Line: Picture Story

   Some time ago, a talented artist named Chevallier posted several 
picture stories.  Colin Douthwaite reposted on of them to a.a-a today, so 
I thought I'd repost it here.

   Here it is ...



   S O N G   O F   T H E   S N A I L S   G O I N G   T O   F U N E R A L S

                                ,,,
                               (o o)
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This story, my little one, happens in a pine-tree forest,     @
called the evergreen forest by its inhabitants.  This        *|*
forest, as your probably know, my little one, was called    @\|/*
"evergreen" because the pine trees never lose their       *\**|*@/*
leaves, even in the Fall, and so this forest was        @*\**\|/***/@
always, always green.                                    **\**|**/**
                                                        *\**@\|/**@/*
                                /|_                   @\***\**|**/***/
                               /   |_                   *\@**\|/***/*
Every day, when the sun was   /     /                 ***@*\**|**/*@***
high in the sky, the news-   /      >               @********\|/*@******@
bird (a beautiful blue-     (      >                         _|_
tailed bird with large     /      /
wings) ran from           /     /       Every day, the newsbird
pine to pine, singing    /      /       talked to each of the inhabitants,
the news for the      _/      \_____    asking them: "Do you have any news?
other inhabitants    /-             |   is there something new to say to
of the forest.        /     /-\     /   anyone?"
Then after a while,  /      /  \--/
each day, he        /     /
would leave to     /      /      One day, it would be   (\
sing the news     (      >       the rabbit family,      \\__/(\
in the next      /      >        having a new bunny       Q Q  \)
forest.         /     _|         child. The bird        =(_T_)=
               /  __/            would then sing high
              /_/                and clear in the pine forest: "Rejoice!
                                 Mr. and Mrs. Rabbit just have had a 17th
                                 child!"

Another day, it would be a caterpillar          /_\    Y
that suddenly decided it was time          7   // \\  ( )
to change a bit and transformed into a      \//    \\_//
                   beautiful, colorful,
   //\         /\\  and delicate butterfly. The newsbird would then sing
  || * \ . . / * || in all the neighborhood forests: "Mr Caterpillar is now
   \\____\X/____//   a Butterfly! Mr Caterpillar is now a Butterfly!"
    / *  /O\  * \    And every inhabitant would hear the beautiful voice of
    \__/  "  \__/    the newsbird, and would rejoice and applaud.
                                                                    _
But of course, the news wasn't always happy, my little one.      __( )__
Sometime, the newsbird would softly sing, with sad notes        (__>O<__)
in his voice, of the death of a flower in the grass of a nearby    (_)
forest, or the lost of petals of a rose in a garden not far.        |
All news was known to the newsbird, because he flies very           |
fast everywhere.  Much of the news didn't concern the             ///\_
inhabitant of the evergreen forest, though, since the newsbird
was giving the news to several forests.

       _-_       One day, the newsbird sang very sad news to the
    /~~   ~~\      inhabitants of the evergreen forest.
 /~~         ~~\    "Today is dead the leaves of one of the trees of the
{               }    maple forest... they desperately tried to resist,
 \  _-     -_  /    and in their beautiful effort, they turned yellow and
   ~  \\ //  ~~   even red! But they still have fallen from their tree
       | |       and they are dead now. Every inhabitant is invited
       | |       to their funerals.. they   will be buried with respect
      // \\      and love in the next           forest: the maple Forest!"
                                          @             _________
Hearing the news, many of the animals of   \____       /         \
the evergreen forest were very sad, but    /    \     /   ____    \
mostly, they were very curious. What? How  \_    \   /   /    \    \
can a leaf become red and fall and die?      \    \ (    \__/  )    )
It never happened, in their forest! A snail   \    \_\ \______/    /
couple, especially, were very very sad         \      \           /___
and also very amazed by the news, and asked     \______\_________/____"-_
thw newsbird a few questions:

 "How can a leaf turn yellow? And red? And how can it die, falling 
out from its tree? It never happens here in the evergreen Forest! 
Isn't it always the same everywhere?" 

 "No, no, answered the newsbird. There is many forests other than yours!
 In the maple forest, trees let their leaves die in
 Fall and its very sad, but very beautiful and colorful...       /\ o-/\
 Will you come to the funerals and pay your last respects       ///\|/\\\
 to the poor Leaf family?"                                     /   /|\   \

 "Is it far from here?" asked the wife snails, for they knew they 
 were very slow, and though they hold their house on their back, 
 like turtles, the wife wanted to be sure they would be back for 
 dinner.  

 "Oh no! only a few minutes straight ahead from here.. you cant miss 
 it, its like a rainbow of orange, yellow and red leaves 
 everywhere!" 

The snail couple decided to go to the              ___
funerals.  They walked.. and walked.. and        // __`\  o o ~
walked for a long long time. They were soon     ll ( .) l_) ) `
very tired of walking, and exhausted.          __\\ \__/   /
   ___________________________________________/_/________/^^

   /^\_           _/|      "Is the oak-Forest still far from here? they
  |    \  __  ___/  /      would ask a bird every day, during their trip."
   \_       >    _/
     \__      __/     "Oh no! would answer the bird! Continue straight
       /    _/        forward, you cant miss it! It's only a few minutes
      /___/\ \        ahead! keep going!"
            m m                                                (  (    )
                      And so snails continued to walk and    ( (     )   )
walk for days and nights.  The wife-snail already realized   ( (         )
they wouldn't be back for dinner: indeed they often had to  (             )
stop to eat on the road, before continuing their trip --    ( ( \\       )
but since the snails, as you know my little one, always        ( |  // )
travel with their house on their back, they weren't too much     |   |
bothered about their slowness, and so they walked for a long,    |   |
long time.  Eventually, after a long long time, they arrived     |   |
in the maple forest. But They were very surprised. It wasn't     |   |
red and yellow at all! it was beautiful, and sunny, and green!   |   |
Beautiful trees like they never saw before were there, and    ``'-------
their leaves were splendid and full of life!

                  |     They were stunned, and looked ridiculous, here
                 |.|    in this beautiful green and living forest, with
                 |.|    their black mourning shells and the mourning crepe
                |\./|   on their horn...
                |\./|
.               |\./|               .     "Why are you in mourning?" asked
 \^.\          |\\.//|          /.^/     one of the beautiful green Leaves,
  \--.|\       |\\.//|       /|.--/   on a tree. "You both seem so sad!!"
    \--.| \    |\\.//|    / |.--/
     \---.|\    |\./|    /|.---/     "We came here for the funerals of a
        \--.|\  |\./|  /|.--/        dead leaf," answered the snail couple.
           \ .\  |.|  /. /           "The newsbird told us we were invited!"
 _ -_^_^_^_-  \ \\ // /  -_^_^_^_- _  The two snails were very disappointed.
   - -/_/_/- ^ ^  |  ^ ^ -\_\_\- -      But then the sun said to them:
                  |
                  |                 "Don't be sad! It's Summer, now! All the
                                     leaves are restored to life! Laugh! and
stay here for a while, enjoy the feast and take some vacations!"

The sun was warming all the forest, and all the   o       o
animals laughed, and singed, and everyone was so   \_____/
happy that the two snails soon started to laugh    /=O=O=\     _______
too, and decided to join the summer life.         /   ^   \   /\\\\\\\\
they painted their shell in beautiful sunset      \ \___/ /  /\   ___  \
colors, and removed their black mourning crepe     \_ V _/  /\   /\\\\  \
and soon, they were laughing and playing with the    \  \__/\   /\ @_/  /
other inhabitants of the maple forest.                \____\____\______/
Then later, they started their trip home, and who
knows, my little one? maybe was it Fall again when they arrived?

                                ,,,
                               (o o)
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This story takes its main idea from a song, written by the French 
poet Jaques Prevert. (Yes, it's the same poet who wrote "To make the 
portrait of a bird" Didn't I promise I would translate more of his 
poetry for the lilones? :) Unfortunatly, I don't know the music of 
this song.. I wish I'd knew! It's a beautiful song! I wanted to 
include in this antispoiler the original idea and poetry, and so I 
translated for you the original song from Prevert:) Here it is! 
Enjoy! :) 


                     ___MMM___            |||
                       (0-0)             (o o)
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-oOO--(_)--OOo-=-=-ooO--\ /--Ooo-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
    |     |     |     |     |     |     |  V  |     |     |     |    |



       CHANSON DES ESCARGOTS          |         SONG OF THE SNAILS
      QUI VONT A L'ENTERREMENT        |     THAT WENT TO THE FUNERALS

     Original french poetry by        |    Translated for Asar's lilones
          Jacques Prevert             |           By Chevalier :))

A l'enterrement d'une feuille morte   | At the burying of a dead leaf
Deux ecargots s'en vont               | Two snails are going
Ils ont la coquille noire             | Their shells are black
Du crepe autour des cornes            | Mourning crepe is around their horns
Ils s'en vont dans le soir            | They walk in the evening
Un tres beau soir d'automne           | In a very beautiful Fall evening
Helas quand ils arrivent              | Alas when they arrive
C'est deja le printemps               | It's already Spring
Les feuilles qui etaient mortes       | The dead leaves
Sont toutes ressucitees               | Are all restored to life
Et les deux escargots                 | And the two snails
Sont tres desappoites                 | Are much disapointed
Mais voila le soileil                 | But suddenly comes the sun
Le soleil qui leur dit                | the sun that says to them:
Prenez prenez la peine                | Take, take the time
La peine de vous asseoir              | The time to sit
Prenez un verre de biere              | Take a glass of beer
Si le coeur vous en dit               | If you feel like it,
Prenez si ca vous plait               | Take if you want
L'autocar pour Paris                  | The bus for Paris
Il partira ce soir                    | It will leave tonight
Vous verrez du pays                   | You will see the country
Mais ne prenez pas le deuil           | But don't be in mourning
C'est moi qui vous le dit             | I tell you:
Ca noircit le blanc de l'oeil         | It blackens the white of the eyes
Et puis ca enlaidit                   | And also, it makes one ugly
Les histoires de cercueils            | Stories about coffins
C'est triste et pas joli              | Are sad and not cute
Reprenez vous couleurs                | Take your colors back
Les couleurs de la vie                | The colors of life!
Alors toutes les betes                | And then all the animals
Les arbres et les plantes             | The trees and the plants
Se mettent a chanter                  | Start to sing
A chanter a tue-tete                  | To sing at the top of their voice
La vrai chanson vivante               | The real living song
La chanson de l'ete                   | The song of summer
Et tout le monde de boire             | And everyone drinks
Tout le monde de trinquer             | And everyone clinks glasses
C'est un tres joli soir               | Its a very beautiful evening
Un joli soir d'ete                    | A beautiful summer evening
Et les deux escargots                 | And the two snails
S'en retournent chez eux              | Return home
Ils s'en vont tres emus               | They return very touched
Ils s'en vont tres heureux            | They return very happy
Comme ils ont beaucoup bu             | And since they drank a lot
Ils titubent un petit peu             | They stagger a little bit
Mais la haut dans le ciel             | But high in the sky
La lune veille sur eux.               | The moon watches over them

          Jacques Prevert             |
                                      |                  ___         
                                      |                // __`\  o o ~
                                      |               ll ( .) l_) ) `
                                      |              __\\ \__/   /   
                                      |  .  . .. .._/_/________/^^   


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