داستان کوتاه

Play – Mini Story

Hello, welcome to our mini story for this month’s lesson. Let’s get started.

There is a woman named Nicola. Her best friends are Chimmy the monkey and Heva the dog. They are treasure hunters and they are on vacation in Thailand, and have been enjoying themselves.

Where are they on vacation?

In Thailand. They are on vacation in Thailand.

What have they been doing?

They have been enjoying themselves.

Have they been having a good time?

Yes, they have been enjoying themselves.

Nicola, Heva the dog and Chimmy the monkey have been relaxing on Koh Payam Island in Thailand. While there, they have been staying at the Starlight Bungalows.

Where have they been staying?

At the Starlight Bungalows.

What is a bungalow?

A bungalow is like a hut. It’s a very simple little room or a very simple little building, often made from wood or made from bamboo, a bungalow.

Where are they staying? What are the names of the bungalows they’re staying in, their little bungalow resort, what are the names?

It’s called the Starlight Bungalows Resort. Starlight Bungalows is the name.

What is a bungalow?

It’s a simple small little building.

During the day, Nicola reads romance novels while relaxing in a hammock on the porch of their bungalow.

In what does Nicola relax?

In a hammock. Nicola relaxes in a hammock.

What is a hammock?

A hammock is a kind of bed. It’s like a sheet that is tied to two trees and in the middle, you lay on the hammock.

So, does Nicola sleep in the hammock?

No not really, she doesn’t sleep in the hammock she reads romance novels while relaxing in the hammock.

Where is this hammock that she relaxes in?

Well, it’s on the porch of their bungalow. So it’s tied to the posts on the porch.

While Nicola relaxes in her hammock each day, Heva the dog plays with the German shepherd that lives at Starlight Bungalows. Of course, a German shepherd is a type of dog. And Chimmy the monkey tries to surf in the ocean.

Unfortunately, the waves are too small so he only falls into the water again and again. It’s an idyllic life. (Idyllic means peaceful, like a paradise)

What kind of life is it?

It’s idyllic. An idyllic life, it’s peaceful and calm.

“Now this is the life,” says Nicola, “I could stay here forever.” “Yeah,” says Heva, “I like it here.” Chimmy the monkey says, “It’s nice, but I’m starting to get a little bored.” Another week passes on Koh Payam Island. Each day, the same as the other day. Then, one morning Todd, the owner of Starlight Bungalows chats with the three of them during breakfast.

Who is the owner of Starlight Bungalows?

Todd. Todd is the owner of Starlight Bungalows.

Where are the Starlight Bungalows?

On Koh Payam Island.

And where is Koh Payam Island?

It’s in Thailand.

We often say on an island and in a country. So the bungalows are on Koh Payam Island in Thailand.

Who is the owner again?

Todd. Todd is the owner of Starlight Bungalows. And he chats with the three of them. He says, “Hey, did you guys see that that big gangster got off? You know, the one who tried to steal the emerald Buddha.”

In this case, in this situation, to get off means to escape without punishment. So if someone gets off from a crime, it means they avoid punishment. They are released without punishment.

Was the big gangster punished for trying to steal the Buddha?

No, he was not punished. He got off. He got off easy. He got off without punishment. He escaped. He was released without punishment.

Who got off without punishment?

The big gangster. The big gangster got off without punishment. He was not punished.

“What?” shouted Heva, Chimmy and Nicola, in unison. (In unison means all together, all at the same time.)

Did they shout separately?

No, they shouted in unison, all together at the same time.

Who shouted in unison?

Heva, Chimmy and Nicola.

How did they shout?

In unison, all together. They shouted in unison, “What?”

Nicola snatches the newspaper from Todd’s hands and reads the article.

How does Nicola grab the newspaper?

She snatches it.

To snatch means to grab something very quickly.

So does she grab the newspaper slowly?

No, she doesn’t. She doesn’t grab it slowly. She snatches the paper. She grabs it very quickly.

And who snatches the paper from Todd’s hands?

Nicola. Nicola snatches the newspaper from Todd’s hands.

Why does she snatch the newspaper from Todd’s hands?

Because she wants to read the article. It’s very important to her.

What does she do?

She snatches the newspaper. Nicola snatches the newspaper from Todd’s hands and she reads the article.

Then she says, “We’re in trouble, they let Rothchild go free.” Chimmy says, “He’s going to come looking for us. He knows we tried to put him in jail.” “Uh oh,” says Heva, as he grabs a piece of bacon from his plate. That night, while they were sleeping, a group of motorcycles roar into the bungalow resort. They rev their engines as they ride around the bungalows.

To roar means to make a big loud noise, like a lion. But we can use it in many situations, to mean a big loud, kind of angry sound.

So what roars in this situation?

Motorcycles. The sound of the motorcycles sound like a roar. It means they’re very loud.

So the motorcycles roar into the Bungalow resort, meaning they come in very loudly. And they rev their engines. The riders rev the engines.

To rev an engine means to make the engine go very fast, (varoom… that kind of sound.) You can rev a motorcycle engine; you can rev a car engine.

What kind of engines do they rev?

They rev their motorcycle engines.

Who revs motorcycle engines?

The riders. The riders rev their engines as they ride around the bungalows. They make them go very fast, very loud. They rev their engines.

Chimmy, Nicola and Heva wake up. Nicola says, “It must be gangsters. We’ve got to get out of here.” One by one, they sneak out their side window. Suddenly, a gangster shouts, “There they are.” “Run,” shouts Nicola, “to the water.” The three run through the darkness to the beach. The motorcycles speed towards them.

Where do they run to?

They run to the beach.

Who runs to the beach?

Nicola, Chimmy and Heva run to the beach.

Is it light or is it dark?

It’s very dark, it’s night. So the three run through the darkness to the beach.

What chases them?

Motorcycles. The motorcycles chase them. The motorcycles speed towards them, meaning they go very fast towards them.

On the beach Chimmy sees a small kayak. (A kayak is a very small boat for maybe one, two or three people, kind of like a canoe).

What kind of boat does Chimmy see?

A kayak. Chimmy sees a kayak.

Where is the kayak?

The kayak is on the beach.

Is the kayak in a tree?

No, the kayak is not in a tree.

Where is it?

The kayak is on the beach.

What kind of kayak is it?

It’s a small kayak. A small little boat.

Chimmy, Heva and Nicola grab the kayak, and they push it into the water and then they jump in and paddle frantically away from the shore into the darkness.

How do they paddle?

Frantically.

Frantically means very energetically and kind of nervously, without control, because they’re scared so they’re paddling very frantically. Energetically in a scared and uncontrolled way.

To paddle means to use a piece of wood to push a boat.

So what do they paddle frantically?

The kayak. They paddle the kayak frantically.

How do they paddle it?

Frantically.

Where do they paddle towards?

Towards the ocean, away from the shore. The shore is the beach. The shore is where the water and the land come together.

So they paddle frantically away from what?

They paddle frantically away from the shore.

Who paddles frantically away from the shore?

The three, Chimmy, Heva and Nicola, paddle frantically away from the shore.

Why do they paddle frantically?

Because they’re scared of the gangsters who are trying to catch them.

So they paddle frantically away from the shore into the darkness towards the ocean. The three continue paddling all night towards the mainland.

The mainland is the main area, the main land. It’s very obvious what the meaning is. It means it’s the main part of a country.

For example, in the United States we have the island of Hawaii, that is an island, but the mainland is the main big area of land of the United States, like California, New York, Texas, the big area, that’s called the main land. It’s the largest area of land for the country, it’s not an island.

They were on an island Koh Payam, that’s a little island. The mainland is the main part of Thailand, the mainland.

So where do they finally paddle to?

They paddle to the mainland, towards the mainland, towards the big main land of Thailand.

By morning, Chimmy and Nicola are exhausted, so Heva the dog paddles the boat to shore. Finally, they make it to the mainland.

They make it to where?

To the mainland. To the main part of Thailand, away from the island.

Chimmy says, “We’ve got to find a place to hide from the gangsters.” Nicola says, “I knew I shouldn’t have become a treasure seeker. I should have gotten another job as a teacher. I should have gotten a safe and predictable job.”

Chimmy says, “Stop talking crazy. That was a boring job, besides we’re still rich.” Heva interrupts their arguing. He says, “How about Maui?”

What does Heva do?

Heva interrupts them.

What does he interrupt?

He interrupts their arguing. Chimmy and Nicola are arguing and Heva interrupts them.

When he interrupts them, what does Heva say?

He says, “How about Maui?” How about Maui means, what do you think of Maui? When we want to give a suggestion, we often say, how about… how about this… it means what do you think of this?

So what does Heva say?

He says, “How about Maui?”

What is Maui?

Maui is an island in Hawaii, in the state of Hawaii. It’s one of the Hawaiian islands.

Which island, which place does Heva want to go next?

Maui. He wants to go to Hawaii to the island of Maui.

Heva says, “We can hide in Hawaii, on Maui. That’s where I’m from. We can stay with my friend Lorraine, no one will find us there. Her house is out in the country.”

Which state can they hide in?

They can hide in Hawaii, in the state of Hawaii.

And which island can they hide on?

They can hide on Maui.

Which state is Maui in?

The island of Maui is in Hawaii.

Where is Heva originally from?

Maui. Heva is originally from the island of Maui in the state of Hawaii.

He says, “That’s where I’m from. We can stay with my friend Lorraine, no one will find us there. We can hide there. Because, Lorraine’s house is out in the country.”

Out in the country means in the countryside, not near a city. Like out in the farm land or in the woods or in the mountains, away from towns and cities. We say out in the country. It means out in the countryside, but we make it shorter by saying out in the country.

Where is Lorraine’s house?

Out in the country.

Is Lorraine’s house in the city or out in the country?

Lorraine’s house is out in the country.

Whose house is out in the country?

Lorraine’s house is out in the country.

Who’s Lorraine?

Heva’s friend. Lorraine is Heva’s friend.

Nicola and Chimmy, simultaneously say, “Well why not.” And so the three go to Bangkok and catch a flight to Maui. After a 12-hour flight, they arrived on Maui.

“It’s beautiful,” says Nicola, “I just hope the gangsters can’t find us here.” “Don’t worry,” says Chimmy, “I’m sure everything will be completely safe.”

That is the end of our mini story for this month.

As usual, listen to this mini story every day. Pause and answer the questions. Use a lot of energy when you answer. Shout if you can if you’re alone.

If you’re outside in public, go for a walk, keep your body moving, keep that energy as you listen to the stories, as you listen to all of the lessons. You can answer with just one two or three words, keep your answers short.

See you next time. Bye for now.