The sun shone brightly outside, and sunlight streamed through the porthole windows lining the sides

of the ark. The early morning breeze brought a refreshing fragrance with it. The older animals began to wake with a stretch and a yawn and a good-morning greeting to each other, while the younger animals scampered around the place, already very much awake and ready for the new day. Another lovely day! Noah announced, as he walked the length of the stalls, followed by his three sons. They all carried large wooden buckets to fill the troughs with water for the animals. The animals cheerily greeted them. The ark rocked slightly back and forth, but everyone had grown accustomed to the sway of the large boat, as theyd been on the water for many months. However, today the waves seemed a little choppy, and several times Ham had nearly lost his balance as he attempted to tip the water out of his bucket. CRASH! Screech! Creak! Theyd hit something, and the sudden impact sent Noah and his sons rolling on the floor! The water sloshed out of the troughs, and the animals that had been running around suddenly found themselves falling and rolling helplessly. The elephants made a ruckus, the lions snarled in alarm, and the monkeys jumped around wildly, hanging from the beams and posts. Eger had just been waking up from his nights sleep when he heard the large crash. Fortunately he was still in his stall, so only found himself on the far side of it, next to his mother and father. Guth had been less fortunate. Hed been standing up to drink water from his trough, and upon impact found himself whizzing right through the wooden posts that separated his familys stall with that of the large lizards, and still he flew past into the next stall, and the next, until he crashed right into Eger. Ouch! Guth and Eger chorused. Guth poked his head out from his shell. What happened? he asked, his eyes wide with worry. No idea, answered Eger. Though I saw Noah and his sons tumble down the aisle.

I hope theyre okay, said Guth. At least you didnt get hurt, Eger replied, rubbing his side where Guth had hit. Noah and his sons scrambled to their feet, and ran to the upper level of the ark. Suddenly, Shem came bounding in. Weve hit land! he cried. Weve hit land! What does it look like? Eger asked Shem. You cant see much, Shem answered. Weve hit a mountain, it seems, so theres still water all around, but weve hit land! he shouted joyfully and took off upstairs again. It was a little while before Noah came back down. The animals were curious to know what would happen next. Noah spoke to the animals as he walked up and down in front of the stalls. As Shem told you, weve hit land. But there is still no land in sight, other than the mountain weve hit, so there is not much we can do other than continue to wait and stay in the ark. What was land like? Eger asked his mother. She smiled in return. It was lovely, she began. Green, rolling hills, tall trees whose branches would stretch out far, casting a cool shade. There were flowers. Flowers? Eger asked, puzzled. Thats right youve never seen a flower, she said with a smile, and then went on to describe a flower. After a while, she continued, We roamed freely on the land, eating the grass, drinking from the fresh, running streams. Sometimes its hard to think that all of that is gone now, and instead everything is covered with water. One day the waters will dry, my dear, Egers father said. That is what Noah tells us. In Gods good time, is what he says. *** Days turned into weeks, and still they waited. The animals would hear Noah and his family talking about the mountaintops that they were seeing. Every day a little more land would be seen, though water still covered the earth.

One night after the animals had settled down for the night, thoughts began to brew in Egers mind. He had become increasingly frustrated with life on the ark. All the talk of land and what the earth was once like began to annoy him. Even Guth is forgetting about all the fun weve had together on the ark, Eger thought. Hes constantly off chatting with Becks about what theyll do when they get on land. Psst! Are you awake, Guth? Eger whispered. No, Guth answered. But you answered, so you must be. Im tired, Guth said with a yawn. Well, Im not, said Eger. And Im also hungry. Shem will feed us in the morning, Guth said. If you go to sleep you wont notice it. Goodnight. Night, Eger muttered. I cant sleep. I need some fun, he thought. A short while later, Eger took off for the grain storage room, creeping along the aisle and hoping no one would see him. In the storage room he found several bags of grain and began eating, as he continued to mutter to himself about the recent happenings on the ark. I thought I heard something. Eger jumped in fright, and gave a yelp. Theres no need to be frightened, its just me, Shem said. But what are you doing here at this hour? I couldnt sleep, and I was hungry, explained Eger. Is something bothering you? No. Yes! All the talk of land is really bothering me, Eger began. Im worried about what will happen if we leave the ark, like everyones talking about. What will happen to my friends and my family? I dont really know, said Shem. My father says that we need to trust God for what will happen next. At supper tonight, he said that he would send out a dove tomorrow, to see what its like on the earth. Maybe that will help us to know what to do next. Shem paused. But you dont have anything to worry about, Eger. God knows who you are, He knows what will be best for you, and Hes promised to take care of you. So He will.

Eger nodded his head, and then yawned. I think Im finally getting tired, he said. Ill walk you back to your stall, then, Shem said, standing up and yawning himself. And remember that no matter what happens, God will always take care of you in the best way. Eger smiled. Thanks for talking with me. *** The following morning the dove flew off. She flew far away from the ark, looking for land, but found none. Exhausted after flying for several hours without finding a place to land, she returned to the ark. I found nothing, she told Noah. Water still covers the earth. That night, back in the aviary, the dove told her fellow birds about what it looked like outside. Eger, Guth, and Becks also sat around listening eagerly. Theres still a lot of water, with only a few rocky mountaintops poking out, and more water, she said. I flew and flew, but I grew very tired after a while, as I havent done much flying lately. None of us have, dear, chuckled a robin. But Noah says hell send me out again in seven days, the dove said. And what do you think youll see then? Becks asked. I hope to see land! the dove exclaimed. Lots of it and tall trees for me to rest my tired wings in. Noahs family and all the animals waited patiently, and after seven days had passed, Noah once again released the dove and she flew in search of land. Several hours later she returned. In her beak she held an olive leaf. There is land! Noah cried enthusiastically. Shes found land! Everyone was so happy, they ran around hugging each other, some crying for joy, others laughing in jubilation. Seven days later, Noah sent the dove out again, but this time she did not return. Things were different on the ark from that time on. Eger, Guth, and Becks found less time to play, and Noah and his family were busy from morning to night.

One day Noah and his sons removed a part of the roof from off the ark. The sunlight streamed through, flooding the ark with rays of light and warmth. Noah looked out and could see that the ground had dried completely. Noah prayed and God spoke to him. It is time to leave the ark, God said. Take your wife and your sons and their wives with you. And take all the animals and creatures that you have with you as well. Go and enjoy the earth Ive recreated. And so it was that Noah, his family, and all the animals left the ark. Eger and Guth gingerly peered out the large ark door that all the animals were walking through. Birds were soaring in the sky; deer were bounding across the land; giraffes walked gracefully off of the ark. Take a look, Eger, Guth said. Its beautiful! they both chorused. Lets go! Eger exclaimed, and bounded out the door, only to lose his footing and slide on his back along the grass down the hill that led from the ark to the plains around. AHHHHH! Eger cried, until he came to a sudden stop in front of a large boulder that stood at the bottom of the hill. Guth made his way down the hill. Reminds me of that time on the ark when we had the relay race, he said with a chuckle. Eger laughed in return. Sliding down the hill just now was a fun ride, actually, he said. We should race down. Why not? Guth said, as the two of them made their way up the hill again. They slid down the hill, Guth on the back of his shell, and Eger on his back. Guth made it to the bottom first. I guess there are times when I can be faster than you, he said. Thats for sure, Eger said. Noah built an altar and made a sacrifice to the Lord. Look up in the sky, Noahs wife said. A beautiful rainbow spanned the sky, with all its vibrant colors glowing. Ive never seen anything like it, Becks said. Its beautiful!

God spoke to Noah. I promise I will never bring such a great flood on the earth again, He said. I put this rainbow in the sky as a sign between you and Me, that whenever you see it youll remember the everlasting promise between God and man, and every living creature. And so it was that Eger, Guth, and Becks began their life on earth, each adapting and learning about the new life that God had brought to the earth after the flood. The End

Multi-lingual childrens stories www.freekidstories.org

Story and art The Family International. Used with permission.