Tonight, I am reading The Beginning of the Armadillos. This tall tale is from Rudyard Kipling's "Just So" stories. Allow this reading to help you relax and fall into a deep, restorative sleep. Enjoy this story!
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Transcript
The Beginning of the Armadillos by Rudyard Kipling This, O Best Beloved, Is another story of the high and far-off times. In the very middle of those times was a stickly, Prickly hedgehog, And he lived on the banks of the turbid Amazon, Eating shelly snails and things. And he had a friend, A slow, Solid tortoise, Who lived on the banks of the turbid Amazon, Eating green lettuces and things. And so that was all right, Best Beloved, Do you see? But also, At the same time, In those high and far-off times, There was a painted jaguar, And he lived on the banks of the turbid Amazon, Too, And he ate everything that he could catch. When he could not catch deer or monkeys, He would eat frogs and beetles. And when he could not catch frogs and beetles, He went to his mother jaguar, And she told him how to eat hedgehogs and tortoises. She said to him ever so many times, Graciously waving her tail, My son, When you find a hedgehog, You must drop him into the water, And then he will uncoil. And when you catch a tortoise, You must scoop him out of his shell with your paw. And so that was all right, Best Beloved. One beautiful night on the banks of the turbid Amazon, Painted jaguar found stickly prickly hedgehog and slow solid tortoise sitting under the trunk of a fallen tree. They could not run away. And so stickly prickly curled himself up into a ball, Because he was a hedgehog, And slow solid tortoise drew in his head and feet into his shell as far as they would go, Because he was a tortoise. And so that was all right, Best Beloved. Do you see? Now attend to me, Said painted jaguar, Because this is very important. My mother said when I meet a hedgehog, I am to drop him into the water and then he will uncoil. And when I meet a tortoise, I am to scoop him out of his shell with my paw. Now which of you is hedgehog and which is tortoise? Because to save my spots, I can't tell. Are you sure of what your mummy told you, Said stickly prickly hedgehog? Are you quite sure? Perhaps, She said, When you uncoil a tortoise, You must shell him out of the water with a scoop. And when you paw a hedgehog, You must drop him on the shell. Are you sure of what your mummy told you, Said slow and solid tortoise? Are you quite sure? Perhaps, She said, That when you water a hedgehog, You must drop him into your paw. And when you meet a tortoise, You must shell him till he uncoils. I don't think it was at all like that, Said painted jaguar. But he felt a little puzzled. But please, Say it again more distinctly. When you scoop water with your paw, You uncoil it with a hedgehog, Said stickly prickly. Remember that, Because it's important. But, Said the tortoise, When you paw your meat, You drop it into a tortoise with a scoop. Why can't you understand? You are making my spots ache, Said painted jaguar. And besides, I didn't want your advice at all. I only wanted to know which of you is hedgehog and which is tortoise. I shan't tell you, Said stickly prickly. But you can scoop me out of my shell if you like. Aha, Said painted jaguar. Now I know you're tortoise. You thought I wouldn't. Now I will. Painted jaguar darted out his patty paw, Just as stickly prickly curled himself up. And of course, Jaguar's patty paw was filled with prickles. Worse than that, He knocked stickly prickly away into the woods and the bushes, Where it was too dark to find him. Then he put his patty paw into his mouth. And of course, The prickles hurt him worse than ever. As soon as he could speak, He said, Now I know he isn't tortoise at all, But. . . And then he scratched his head with his unprickly paw. How do I know that this other is tortoise? But I am tortoise, Said slow and solid. Your mother was quite right. She said that you were to scoop me out of my shell with your paw. Begin. You didn't say she said that a minute ago, Said painted jaguar, Sucking the prickles out of his patty paw. You said she said something quite different. Well, Suppose you say that I said that she said something quite different. I don't see that it makes any difference. Because if she said what you said, I said, She said, It's just the same as if I said what she said, She said. On the other hand, If you think that you were to uncoil me with a scoop, Instead of pawing me into drops with a shell, I can't help that, Can I? But you said you wanted to be scooped out of your shell with my paw, Said painted jaguar. If you'll think again, You'll find that I didn't say anything of the kind. I said that your mother said that you were to scoop me out of my shell, Said slow and solid. What will happen if I do, Said the jaguar most sniffly and most cautious? I don't know, Because I've never been scooped out of my shell before. But I tell you truly, If you want to see me swim away, You've only got to drop me in the water. I don't believe it, Said painted jaguar. You've mixed up all the things my mother told me to do with the things you asked me whether I was sure that she didn't say, Until I don't know whether I'm on my head or on my painted tail. And now you come and tell me I can understand, And it makes me more mixy than before. My mother told me that I was to drop one of you into the water, And as you seem so anxious to be dropped, I think you don't want to be dropped. So jump into the turbid Amazon and be quick about it. I warn you that your mummy won't be pleased. Don't tell her I didn't tell you, Said slow solid. If you say another word about what my mother said, The jaguar answered. But he had not finished the sentence before slow and solid quietly dived into the turbid Amazon, Swam underwater for a long way, And came out on the bank where Stickley Prickley was waiting for him. That was a very narrow escape, Said Stickley Prickley. I don't rib painted jaguar. What did you tell him that you were? I told him truthfully that I was a truthful tortoise, But he wouldn't believe me, And he made me jump into the river to see if I was. And I was. And he's surprised. Now he's going to tell his mummy. Listen to him. They could hear painted jaguar roaring up and down the trees in the bushes by the side of the turbid Amazon till his mummy came. Son, Son, Said his mother ever so many times, Graciously waving her tail. What have you been doing that you shouldn't have done? I tried to scoop something that said it wanted to be scooped out of its shell with my paw. And my paw is full of prickles, Said painted jaguar. Son, Son, Said his mother ever so many times, Graciously waving her tail. By the prickles in your patty paw, I see that you must have been talking to a hedgehog. You should have dropped him into the water. I did that to the other thing, And he said he was a tortoise, And I didn't believe him. And it was quite true. And he has dived under the turbid Amazon, And he won't come up again. And I haven't anything to eat at all. And I think we'd better find lodging somewhere else. They are too clever on the turbid Amazon for poor me. Son, Son, Said his mother ever so many times, Graciously waving her tail. Now attend to me and remember what I say. A hedgehog curls himself up into a ball, And his prickles stick out every which way at once. By this, You may know the hedgehog. I don't like this old lady one little bit, Said Stickly Prickly under the shadow of the large leaf. I wonder what else she knows. A tortoise can't curl himself up, Mother Jaguar went on, Ever so many times, Graciously waving her tail. He only draws his head and legs into his shell. By this, You may know the tortoise. I don't like this old lady at all, At all, Said Slow and Solid Tortoise. Even Painted Jaguar can't forget those directions. It's a great pity that you can't swim, Stickly Prickly. Don't talk to me, Said Stickly Prickly. Just think how much better it would be if you could curl up. This is a mess. Listen to Painted Jaguar. Painted Jaguar was sitting on the banks of the turbaned Amazon, Sucking prickles out of his paws and saying to himself, Can't curl, But can swim. Slow Solid, That's him. Curls up, But can't swim. Stickly Prickly, That's him. He'll never forget that this month of Sunday, Said Stickly Prickly. Hold up my chin, Slow and Solid. I'm going to try and learn to swim. It may be useful. Excellent, Said Slow and Solid. And he held up Stickly Prickly's chin while Stickly Prickly kicked in the waters of the turbaned Amazon. You'll make a fine swimmer yet, Said Slow and Solid. Now, If you can unlace my back plates a little, I'll see what I can do towards curling up. It may be useful. Stickly Prickly helped to unlace Tortoise's back plates, So that by twisting and straining, Slow and Solid actually managed to curl up a tidy wee bit. Excellent, Said Stickly Prickly. But I shouldn't do more just now. It's making you black in the face. Kindly lead me into the water once again, And I'll practice that side stroke, Which you say is so easy. And so Stickly Prickly practiced, And Slow Solid swam alongside. Excellent, Said Slow and Solid. A little more practice will make you a regular whale. Now, If I may trouble you to unlace my back and front plates two holes more, I'll try that fascinating bend that you say is so easy. Won't Painted Jaguar be surprised? Excellent, Said Stickly Prickly. All wet from the turban, Amazon. I declare, I shouldn't know you from one of my own family. Two holes, I think you said. A little more expression, Please, And don't grunt quite so much, Or Painted Jaguar may hear us. When you're finished, I want to try that long dive, Which you say is so easy. Won't Painted Jaguar be surprised? And so Stickly Prickly dived, And Slow and Solid dived alongside. Excellent, Said Slow and Solid. A little more attention to holding your breath, And you'll be able to keep house at the bottom of the turban, Amazon. Now I'll try that exercise of putting my hind legs round my ears, Which you say is so peculiarly comfortable. Won't Painted Jaguar be surprised? Excellent, Said Stickly Prickly. But it's straining your back plates a little. They're all overlapping now, Instead of laying side by side. Oh, That's the result of exercise, Said Slow and Solid. I've noticed that your prickles seem to be melting into one another, And that you're growing to look rather more like a pine cone, And less like a chestnut burr than you used to. Am I? Said Stickly Prickly. That comes from my soaking in the water. Oh, Painted Jaguar will be quite surprised. They went on with their exercises, Each helping the other, Till morning came, And when the sun was high, They rested and dried themselves. Then they saw that they were both of them quite different from what they had been. Stickly Prickly said Tortoise after breakfast. I am not what I was yesterday, But I think that I may yet amuse Painted Jaguar. That was the very thing I was thinking just now, Said Stickly Prickly. I think scales are a tremendous improvement on prickles, To say nothing of being able to swim. Oh, Won't Painted Jaguar be surprised? Let's go and find him. By and by they found Painted Jaguar, Still nursing his patty paw that had been hurt the night before. He was so astonished that he fell three times backward over his own painted tail without stopping. Good morning, Said Stickly Prickly. And how is your dear, Gracious mummy this morning? She is quite well, Thank you, Said Painted Jaguar. But you must forgive me if I do not at this precise moment recall your name. That's unkind of you, Said Stickly Prickly, Seeing that this time yesterday you tried to scoop me out of my shell with your paw. But you hadn't any shell. It was all prickles, Said Painted Jaguar. I know it was. Just look at my paw. You told me to drop into the turb in Amazon and be drowned, Said Slow Solid. Why are you so rude and forgetful today? Don't you remember what your mother told you, Said Stickly Prickly? Can't curl, But can swim. Stickly Prickly, That's him. Curls up, But can't swim. Slow Solid, That's him. Then they both curled themselves up and rolled round and round, Painted Jaguar, Till his eyes turned truly cartwheels in his head. Then he went to fetch his mother. Mother, He said, There are two new animals in the woods today. And the one that you said couldn't swim, Swims. And the one that you said couldn't curl up, Curls. And they've gone shares in their prickles, I think, Because both of them are scaly all over, Instead of one being smooth and the other very prickly. And besides that, They're rolling round and round in circles, And I don't feel comfy. Son, Son, Said Mother Jaguar, Ever so many times, Graciously waving her tail. A hedgehog is a hedgehog, And can't be anything but a hedgehog. And a tortoise is a tortoise, And can never be anything else. But it isn't a hedgehog, And it isn't a tortoise. It's a little bit of both, And I don't know its proper name. Nonsense, Said Mother Jaguar. Everything has its proper name. I should call it Armadillo, Till I find the real one, And I should leave it alone. So Painted Jaguar did as he was told, Especially about leaving them alone. But the curious thing is that from that day to this, Oh best beloved, No one on the banks of the Turban Amazon has ever called Stickly Prickly and Slow Solid anything except Armadillo. There are hedgehogs and tortoises in other places, Of course. There are some in my garden, But the real old and clever kind, With their scales lying lippity-lappity one over the other, Like pinecone scales, That lived on the banks of the Turban Amazon in the high and far off days, Are always called Armadillos, Because they were so clever. So that I'll write, Best beloved. Do you see? I've never sailed the Amazon. I've never reached Brazil. But the Don and Magdalena, They can go there when they will. Yes, Weekly, From Southampton, Great steamers, White and gold, Go rolling down to Rio. Roll down, Roll down to Rio. And I'd like to roll to Rio, Someday before I'm old. I've never seen a jaguar, Nor yet an armadill. Oh, Dilion in his armor, And I suppose I never will. Unless I go to Rio, These wonders to behold. Roll down, Roll down to Rio. Roll really down to Rio. Oh, I'd love to roll to Rio, Someday before I'm old. And that is the end of our story this evening. Until next time, Sweet dreams.
4.9 (10)
Peggy
October 23, 2025
I've got to listen again. Didn't hear the ending. Fun. Listened again. Your voice gave the words life and humor. TY
