Nell, the chick, listened to all the stories in the hen-house, the barn and the stable as she tripped along behind her mother, Jessie. “Mom, what’s a rainbow?” she asked one night, as she snuggled under Jessie’s wing. “Have you seen Mrs Burton’s umbrella?” asked Jessie, “The multicoloured one?” “Oh, yes! Lots of coloured stripes!” said Nell admiringly. “The rainbow looks something like that,” explained Jessie, “But it’s in the sky. And it comes just when the sun peeps out in the rainy season.” “Just like the umbrella comes out when it rains!” sighed Nell, “So, I can’t see it till it rains.” “No, you can’t,” Jessie announced, firmly adding, “Now, go to sleep!” Two days later, it rained. But the wind soon cleared the clouds and out peeped the sun. Nell ran out and watched a beautiful rainbow emerge in the sky! “Mom!” she called out, “It’s much prettier than the umbrella!”
The Rainbow
