Welcome to Storytime with Dad.  Today we will be reading: City Mouse and Country Mouse

There once was a tiny little mouse from the city. One day, the city mouse went to visit his friend from the countryside; the country mouse.

The two mice were best friends and being together made them both very happy.

The country mouse was simple yet generous. He offered his friend some food: bread, butter, cheese and beans.

However, as the city mouse started to eat the meal, he started to feel a little bit sick.

"Aren't you hungry?" asked the country mouse.

"Very. But this food is not like the food from the city. I don't like it!" said the city mouse.

The two mice spent the day together. They had fun walking around the countryside. When it grew dark they said goodbye.

Before he went home, the city mouse invited the country mouse to his home in the city, to try the incredible food there.

The following week, the country mouse scuttled all the way to the city. He found his friend.

"Here in the city we don't eat until six o' clock," said the city mouse. "Wait until the evening and you'll see how yummy the food is! It's worth the wait!"

The evening arrived, and the sun set. The city mouse showed the country mouse his little den in a big human house.

The humans had set their dinner table with every dessert, meat and cheese a little mouse could imagine. It was heaven!

The mice started to gobble the cakes, the meats and the different cheeses. The country mouse loved the cured ham and salami. He gobbled it up.

As the mice started to feel full, they heard a bark!

"What is that?" screamed the country mouse. He was afraid of the loud noise.

"Oh no! It's the guard dog! Run!" cried the city mouse.

They both ran quickly and tried to escape. The country mouse followed the city mouse back to the den.

It was a close call. The dog almost caught them.

"Sorry city mouse but I'm going home now! See you!" panted the country mouse.

"Why? Don't you want to eat more delicious food?" asked the city mouse.

"I'd rather eat bread, cheese and beans in peace, than eat desserts and meat in danger!" called the country mouse.

The end.

---

Haha, what a nice story!  I recently learned that this is an Aesop's fable, so it's about 2,500 years old!  The original version is quite hard to read and there are many newer versions out there.  This is one that I liked.  

A little bird told me, that it is also a favorite story of Elsie and Mary in Portland, Oregon.  I read this one for you two, and I hope you liked it.  I was very excited to hear that you listen to my stories!  I'll try to keep picking good ones that you will listen to over and over again, so thank you for this story suggestion!

My take away from it is that it's good to be happy with what we have.  Sure, the city mouse had better food than the country mouse.  But those fancy foods also came with a danger that the country mouse didn't have to deal with back home.  He was thinking, what good is it if I can eat fancy food anytime I want, but I might get eaten by a dog!  I think he's got a point.  It's good to be happy with what we have, because chasing after fancy things can sometimes take more from us than we should be willing to give.

So wherever you are, and whatever you have, be thankful for it.  Start there, and if you can be happy with what you have, then when good things happen to you it's all just a bonus.

If there other stories that you want me to read to you, send me an email at: hello@storytimewithdad.com.  Or just drop me a note and say hi.  I'd love to know what this story means to you, and I always get a blast out of reading emails from you.

Thanks for listening!  I'll see you again next time.

Download at: https://storytimewithdad.com/transcripts

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DadStorytime

Narrated by: Grant Dryden