Why Bats Fly at Night
Bush Rat and Bat were once great friends. The friendship began to fall apart when bush rat got married. Bat was jealous because bush rat began to spend more time with his wife instead of with bat. So it was that bat began to find a way to hurt bush rat.
Bat prepared a delicious soup and invited bush rat to join him for dinner. "How did you make this soup so tasty," asked bush rat.
Bat answered, "I always boil myself in the water. My flesh is so sweet that it flavors the soup. I will show you how to make it. He had secretly flavored the soup water ahead of time. While bush rat watched, bat heated the water. He told bush rat that the water was boiling The water was very wam, but it was not boiling. Bat climbed into the pot and swam around for a few minutes then climbed out. "Taste the soup," he said. Bush rat tasted the soup. It was delicious as usual.
That night he told his wife, "Bat told me how to make delicious soup. Boil some water on the stove, and I will prepare our evening meal."
Bush rat's wife put water into a pot and hung it over the fire. Bush rat watched the water heat until he saw it begin to boil. When his wife turned her head, he jumped into the boiling water and died in only a few minutes.
When his wife looked into the pot, she saw her husband's dead body. At first she was sad. But when she remembered that Bat had told her husband about how to make the soup, she became angry and wanted revenge. She went to the king of the animals and told him how bat's evil deed helped to kill her husband. The king ordered that bat be arrested and put into jail.
Every animal began to search for bat. It became dangerous for bat to be seen in the daytime. In order to live, he began to hide out in caves and dark places during the daytime. Then bat came out to feed at night. Every animal is still trying to find bat to punish him. That is why bats only fly at night and why you never see them during the daytime.
Dr. Mike Lockett is an educator, storyteller and children's author from Normal, IL. Dr. Lockett has given more than 4000 programs across the USA and as far away as eastern Asia. Contact Mike by writing to Mike@mikelockett.com in order to book him for a storytelling program or young authors program or to inquire about purchasing his books and CDs.