The Hungry Cat^^ The cat was hungry and looking for food. He crossed the street and went to a restaurant. There, he smelled a steak cooking on the grill. He walked over to the chef and rubbed up against his leg. The chef looked down and saw the cat. He could tell that the cat was hungry, so he sliced off a small bit of fat and meat and fed it to the cat.^^The Honest Shop Owner^^ A man lost his wallet in the market while out shopping. He searched everywhere but couldn't find it. The next day, a shop owner found the wallet on the ground and returned it to the man. The man thanked her and offered a reward, but the owner refused, saying, "Honesty is its own reward." The man was grateful and told everyone about the honest shop owner. Her business grew because of her reputation for honesty.^^The Clever Crow^^ A thirsty crow found a pitcher that was half full. The crow tried to drink but couldn't reach the water. He saw some small rocks nearby and got an idea. The crow dropped the rocks into the pitcher one by one. Slowly, the water rose to the top. The crow drank the water and flew away, happy and satisfied.^^   The Generous Baker^^ A baker had a reputation for being very generous. One day, a poor man came to his bakery, asking for food. The baker gave him a loaf of bread without hesitation. Years later, the poor man returned, now wealthy, and bought the bakery. He told the baker, "Your generosity changed my life. I want to repay you." The baker learned that kindness can have unexpected rewards.^^The Goose and the Golden Egg^^ A farmer had a goose that laid a golden egg every day. The farmer made a lot of money by selling the eggs. However, he became greedy and wanted more than one a day. He grabbed the goose and began squeezing it, trying to get more eggs. The goose thought he would be squeezed to death, so he bit the farmer’s nose with his beak. Shocked, the farmer let go of the goose and the goose flew away. The farmer soon became poor again.^^Bullies and Plums^^ Mark was on his way to school when two bullies stepped in front of him. They took his backpack and laughingly emptied the contents on the ground. One of the bullies smashed Mark's lunch sandwich, then they left. Now, Mark didn't have any lunch. Continuing to school, he luckily passed a plum tree and picked three plums off the tree to have later for his lunch.^^The Ant and the Dove^^ One hot day, an ant fell into a river. A dove saw the ant struggling and dropped a leaf into the water. The ant climbed onto the leaf and was saved. Days later, a hunter tried to shoot the dove. The ant saw this and hurried up the man’s shoe as fast as he could go.  As the hunter aimed his gun at the dove, the ant bit the hunter’s ankle, causing the hunter to miss the shot.^^Haunted House Adventure^^ Mia and her friends dared each other to spend a night in the old, abandoned house at the end of the street. Armed with flashlights, they entered through the creaky front door. Inside, they found dusty tables and covered furniture. The flashlights made shadows dance across the walls. Suddenly, they heard a loud crash upstairs. The friends exchanged scared glances but decided to investigate. They crept up the stairs, ready to discover what was making the noise. It was just a cat.^^  The Turtle and the Rabbit^^ A rabbit laughed at a slow-moving turtle and challenged him to a race. The turtle had nothing better to do, so he accepted the challenge. The race began and soon the rabbit was far ahead.  Confident of winning, the rabbit sat down to take a rest and soon fell asleep. Meanwhile, the turtle kept moving slowly but steadily toward the finish line. When the rabbit woke up, he took off as fast as he could go, but he didn’t have enough time to catch up with the turtle. The turtle won the race.^^The Coffee Shop Mystery^^ One rainy afternoon, Alex sat in his favorite coffee shop drinking latte and working on his laptop. He looked over and noticed an old woman sitting at the next table. She stared straight ahead and never touched her coffee. Concerned, Alex leaned over and asked the woman if she was okay. The woman said nothing, stood up, and walked out the door. Alex noticed that the woman had forgotten her purse. He grabbed it and chased after her; but she was nowhere to be found. Alex looked in the purse; there was nothing inside.^^The King’s New Treasurer^^One day, a generous King saw a poor man with a broken cart, so the king sent the man a new cart filled with food and clothes. However, the man found a box of gold hidden in the cart. He went to the king to return it. The king told the man that it was part of a test, to see who the king could trust. He was the only man to return the gold, so the King appointed the man to his court and became the King’s new treasurer.^^The Cooking Disaster^^ Anna wanted to impress her family by cooking dinner. She chose a cheese casserole recipe. As she was preparing the ingredients, she realized she didn’t have enough cheddar cheese. She decided to substitute with American cheese and yogurt. Then, she didn’t have enough tomato sauce, so she substituted with ketchup. She was also surprised that her mother had no rice, so she substituted with spaghetti noodles. When she finally served dinner, she was surprised that her family loved her casserole. She wrote down her substitutions so she could make it again someday.^^The Lone Figure.^^ The small town of Campton has a grocery store, a hardware store, a pharmacy, a gas station, a few clothing stores, and a convenience store. People in this town often see a tall skinny man walking the streets. He is dressed in a dark gray suit, and wears a pair of black boots. The man never speaks to anyone as he walks around the town. He often comes into the shops but he never buys anything. Nobody knows where he lives or where he comes from. My great grandmother said she used to see the man when she was a little girl. She passed away ten years ago at the age of 96. ^^   The Stuck Elevator^^ Mike was running late for an important meeting. He rushed into the elevator and pressed the button for his floor. To Mike’s horror, however, the elevator suddenly stopped between floors. Mike felt frustrated and pressed the floor buttons repeatedly, but nothing happened. He took a deep breath, then he pulled the red emergency button, which started ringing loudly. After a few minutes, the maintenance team arrived and fixed the elevator. Mike finally made it to his meeting, but he was embarrassed to walk in late. The team welcomed him with smiles, and he joked about his unexpected adventure.