Ranjiv leaps out of bed.‘‘Morning, Ranjiv! You’re up early!’’ says his Mum.
He gobbles down breakfast with a loud burp.
‘‘Slow down, Ranjiv!’’ says Mum.
‘‘Are you excited?’’ asks Grandad.
‘‘WOO HOO!’’ shouts Ranjiv, jumping in the air.
Mum sighs, ‘‘Go and get ready then.’’
‘’Ranjiv, are you going to be long?’’ Mum calls.
Ranjiv enters the kitchen.
He carries binoculars and a map
and is wearing his new safari jacket.
‘‘Are you going to the Bush?’’ chuckles Grandad.
‘‘Bye! Have fun and be good for Grandad!
And remember, don’t be too noisy or you will scare the animals!’’ calls Mum.
Ranjiv waves and hops on the bus with Grandad.
Grandad holds onto Ranjiv as he tries to run off the bus.
‘‘Wait! Slow down! Remember what your Mum said.’’
‘‘Sorry, Grandad. I’ve never been to the Bush…I mean, a Wildlife Sanctuary before.’’ says Ranjiv.
‘‘Here’s your Sanctuary map. Please don’t lose it.’’ says the guide.
Ranjiv opens the map carefully.
‘‘Look, Grandad, we can hold a snake!’’ he squeals.
‘‘And there are Koalas and Tawny Frogmouths, too!’’
Grandad takes his hand. The first stop is the wombat.
‘‘Where is it, Grandad?’’ Ranjiv looks everywhere.
‘‘See that pipe over there, Ranjiv. Look inside,’’ says Grandad.
‘‘I can see it. It’s sleeping in the pipe!’’
The next stop is the koalas, but the gum trees are empty.
Ranjiv sighs, “Where are they?”
‘‘Look up in there,’’ Grandad points.
Ranjiv can see koalas high up in the trees.
‘‘They are eating Eucalyptus leaves’’.
Soon, Ranjiv spots a duck with its chicks and points at them.
‘‘Look, Grandad!’’ The chicks waddle away.
‘‘Well spotted, Ranjiv. What can you see next?’’ says Grandad.
But Grandad could not see Ranjiv anywhere…
‘‘RANJIV!’’ he shouts.
But there was no answer.
The chicks run to hide behind their mother.
And the koalas and wombats are nowhere to be seen.
The sky grows gloomy, and Grandad’s eyes are filled with fear.
‘‘Grandad, I’m in here,’’ Ranjiv’s voice comes from behind a shrub.
Grandad looks through the bushes, and there he is!
‘‘Look, Grandad!’’ Ranjiv smiles.
He is feeding a wallaby from the palm of his hand.
Grandad kneels down and smiles in relief.
Ranjiv shivers as they approach the final scary stop – the python.
The keeper says, ‘‘Don’t worry, it can’t harm you. Would you like to hold it?’’
Grandad’s face turns pale.
The guide places the python on Grandad’s shoulders.
Ranjiv touches the snake, “It feels soft, Grandad. It’s not scary’’.
It’s dark by the time they reach home.
‘‘How was your trip?’’ asks Mum.
Grandad hands over a sleepy Ranjiv.
‘‘It was the best day of my life, Mum. I held a python and fed a wallaby,’’
‘‘Wow, you are brave!’’ says Mum.
But Ranjiv does not speak… he is snoring!
Mum smiles at Grandad.
‘‘I think it’s time our young explorer went to bed,’’ says Grandad with a wink.
