Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome back to Kuala Moon, a podcast of
Speaker 1: original children's bedtime stories and meditations designed to make bedtime
Speaker 1: a dream. I'm going to tell you a story all
Speaker 1: about a girl who discovers, whilst walking around a pet
Speaker 1: shop that she has a superpower. She's lived all her
Speaker 1: life not knowing about it until this one visit that
Speaker 1: changes everything. As you lie in your bed and close
Speaker 1: your eyes, imagine what it must be like to discover
Speaker 1: your own superpower. Perhaps you already have one, but you
Speaker 1: don't realize it yet. Maybe you're a master playmaker and
Speaker 1: you can always find something to entertain yourself with. Or
Speaker 1: perhaps you are very good at being brave when you
Speaker 1: are a little bit scared. Or maybe you're great at
Speaker 1: telling jokes and always have your friends and family and
Speaker 1: fits of giggles. Have a little think as you stretch
Speaker 1: out your body, your arms and legs and take some
Speaker 1: relaxing breaths. After your final wriggle and jiggle, settle yourself
Speaker 1: down into your bed and be still as I tell
Speaker 1: you all about the day Daisy Doolittle meets a very
Speaker 1: friendly hamster called Hoodini in her local pet shop. This
Speaker 1: is Daisy Doolittle, Meets Hoodini the Hamster by Gillian Rogerson.
Speaker 1: Daisy Doolittle woke up bright and early one morning, and
Speaker 1: a huge smile settled on her face. She knew it
Speaker 1: was going to be the best day ever. Something very
Speaker 1: special was going to happen that day, something she had
Speaker 1: been waiting a long time for. Daisy looked at the
Speaker 1: clock on her bedside table. It was too early to
Speaker 1: wake her parents up. She snuggled down in her bed
Speaker 1: and thought about the wonderful day that lay ahead. She
Speaker 1: imagined herself walking along the main street in town and
Speaker 1: stopping outside a certain shop. She let out a big
Speaker 1: sigh of happiness. Daisy had walked past the shop many
Speaker 1: times with her parents and had always stopped to gaze
Speaker 1: dreamily through the window, But this was the day when
Speaker 1: she would finally open the door and enter the pet shop.
Speaker 1: Daisy Doolittle loved animals, loved them with all her heart. Naturally,
Speaker 1: she had asked her parents for a pet, but they
Speaker 1: had told her very kindly it wasn't the right time
Speaker 1: for them to have a pet. They had explained why,
Speaker 1: and young Daisy had understood, But she knew in her
Speaker 1: heart there would be a pet in her life one day.
Speaker 1: That day had finally arrived. Her parents had recently told
Speaker 1: her the time was right for them to have a pet,
Speaker 1: and they would be going to the pet shop soon
Speaker 1: so that Daisy could choose the perfect animal because it
Speaker 1: would be her pet. Dad had laughed and said, don't
Speaker 1: choose a big pet, Daisy, we can't fit an elephant
Speaker 1: or hippopotamus in the house. Daisy said she wouldn't pick
Speaker 1: either of those animals because they didn't sell them at
Speaker 1: the pet shop. She checked the time again on her clock.
Speaker 1: It was still a bit early, but surely her parents
Speaker 1: wouldn't mind if she woke them up. Now. They must
Speaker 1: be as excited as she was about going to the
Speaker 1: pet shop. In fact, they might already be awake. Daisy
Speaker 1: jumped out of her bed and ran into her parents room.
Speaker 1: They were still asleep, but it didn't take Daisy long
Speaker 1: to wake them up. Once their eyes were fully open
Speaker 1: and her mom and dad could see how excited their
Speaker 1: daughter was, they agreed to get up immediately. Not long after,
Speaker 1: Daisy was skipping along the high street at the side
Speaker 1: of her parents. Her heart was full of joy. They
Speaker 1: arrived at the wonderful pet shop Daisy's dad opened the
Speaker 1: door and told her to go in first. Daisy stepped
Speaker 1: into the shop and smiled in utter delight. She could
Speaker 1: hear gentle animal noises coming from all directions. She clasped
Speaker 1: her hands together, and the smile on her face grew
Speaker 1: bigger and big. There were beautiful animals wherever she looked,
Speaker 1: cats and dogs, hamsters and mice, rabbits and tortoises, and
Speaker 1: many many more. Daisy looked left and right. Where should
Speaker 1: she begin on her search for her first pet. She
Speaker 1: listened to the noises coming from the animals to see
Speaker 1: if they would lead her in the right direction. She
Speaker 1: heard lots of animal noises and chatter coming from customers.
Speaker 1: She also heard someone singing a cheerful song about running
Speaker 1: on a wheel. It was a lovely song. Where was
Speaker 1: it coming from? Daisy looked at the customers nearby. None
Speaker 1: of them was singing, but she could still hear the
Speaker 1: joyful song, and it seemed to be coming from somewhere nearby.
Speaker 1: She asked her parents if they could see who was singing.
Speaker 1: Her dad frowned and said, I can't hear anyone singing.
Speaker 1: I can hear squawks and barks, mews and squeaks, but
Speaker 1: not singing. Daisy, why don't you have a wander around
Speaker 1: the shop and take a good look at the animals
Speaker 1: to see which one you'd like to take home. We'll
Speaker 1: be nearby. Daisy said she would do that, and she
Speaker 1: would find out who was singing too. She walked past
Speaker 1: the smaller animals and stopped outside a fish tank. There
Speaker 1: were two orange fish inside it. One of them had
Speaker 1: a black ring around one eye. Daisy chuckled and placed
Speaker 1: her hand against the glass of the tank. She smiled
Speaker 1: at the fish with a black ring around his eye
Speaker 1: and said, here, look like a pirate wearing an eyepatch.
Speaker 1: Have you got a pirate's name? Of bubbles popped out
Speaker 1: of the fish's mouth, and Daisy heard the words, Yes,
Speaker 1: I do have a pirate's name. I am Blackbeard. What's
Speaker 1: your name? Daisy blinked in surprise. The fish looked at
Speaker 1: her as though waiting for Daisy to speak. Daisy blinked again.
Speaker 1: Fish didn't talk. She must be hearing things. Daisy quickly
Speaker 1: walked away from the fish tank. The person who had
Speaker 1: been singing about running on a wheel was now singing
Speaker 1: about hiding in a bed of soft, comfy straw. What
Speaker 1: a peculiar song, But they did have a nice voice,
Speaker 1: and Daisy wanted to see who was singing. Daisy walked
Speaker 1: past a cage that had a hamster inside it. The
Speaker 1: song grew louder. She must be getting closer to the
Speaker 1: person who was singing. A movement caught Daisy's eye. The
Speaker 1: hamster in the cage was doing something strange. She turned
Speaker 1: around and looked closer at the little animal. The hamster
Speaker 1: was lying on his back in a pile of straw
Speaker 1: and kicking his legs in the air. He was moving
Speaker 1: his mouth, and he looked like he was singing a song,
Speaker 1: the very song that Daisy could hear. No, that was impossible.
Speaker 1: Daisy muttered, fish don't talk and hamsters don't sing. The
Speaker 1: hamster stopped kicking his legs and looked straight at Daisy.
Speaker 1: Excuse me, the little hamster said, politely. Did you just
Speaker 1: say something? If so, would you mind repeating it please?
Speaker 1: I I said, fish don't talk and hamsters don't sing.
Speaker 1: Daisy gave him a small smile. Are you really talking
Speaker 1: to me? I didn't know animals could talk. The hamster
Speaker 1: smiled and said, I didn't know humans could understand me.
Speaker 1: But now that you're talking, could you let me know
Speaker 1: what you thought about my song? Did you like it?
Speaker 1: Daisy nodded, I really liked it. Did you sing the
Speaker 1: other one too? About running on a wheel? The hamster
Speaker 1: chuckled and said that was him too, and he did
Speaker 1: love running on the wheel in his cage very much.
Speaker 1: Daisy introduced herself and asked if he had a name.
Speaker 1: The hamster Daisy, what a lovely name. I'm Houdini. Daisy frowned,
Speaker 1: I've never heard that name before. The hamster explained he'd
Speaker 1: be named after a man who used to escape from
Speaker 1: many places, even from locked rooms. The little animal swiftly
Speaker 1: jumped into a little pile of straw behind him and
Speaker 1: shuffled about in it. Daisy wondered what he was doing.
Speaker 1: All of a sudden, Houdini the hamster suddenly appeared on
Speaker 1: Daisy's shoulder. He put his arms out and said, tada,
Speaker 1: I can escape from locked places too, I'd do it
Speaker 1: all the time. Daisy giggled. He was a funny hamster.
Speaker 1: Houdini said he'd never seen Daisy in the pet shop
Speaker 1: before and asked why she was there. Daisy said, I'm
Speaker 1: going to choose a pet, my very first one. There
Speaker 1: are a lot of lovely animals here, and I'm not
Speaker 1: sure which one to pick. Houdini nodded his little head.
Speaker 1: The animals here are lovely. I've been here a while
Speaker 1: and know them all. Would you like some help choosing?
Speaker 1: If you don't mind, I could sit on your shoulder
Speaker 1: as you walk around the shop. Daisy still hadn't got
Speaker 1: used to hearing him talk, and asked if the other
Speaker 1: animals would talk to her too, because she wanted to
Speaker 1: be prepared. Houdini grinned and said, some of them talk
Speaker 1: all the time, even when they're asleep. I don't know
Speaker 1: whether you'll understand them or if they would understand you,
Speaker 1: and there's only one way to find out. Shall we
Speaker 1: visit the puppies first. Daisy said yes and followed the
Speaker 1: hamster's directions as he led her to an open cage
Speaker 1: where three fluffy puppies were playing chase with each other.
Speaker 1: When the puppies saw Daisy, they scampered over to her
Speaker 1: and said, Hi, do you want to play our game?
Speaker 1: It's great fun. They wagged their tails back and forth.
Speaker 1: Daisy understood every word they said. Daisy said not today,
Speaker 1: but thank you for asking me. The puppies waved goodbye
Speaker 1: and then continued chasing each other around the cage. They
Speaker 1: had a lot of energy, and Daisy a bit tired
Speaker 1: just watching them. Houdini asked Daisy if she would like
Speaker 1: to take one of the puppies home. Daisy said she
Speaker 1: wasn't sure, and asked if they could look at some
Speaker 1: other animals, perhaps one that didn't run around so much.
Speaker 1: I know, just the chap Hoodini said, go to the
Speaker 1: end of this aisle and you'll find him. He's usually
Speaker 1: inside his little wooden shed. Daisy walked on until she
Speaker 1: came to the shed. It was no higher than her
Speaker 1: knees and had the name Harvey written on it. She
Speaker 1: asked the hamster if Harvey was inside the shed. A
Speaker 1: cheerful voice from within the little wooden building called out, Yer,
Speaker 1: I Am, give me a minute and I'll come out.
Speaker 1: Houdini was this could take a while. Daisy waited patiently
Speaker 1: for Harvey to come out of the shed. She could
Speaker 1: hear him shuffling about inside, but no animal appeared. She
Speaker 1: wondered what kind of animal he was. Houdini jumped off
Speaker 1: her shoulder and landed on the roof of the shed.
Speaker 1: He said to Daisy, whilst we're waiting, can you tell
Speaker 1: me a little more about yourself? I only know your
Speaker 1: name and that you can talk to animals. Daisy told
Speaker 1: the hamster about herself and her family, her friends, and
Speaker 1: the schools she went to. As she spoke, she kept
Speaker 1: looking at the shed, hoping to see Harvey coming out.
Speaker 1: When Harvey still didn't appear, Houdini kept Daisy entertained by
Speaker 1: dancing across the roof. He waved his hands in the
Speaker 1: air and jigged from one side of the roof to
Speaker 1: the other. Daisy clapped and said he was very good.
Speaker 1: From within the shed, Harvey called out, I'm almost there.
Speaker 1: I'm going as fast as I can. Houdini the hamster
Speaker 1: leapt through the air and landed smoothly on Daisy's shoulder.
Speaker 1: He said, have you guessed what kind of animal Harvey
Speaker 1: is yet? Daisy smiled and said, uh, tortoise. Perhaps she
Speaker 1: was right. A happy looking tortoise slowly shuffled out of
Speaker 1: the shed. He raised his poor at the visitors and said,
Speaker 1: Hollo the goodness, I'm moved far too quickly. Then I
Speaker 1: need to sit down for a rest. He sat down,
Speaker 1: closed his eyes and promptly fell asleep. Daisy looked at
Speaker 1: Houdini and asked if they should wait for him to
Speaker 1: wake up. The hamster said Harvey could sleep for hours
Speaker 1: and asked Daisy if she wanted to look at another
Speaker 1: animal instead. He chuckled and said, perhaps one that moves
Speaker 1: more quickly than Harvey. Daisy nodded. She had a feeling.
Speaker 1: She already knew which animal she wanted to take home,
Speaker 1: but she was enjoying walking around the pet shop with
Speaker 1: a friendly hamster on her shoulder. Houdini and Daisy visited
Speaker 1: some of the other pets in the shop. They said
Speaker 1: hello to cats and rabbits, guinea pigs and birds, gerbils
Speaker 1: and claw fish, and even a bearded dragon. Daisy had
Speaker 1: never seen a bearded dragon before, and she had a
Speaker 1: lovely chat with him. Daisy and Houdini talked to all
Speaker 1: the animals they met. Daisy understood everything they said, and
Speaker 1: they all understood her. She soon got used to talking
Speaker 1: to animals and it felt very natural to her. She
Speaker 1: saw her parents every now and again. As they wandered
Speaker 1: around the aisles, they noticed the hamster on her shoulder,
Speaker 1: but didn't say anything. Once Daisy and her new friend
Speaker 1: had seen the last animal in the shop, they returned
Speaker 1: to the isle where Houdini's cage was. Houdini said, have
Speaker 1: you made a decision yet? If you're not sure, we
Speaker 1: can go round the shop again. I don't mind. I
Speaker 1: like sitting on your shoulder and talking to you. Daisy
Speaker 1: said she liked talking to him too. She told him
Speaker 1: she had made a decision and held her hand out.
Speaker 1: Hoodini jumped into her palm, looked up at her, and
Speaker 1: asked who was going to be her very first pet.
Speaker 1: Daisy smiled at the kind hamster and said, would you
Speaker 1: like to be my pet? Would you like to live
Speaker 1: in my house? Hoodini sat down in surprise and said
Speaker 1: no one had ever asked him that before. Her big
Speaker 1: smile spread across his little face. He said, I would
Speaker 1: like that, Daisy, I would like that very much. Thank
Speaker 1: you for asking me. Daisy smiled and said she was
Speaker 1: very glad he had said yes. Then she asked what
Speaker 1: she should do next. Could she take him home straight away?
Speaker 1: Did she need to buy him a new cage or
Speaker 1: could he take the one he was already living in.
Speaker 1: Houdini pointed towards the other side of the room and said,
Speaker 1: Daisy should speak to the owner of the shop. She
Speaker 1: was called Olive and she would organize everything. You should
Speaker 1: speak to your parents too, He said, are you going
Speaker 1: to tell them you can talk to animals. Daisy said, oh, yes,
Speaker 1: I should do that. I'm not sure how to tell them, though.
Speaker 1: Houdini said, I'm sure they'll understand, but if you need
Speaker 1: my help, just let me know. He jumped off her
Speaker 1: shoulder and ran around to the back of his cage.
Speaker 1: Two seconds later, he appeared inside the cage, sitting on
Speaker 1: a pile of straw. Daisy waved to him and ran
Speaker 1: over to her parents. She told them she'd chosen a pet.
Speaker 1: Her dad said he would take care of all the
Speaker 1: arrangements and asked if she wanted to buy some toys
Speaker 1: for her new pet. He had seen some colorful tubes
Speaker 1: on the next stile, which would be perfect for a
Speaker 1: little hamster to run through. There was a little slide too.
Speaker 1: Daisy said she would do that. She'd tell her parents
Speaker 1: she could talk to animals later on, perhaps when they
Speaker 1: got home. Some time later, Daisy and her parents arrived
Speaker 1: home with the newest member of their family. Daisy's mom
Speaker 1: and dad said they would get Houdinie's cage ready and
Speaker 1: suggested Daisy show him around the house. Hoodinie hopped onto
Speaker 1: Daisy's shoulder. She took him around the family home, and
Speaker 1: the little hamster was amazed at everything he saw. He
Speaker 1: particularly loved the garden and said he would love to
Speaker 1: run around the grass. Daisy promised to take him outside later.
Speaker 1: Daisy took a deep breath and said it was time
Speaker 1: to tell her parents that she could talk to animals.
Speaker 1: Houdinie patted her shoulder and said, I will stay right
Speaker 1: here whilst you tell them. Daisy felt braver with her
Speaker 1: new friend on her shoulder. She found her parents kneeling
Speaker 1: next to Houdini's cage in the living room. They were
Speaker 1: putting fresh straw and water into the cage, along with
Speaker 1: tubes and slide for the hamster to play on. Daisy
Speaker 1: knelt next to her parents and said she had something
Speaker 1: to tell them. They stopped what they were doing and
Speaker 1: gave her their full attention. Mum, Dad, I can talk
Speaker 1: to animals and they can talk to me. Daisy smiled
Speaker 1: at them and pointed to the hamster on her shoulder.
Speaker 1: This is Houdini, and he's very good at singing and
Speaker 1: dancing and escaping from his cage. Houdini squeaked at her parents.
Speaker 1: Daisy said, Hoodini says thank you for bringing him home,
Speaker 1: and he really likes those new things in his cage.
Speaker 1: Her parents looked at each other and smiled. They didn't
Speaker 1: seem at all surprised to hear her news. Her mum
Speaker 1: reached out and placed her hand over Daisies. She said,
Speaker 1: you've always loved animals, and we wondered if this would
Speaker 1: happen to you one day. You're not the first Doolittle
Speaker 1: who's been able to talk to animals. Your dad's great
Speaker 1: great grandfather could talk to them too, and he helped
Speaker 1: many animals over the years. When did you find out
Speaker 1: you could talk to them? When we went to the
Speaker 1: pet shop, Daisy replied. She told them about the animals
Speaker 1: she'd spoken to, and more about Houdini too. She asked
Speaker 1: for more information about the other Doolittle and how he
Speaker 1: had helped animals. Her dad began to talk, and his
Speaker 1: voice was so soothing that Houdini settled down on Daisy's
Speaker 1: shoulder and fell asleep. When the little hamster woke up, later,
Speaker 1: he was inside his cage and snuggled up in the straw.
Speaker 1: Daisy was sitting next to his cage, reading a book
Speaker 1: called Caring for Your Hamster. She saw he was awake
Speaker 1: and put the book down. She told him about the
Speaker 1: other Doolittle and how he had helped many animals. Daisy said,
Speaker 1: perhaps we can do that too. Do you think anyone
Speaker 1: needs our help? Hoodini escaped from the cage and jumped
Speaker 1: onto her should. He said, we could ask them. If
Speaker 1: we go into your garden, I could see if there's
Speaker 1: anyone nearby who needs help. Daisy said that was a
Speaker 1: good idea, and then told her parents she was going
Speaker 1: into the garden with Houdini. When they got outside, Houdini
Speaker 1: jumped off her shoulder and scurried away through the grass.
Speaker 1: Daisy sat on her swing and waited for him to
Speaker 1: come back. What if an animal did need her help?
Speaker 1: Would she be able to help them? Would she know
Speaker 1: what to do? She smiled as she realized that with
Speaker 1: Houdini at her side, they would work out what to
Speaker 1: do together. She swung back and forth and waited for
Speaker 1: her friend to return. Daisy heard some one moving through
Speaker 1: the grass. A second later, Houdini jumped up from the
Speaker 1: ground and landed smoothly on her shoulder. He said that
Speaker 1: there are lots of animals who need your help. As
Speaker 1: soon as I told them you could talk to animals,
Speaker 1: they all wanted to meet you. I said you might
Speaker 1: be able to meet some of them to morrow, because
Speaker 1: it's already getting late in the day. Daisy looked up
Speaker 1: at the sky. Houdini was right, it was getting late.
Speaker 1: She'd been having so much fun that she hadn't noticed
Speaker 1: the time flying by. Hoodini told her about the ginger
Speaker 1: cat next door. She loved dancing and wanted to put
Speaker 1: on a show for the other cats in the neighborhood.
Speaker 1: Was it something Daisy could help with. Daisy said she
Speaker 1: would try. The hamster then told her about a squirrel
Speaker 1: who wanted to build a tree house with a little
Speaker 1: swimming pool and a sauna inside it, and a fox
Speaker 1: who wanted to learn how to knit socks, and a
Speaker 1: rabbit who wanted to fly a kite. Again, Daisy said
Speaker 1: she would try. Hoodini yawned, so did Daisy. Hoodini leaned
Speaker 1: his little head against Daisy's cheek and said he was
Speaker 1: glad she'd chosen him as her pet. Daisy said she
Speaker 1: was glad too. The hamster yawned again. Daisy asked if
Speaker 1: he'd like to hear a bedtime story. He didn't know
Speaker 1: what a bedtime story was, so Daisy explained it to
Speaker 1: him and said she had one every night because it
Speaker 1: helped her fall asleep. She told Houdini she had listened
Speaker 1: to stories about far away forests and the special animals
Speaker 1: who lived there, Funny dogs who had lots of adventures together,
Speaker 1: a dragon who loved dancing, and a kind king who
Speaker 1: went to a hotel deep in the jungle. In a
Speaker 1: sleepy voice, Houdini said those stories sounded lovely, and he
Speaker 1: liked to hear one of them. Please. Daisy cupped her
Speaker 1: hands together and told the hamster to snuggle down into
Speaker 1: her palms. Hoodini slid off her shoulder, down her arm
Speaker 1: ran into her waiting hands. He sighed happily and closed
Speaker 1: his little eyes. Daisy began her story. As she spoke,
Speaker 1: the animals who were nearby walked quietly into the garden.
Speaker 1: Foxes and cats, hedgehogs and mice, rolls and badgers. They
Speaker 1: sat down and listened to Daisy's soothing story. One by one,
Speaker 1: the animals fell asleep. Daisy's eyes soon grew heavy. She
Speaker 1: knew it was time for her bedtime too. She said
Speaker 1: a quiet good night to the snoozing animals and went
Speaker 1: inside the house. With Houdini cradled carefully in her hands.
Speaker 1: She placed the hamster in his cage and put him
Speaker 1: on the soft straw. She heard little snols coming from him.
Speaker 1: Seeing his little face filled Daisy's heart with love. He
Speaker 1: already felt like a friend to her, and she knew
Speaker 1: they were going to have lots of great adventures together.
Speaker 1: As Daisy snuggled down into her bed later, she smiled softly.
Speaker 1: She had known it was going to be a good day,
Speaker 1: and she was certain that tomorrow was going to be
Speaker 1: even better.