow at noon.

GIRAFFE: Very well. See you then!

NARRATOR: But the next day, come noon, on the dot…

HYENA: Giraffe! Welcome back! Where's Rhino?

GIRAFFE: I don't know, Hyena! I woke before sunrise so I could get here on time. I'm sure Rhino will be here any minute.

HYENA: But the magical herbs only work when the sun takes its highest seat in the sky! So here! Eat the herbs now!

NARRATOR: So Giraffe gulped the herbs down in one bite.

GIRAFFE: (Big GULP)

NARRATOR: At first, she felt nothing. But then…

GIRAFFE: (feeling tingling sensation) Oooooo!

NARRATOR: … there was a tingling sensation in her neck!

GIRAFFE: Ahhh!

NARRATOR: …and her legs!

GIRAFFE: Ohh!

NARRATOR: And next thing she knew, both her neck and legs were getting longer and longer! And the ground was getting farther and farther away!

GIRAFFE: Whoa! Whoa! Whooaaaa!

NARRATOR: Before she knew it, her head was way high up in the sky!

GIRAFFE: Look at me! I'm so tall, I can see for miles! And there are the acacia trees! With plenty of tender, green leaves on top! Thank you, Hyena!

HYENA: You're most welcome, Giraffe. From now on, you will be the tallest animal on earth!

NARRATOR: Without missing a beat, Giraffe took off toward the acacia trees. Her stride was long and graceful – and fast! She reached the trees in seconds flat, and plunged her head into their green canopy so she could gobble up leaf after leaf.

GIRAFFE: (Munching leaves as she speaks) Mmmm! These leaves are so tender! So juicy! I can hardly get –

RHINO: (as if being bitten by tick) Aaaaaagh!

NARRATOR: Giraffe stopped eating and swung her long, graceful neck down toward the ground. And who should she see standing at the foot of the acacia tree, fighting off yet another tick… but Rhino!

GIRAFFE: Let me guess. Another tick bite.

RHINO: Yes, another tick bite! But it wasn't nearly as painful as what you did to me today! Eating the magic herbs?!? Going to see Hyena? Without me? What happened to “at least we have each other”? I thought we were best friends!

GIRAFFE: We are best friends, Rhino! And we do have each other! But the magic herbs only work at noon, and you said you needed your sleep, so I figured I would just –

RHINO: I did need my sleep! And I got my sleep! Unfortunately, I got a little too much. And slept in. And missed Hyena's noon-on-the-dot deadline. And now, look at you!!! You're all tall and lofty and munching acacia trees, and I'm down here, in this dry, dusty grass, fighting off – (bitten again) Aaaaaagh! …fighting off ticks and trying to ignore the rumbling in my belly!

GIRAFFE: I'm sorry, Rhino. I'll gladly get you some leaves from this tree if you – (interrupts herself as she detects smell) Hang on a second! (sniffs a few times) What's that smell?

RHINO: Smell?!? I don't smell any – (sniffs a few times) Oh wow! Yeah, I do! It smells like – (sniffs a few times) – like fire! Like something's burning!

NARRATOR: Giraffe swung her head back up toward the sky. As she peered toward the horizon, her big, soft eyes caught sight of a bushfire sweeping across the plains!

GIRAFFE: Oh no! The sizzling hot sun must have started a fire on the dry, dusty plains! What should we do?! ?

RHINO: Well, I can think of one thing... RUUUUUNNN!!!! !

[theme music in]

NARRATOR: Rhino's on the run... but what do you think Giraffe will do next?

We'll find out what happens, after a quick break.

[theme music out]

[BREAK]

[theme music in]

NARRATOR: Welcome back to Circle Round. I'm Rebecca Sheir. Today our story is called “Friends in High Places.”

[theme music out]

NARRATOR: Before the break, Giraffe reported to Hyena's den at noon on the dot and ate magical herbs that made her grow taller. Her best friend, Rhinoceros, slept in and missed his chance.

Not long after, a bushfire came raging across the dry and dusty plains and Rhino hurried away.

RHINO: Gahhhhhhh!

NARRATOR: Giraffe was about to skedaddle too when all of a sudden, her keen ears picked up…

[SOT: young oxpeckers screeching, continues below the following]

NARRATOR: …an unexpected sound!

GIRAFFE: Birds! Screeching birds! They sound young! And helpless! And close!

NARRATOR: Other animals were racing past Giraffe, all trying to outrun the approaching flames as the air filled with smoke. But Giraffe didn't stray from the acacia tree.

GIRAFFE: I think the sound is coming from this tree! But where? There aren't any birds nesting up here in the canopy! I'll look lower.

NARRATOR: Giraffe swung her neck down to the tree's trunk. Toward the top of the trunk she found a hole. And inside the hole she found a nest full of newly-hatched oxpeckers!

Oxpeckers are little brown birds with yellow-ringed eyes and bright red beaks. They love to eat ticks, and they tend to build their nests not on tree branches, but inside tree holes.

GIRAFFE: Look at you tiny little ones! All alone in your nest! Where's your mother? Well, no matter. I'm going to save you. Hang on tight!

NARRATOR: Ever so delicately, Giraffe put the nest in her mouth and took off across the plains. She raced like the wind, her long, spindly legs loping faster and faster until she came to a baobab tree, this one far away from the smoke and flames. Luckily, this tree had a hole in its trunk, too!

Carefully, Giraffe placed the oxpeckers' nest inside the hole.

GIRAFFE: There you go, little ones. Now we just need to find your mother and –

[SOT: thunderclap]

NARRATOR: Giraffe was interrupted by a sound that no one in the land had heard for months: a clap of thunder! And just like that…

[SOT: rain]

NARRATOR: Torrents of rain began pouring from the sky, drenching the earth… and snuffing out the flames.

[SOT: water snuffing out fire]

GIRAFFE: Do you see that, little ones? That… is rain! Something you kids have never seen before!

OXPECKER: …And something we grown-ups haven't seen in a very long time!

NARRATOR: Giraffe swung her neck around. Soaring through the raindrops was none other than the oxpeckers' mother! The brown bird swooped her way onto the nest and immediately began stuffing her babies' wide-open beaks with food.

OXPECKER: My darlings! I knew you were hungry so I went out and gathered these yummy ticks for you! Then the fires broke out and I was so worried! I'm glad I found you!

GIRAFFE: I'm glad, too!

NARRATOR: Oxpecker turned her yellow-ringed eyes toward Giraffe.

OXPECKER: Giraffe!?!?? I hardly recognized you, you've grown so tall! But you saved my children! …Tell me! How can I repay you?


'Friends in High Places' | Ep. 165 (1) 'Freunde in hohen Positionen' | Ep. 165 (1) 高いところの友人」|第165話 (1) 'Friends in High Places' | Ep. 165 (1) "Друзі у вищих ешелонах влади" | Випуск 165 (1)

Think about someone you consider a good friend. Denken Sie an jemanden, den Sie für einen guten Freund halten. Pense em alguém que você considera um bom amigo. If this person were in trouble, how far would you go to help them out? Wenn diese Person in Schwierigkeiten wäre, wie weit würden Sie gehen, um ihr zu helfen? Se essa pessoa estivesse com problemas, até onde você iria para ajudá-la?

We're about to meet a character who goes to great lengths to help her friends – quite literally! Wir lernen eine Figur kennen, die alles tut, um ihren Freunden zu helfen - im wahrsten Sinne des Wortes! Estamos prestes a conhecer uma personagem que faz de tudo para ajudar seus amigos – literalmente!

**NARRATOR:** In another time… long, long ago… there came a summer when the rain ceased to fall. In einer anderen Zeit... vor langer, langer Zeit... kam ein Sommer, in dem der Regen aufhörte. NARRADOR: Em outro tempo... muito, muito tempo atrás... chegou um verão em que a chuva parou de cair. A horrible drought spread across the land, withering the grasses, shriveling the bushes, and drying up the waterholes one by one by one. Eine schreckliche Dürre breitete sich über das Land aus, ließ die Gräser verdorren, die Sträucher schrumpfen und die Wasserlöcher nach und nach austrocknen.

This “other time, long, long ago” was well before people appeared on earth. Diese "andere Zeit, vor langer, langer Zeit" war lange bevor die Menschen auf der Erde erschienen. Back in those days it was just the animals. And as the drought dragged on, the animals were getting hungrier and thirstier under the sizzling sun. Und je länger die Dürre andauerte, desto hungriger und durstiger wurden die Tiere unter der brennenden Sonne. Among those hungry, thirsty animals were two best friends: Rhinoceros and Giraffe.

**RHINO:** Okay, Giraffe, this is getting ridiculous. The two of us have been wandering the plains all morning, looking for something to eat or drink, but we might as well face it! We're either going to starve or dehydrate! If not both! Wenn nicht beides!

**GIRAFFE:** I know things aren't looking so good, Rhino. But I say we don't give up! If we keep walking just a little bit longer, who knows what we'll find?

**RHINO:** “Who knows what we'll find”?!? RHINO: "Wer weiß, was wir finden"?!? I know what we'll find! Nothing! Zilch! Zero! Look, Giraffe. The grass is dead, the bushes are dying, and when's the last time you saw a waterhole that actually had cool, drinkable water – (interrupts himself as he feels tick biting him) Agh! Das Gras ist tot, die Büsche sterben, und wann hast du das letzte Mal ein Wasserloch gesehen, das tatsächlich kühles, trinkbares Wasser hatte - (unterbricht sich selbst, als er spürt, wie ihn eine Zecke beißt) Ahh!

**GIRAFFE:** Let me guess. GIRAFFE: Lassen Sie mich raten. Another tick bite? Noch ein Zeckenbiss?

**RHINO:** Yeah! Another tick bite! Those parasites are the only ones around here who aren't starving! Diese Parasiten sind die einzigen, die hier nicht verhungern! Because they're making a meal out of – (another unexpected bite) Ahgh! Denn sie machen eine Mahlzeit aus - (ein weiterer unerwarteter Biss) Ahgh! – (finishing his sentence) … out of me! - (beendet seinen Satz) ... aus mir heraus!

**GIRAFFE:** You're not the only one, Rhino. With this dense tan and white fur of mine, I get my share of tick bites, too. Mit meinem dichten hellbraunen und weißen Fell werde ich auch immer wieder von Zecken gebissen.

**RHINO:** Yeah… but I get it worse! And I don't even have fur! (beat) I tell ya. Ticks… Droughts… Could this summer get any worse?

**GIRAFFE:** At least we have each other!

**RHINO:** Yeah. We do. But listen, Giraffe. I gotta get home. I haven't had a full night's sleep since this drought began; I've been too hungry and thirsty to get any shuteye! So I'm gonna go take a much-needed – (as tick bites him) Aghhh!…A much-needed nap.

**NARRATOR:** But just as Rhino turned to go…

**GIRAFFE:** Rhino! Wait! Look over there!

**RHINO:** Look over where? !

**GIRAFFE:** Over there! Those trees! Their canopy – their topmost branches – they're covered with tender green leaves! Ihr Kronendach - ihre obersten Äste - sind mit zarten grünen Blättern bedeckt! Leaves we could eat! (Sigh) If only we could reach that high. (Seufzer) Wenn wir nur so hoch hinaus könnten.

**NARRATOR:** Okay, so I know what you're thinking. Okay, ich weiß, was Sie jetzt denken. Of course Rhino can't reach the top of the tree. Natürlich kann Rhino die Spitze des Baumes nicht erreichen. His wrinkly body isn't tall enough. Sein faltiger Körper ist nicht groß genug.

But what about Giraffe? Don't giraffes have those long graceful necks and long spindly legs? Haben Giraffen nicht diese langen, anmutigen Hälse und langen, spindeldürren Beine?

Well, remember: our story takes place “In another time… long, long ago”! And back in that “other time,” Giraffe did not have a long neck or long legs. Her neck and legs were all short and stumpy. Ihr Hals und ihre Beine waren kurz und stämmig.

**GIRAFFE:** Gosh, Rhino! Can you imagine? Können Sie sich das vorstellen? Being tall enough to just stride on over to those beautiful trees and start gobbling up tender green leaf after tender green leaf? Groß genug zu sein, um einfach zu diesen schönen Bäumen zu schreiten und ein zartes grünes Blatt nach dem anderen zu verschlingen?

**RHINO:** That would be amazing, Giraffe! But it'll never happen. Aber das wird nie passieren. Not without working some sort of magic, anyway... A-HA! Jedenfalls nicht, ohne irgendeine Art von Magie anzuwenden... A-HA!

**GIRAFFE:** Let me guess. Another tick bite…?

**RHINO:** No! An idea! Why didn't I think of this earlier?!? You and I will work some magic!

**GIRAFFE:** “Magic”…?!? But how?

**RHINO:** It's simple! We'll go see… Hyena! Wir werden sehen... Hyäne!

**NARRATOR:** Hyena was a wise, crafty creature who, in those long-ago days, possessed magical powers. Die Hyäne war ein weises, schlaues Wesen, das in jenen längst vergangenen Tagen magische Kräfte besaß. So Giraffe and Rhino summoned their strength and set off across the dusty plains to find her. Also nahmen Giraffe und Nashorn ihre Kräfte zusammen und machten sich auf den Weg durch die staubigen Ebenen, um sie zu finden.

After walking all day, they reached Hyena's den. When they told her how they wished they could be tall enough to reach the tops of the beautiful green trees, the wise creature smiled a knowing smile. Als sie ihr erzählten, wie sehr sie sich wünschten, groß genug zu sein, um die Wipfel der schönen grünen Bäume zu erreichen, lächelte das weise Geschöpf wissend.

**HYENA:** Ah, yes! The acacia trees! Die Akazienbäume! Amazing, aren't they? Erstaunlich, nicht wahr? Acacias are very hardy. They can survive even the driest conditions!

**RHINO:** But can you make us tall enough to reach their leaves, Hyena?

**GIRAFFE:** Is such a thing even possible?

**HYENA:** Actually… it is. I just need to collect some special ingredients: magical herbs that will make whoever eats them grow nice and tall. Ich muss nur ein paar besondere Zutaten sammeln: magische Kräuter, die jeden, der sie isst, schön groß werden lassen. Given the drought, the herbs will take a while to track down, however. So how about you come back tomorrow? Be sure to arrive at noon, on the dot – when the sun takes its highest seat in the sky!

**NARRATOR:** So, with hope in their hearts – if not food or water in their bellies – Rhino and Giraffe headed back to their part of the plains.

**RHINO:** Am I a genius or what, Giraffe? RHINO: Bin ich ein Genie oder was, Giraffe? Like I said, you and I are going to work some magic!

**GIRAFFE:** We just have to make sure we get to Hyena's on time. How about I stay with you tonight, then we head back to her den together? Wie wäre es, wenn ich heute Nacht bei dir bleibe und wir dann gemeinsam zu ihrer Höhle zurückkehren?

**RHINO:** Nah, I don't think so, Giraffe. I need to snooze. If you sleep over we'll stay up all night gabbing… and gossiping… you know how it goes. Wenn du bei mir schläfst, bleiben wir die ganze Nacht auf und quatschen... und tratschen... du weißt ja, wie es läuft. I'll just meet you tomorrow at noon.

**GIRAFFE:** Very well. See you then!

**NARRATOR:** But the next day, come noon, on the dot… Doch am nächsten Tag, pünktlich zur Mittagszeit...

**HYENA:** Giraffe! Welcome back! Where's Rhino?

**GIRAFFE:** I don't know, Hyena! I woke before sunrise so I could get here on time. I'm sure Rhino will be here any minute.

**HYENA:** But the magical herbs only work when the sun takes its highest seat in the sky! So here! Eat the herbs now!

**NARRATOR:** So Giraffe gulped the herbs down in one bite. Also verschlang Giraffe die Kräuter mit einem Bissen.

**GIRAFFE:** (Big GULP)

**NARRATOR:** At first, she felt nothing. But then…

**GIRAFFE:** (feeling tingling sensation) Oooooo!

**NARRATOR:** … there was a tingling sensation in her neck!

**GIRAFFE:** Ahhh!

**NARRATOR:** …and her legs!

**GIRAFFE:** Ohh!

**NARRATOR:** And next thing she knew, both her neck and legs were getting longer and longer! Und das nächste, was sie wusste, war, dass sowohl ihr Hals als auch ihre Beine länger und länger wurden! And the ground was getting farther and farther away! Und der Boden entfernte sich immer weiter!

**GIRAFFE:** Whoa! Whoa! Whooaaaa!

**NARRATOR:** Before she knew it, her head was way high up in the sky!

**GIRAFFE:** Look at me! I'm so tall, I can see for miles! And there are the acacia trees! Und da sind die Akazienbäume! With plenty of tender, green leaves on top! Thank you, Hyena!

**HYENA:** You're most welcome, Giraffe. From now on, you will be the tallest animal on earth!

**NARRATOR:** Without missing a beat, Giraffe took off toward the acacia trees. Ohne zu zögern, lief die Giraffe zu den Akazienbäumen. Her stride was long and graceful – and fast! She reached the trees in seconds flat, and plunged her head into their green canopy so she could gobble up leaf after leaf. In Sekundenschnelle erreichte sie die Bäume und tauchte ihren Kopf in deren grünes Blätterdach, um ein Blatt nach dem anderen zu verschlingen.

**GIRAFFE:** (Munching leaves as she speaks) Mmmm! These leaves are so tender! Diese Blätter sind so zart! So juicy! I can hardly get – Ich kann kaum -

**RHINO:** (as if being bitten by tick) Aaaaaagh! RHINO: (als wäre er von einer Zecke gebissen worden) Aaaaaagh!

**NARRATOR:** Giraffe stopped eating and swung her long, graceful neck down toward the ground. And who should she see standing at the foot of the acacia tree, fighting off yet another tick… but Rhino! Und wen sieht sie da am Fuße der Akazie stehen und eine weitere Zecke abwehren... Rhino!

**GIRAFFE:** Let me guess. Another tick bite. Ein weiterer Zeckenbiss.

**RHINO:** Yes, another tick bite! But it wasn't nearly as painful as what you did to me today! Aber es war nicht annähernd so schmerzhaft wie das, was du mir heute angetan hast! Eating the magic herbs?!? Das Essen der magischen Kräuter?!? Going to see Hyena? Gehst du zu Hyena? Without me? What happened to “at least we have each other”? Was ist aus "Wenigstens haben wir einander" geworden? I thought we were best friends! Ich dachte, wir wären beste Freunde!

**GIRAFFE:** We are best friends, Rhino! And we do have each other! Und wir haben ja einander! But the magic herbs only work at noon, and you said you needed your sleep, so I figured I would just – Aber die Zauberkräuter wirken nur mittags, und du hast gesagt, du brauchst deinen Schlaf, also dachte ich mir, dass ich einfach -

**RHINO:** I did need my sleep! And I got my sleep! Unfortunately, I got a little too much. And slept in. And missed Hyena's noon-on-the-dot deadline. And now, look at you!!! You're all tall and lofty and munching acacia trees, and I'm down here, in this dry, dusty grass, fighting off – (bitten again) Aaaaaagh! Ihr seid alle groß und hoch und knabbert an Akazienbäumen, und ich bin hier unten, in diesem trockenen, staubigen Gras, und wehre mich - (wieder gebissen) Aaaaaagh! …fighting off ticks and trying to ignore the rumbling in my belly! ...kämpfe gegen Zecken und versuche, das Grummeln in meinem Bauch zu ignorieren!

**GIRAFFE:** I'm sorry, Rhino. I'll gladly get you some leaves from this tree if you – (interrupts herself as she detects smell) Hang on a second! Ich besorge dir gerne ein paar Blätter von diesem Baum, wenn du - (unterbricht sich selbst, als sie einen Geruch wahrnimmt) Warte einen Moment! (sniffs a few times) What's that smell?

**RHINO:** Smell?!? I don't smell any – (sniffs a few times) Oh wow! Ich rieche keine - (schnuppert ein paar Mal) Oh wow! Yeah, I do! It smells like – (sniffs a few times) – like fire! Like something's burning! Als ob etwas brennen würde!

**NARRATOR:** Giraffe swung her head back up toward the sky. Die Giraffe schwang ihren Kopf wieder in den Himmel. As she peered toward the horizon, her big, soft eyes caught sight of a bushfire sweeping across the plains! Als sie zum Horizont blickte, entdeckte sie mit ihren großen, sanften Augen ein Buschfeuer, das über die Ebene hinwegfegte!

**GIRAFFE:** Oh no! The sizzling hot sun must have started a fire on the dry, dusty plains! What should we do?! ?

RHINO: Well, I can think of one thing... RHINO: Nun, mir fällt da eine Sache ein... RUUUUUNNN!!!! !

**[theme music in]**

**NARRATOR:** Rhino's on the run... but what do you think Giraffe will do next? Nashorn ist auf der Flucht ... aber was wird Giraffe wohl als nächstes tun?

We'll find out what happens, after a quick break.

**[theme music out]**

**[BREAK]**

**[theme music in]**

**NARRATOR:** Welcome back to Circle Round. I'm Rebecca Sheir. Today our story is called “Friends in High Places.”

**[theme music out]**

**NARRATOR:** Before the break, Giraffe reported to Hyena's den at noon on the dot and ate magical herbs that made her grow taller. Vor der Pause meldete sich Giraffe pünktlich zur Mittagszeit in Hyänens Bau und aß magische Kräuter, die sie größer werden ließen. Her best friend, Rhinoceros, slept in and missed his chance.

Not long after, a bushfire came raging across the dry and dusty plains and Rhino hurried away. Nicht lange danach wütete ein Buschfeuer über die trockenen und staubigen Ebenen und Rhino eilte davon.

**RHINO:** Gahhhhhhh!

**NARRATOR:** Giraffe was about to skedaddle too when all of a sudden, her keen ears picked up… Die Giraffe wollte sich auch schon aus dem Staub machen, als sie plötzlich ihre scharfen Ohren aufstellte...

**[SOT: young oxpeckers screeching, continues below the following]** [SOT: junge Spechte kreischen, weiter unten im Text]

**NARRATOR:** …an unexpected sound! ...ein unerwartetes Geräusch!

**GIRAFFE:** Birds! Screeching birds! They sound young! And helpless! And close!

**NARRATOR:** Other animals were racing past Giraffe, all trying to outrun the approaching flames as the air filled with smoke. Andere Tiere rannten an Giraffe vorbei und versuchten, den herannahenden Flammen zu entkommen, während sich die Luft mit Rauch füllte. But Giraffe didn't stray from the acacia tree. Aber Giraffe entfernte sich nicht von dem Akazienbaum.

**GIRAFFE:** I think the sound is coming from this tree! GIRAFFE: Ich glaube, das Geräusch kommt von diesem Baum! But where? There aren't any birds nesting up here in the canopy! I'll look lower.

**NARRATOR:** Giraffe swung her neck down to the tree's trunk. Die Giraffe schwang ihren Hals hinunter zum Baumstamm. Toward the top of the trunk she found a hole. And inside the hole she found a nest full of newly-hatched oxpeckers!

Oxpeckers are little brown birds with yellow-ringed eyes and bright red beaks. They love to eat ticks, and they tend to build their nests not on tree branches, but inside tree holes. Sie fressen gerne Zecken und bauen ihre Nester nicht auf Ästen, sondern in Baumhöhlen.

**GIRAFFE:** Look at you tiny little ones! All alone in your nest! Where's your mother? Well, no matter. I'm going to save you. Hang on tight!

**NARRATOR:** Ever so delicately, Giraffe put the nest in her mouth and took off across the plains. Behutsam steckte die Giraffe das Nest in ihr Maul und flog über die Ebene davon. She raced like the wind, her long, spindly legs loping faster and faster until she came to a baobab tree, this one far away from the smoke and flames. Sie rannte wie der Wind, ihre langen, spindeldürren Beine schlängelten sich schneller und schneller, bis sie zu einem Affenbrotbaum kam, der weit weg von Rauch und Flammen stand. Luckily, this tree had a hole in its trunk, too!

Carefully, Giraffe placed the oxpeckers' nest inside the hole. Vorsichtig platzierte Giraffe das Nest des Spechtes in dem Loch.

**GIRAFFE:** There you go, little ones. GIRAFFE: Bitte sehr, ihr Kleinen. Now we just need to find your mother and – Jetzt müssen wir nur noch deine Mutter finden und -

**[SOT: thunderclap]**

**NARRATOR:** Giraffe was interrupted by a sound that no one in the land had heard for months: a clap of thunder! Giraffe wurde von einem Geräusch unterbrochen, das seit Monaten niemand mehr im Land gehört hatte: ein Donnerschlag! And just like that… Und einfach so...

**[SOT: rain]** [SOT: Regen]

**NARRATOR:** Torrents of rain began pouring from the sky, drenching the earth… and snuffing out the flames. Sturzbäche von Regen ergossen sich vom Himmel, durchnässten die Erde ... und erstickten die Flammen.

**[SOT: water snuffing out fire]**

**GIRAFFE:** Do you see that, little ones? GIRAFFE: Seht ihr das, meine Kleinen? That… is rain! Something you kids have never seen before! Etwas, das ihr Kinder noch nie gesehen habt!

**OXPECKER:** …And something we grown-ups haven't seen in a very long time! OXPECKER: ...und etwas, das wir Erwachsenen schon sehr lange nicht mehr gesehen haben!

**NARRATOR:** Giraffe swung her neck around. Soaring through the raindrops was none other than the oxpeckers' mother! Durch die Regentropfen schwebte niemand anderes als die Mutter der Spechte! The brown bird swooped her way onto the nest and immediately began stuffing her babies' wide-open beaks with food. Der braune Vogel stürzte sich auf das Nest und begann sofort, die weit geöffneten Schnäbel seiner Jungen mit Futter zu füllen.

**OXPECKER:** My darlings! I knew you were hungry so I went out and gathered these yummy ticks for you! Ich wusste, dass du hungrig bist, also bin ich losgezogen und habe diese leckeren Zecken für dich gesammelt! Then the fires broke out and I was so worried! I'm glad I found you! Ich bin froh, dass ich Sie gefunden habe!

**GIRAFFE:** I'm glad, too! GIRAFFE: Das freut mich auch!

**NARRATOR:** Oxpecker turned her yellow-ringed eyes toward Giraffe. Oxpecker wandte ihre gelbgeringelten Augen der Giraffe zu.

**OXPECKER:** Giraffe!?!?? OXPECKER: Giraffe!?!?? I hardly recognized you, you've grown so tall! Ich habe dich kaum erkannt, so groß bist du geworden! But you saved my children! Aber Sie haben meine Kinder gerettet! …Tell me! How can I repay you? Wie kann ich Ihnen das zurückzahlen?