Storytelling, Week 3: Little Dog on the Prairie

     There is a wide grassy plain along interstate sixty-five outside of Indianapolis that stretches as far as the eye can see.  As soon as the sun rises, two prairie dogs sit and watch traffic everyday. Each day, the two laugh while talking about their lives as all kinds of vehicles zoom past. Despite them both being prairie dogs, they look quite different. One prairie dog is significantly larger than the other. His belly is so enormous that he hasn't been able to see his feet since he was a boy. The other prairie dog, which happens to be his brother, is quite small. When they were born, he was by far the runt of the litter. All his other brothers tease him about his miniature size to this day. The small prairie dog has always envied the size of his largest brother.

     As the sun begins to set in the west and traffic slows, the two prairie dogs decide to retreat to their borrows just a little over a mile away. However, something happened this day that has never occurred in the past. The small brother comes across his shadow. Normally he doesn't think anything of his shadow, but his desire to be larger this day was greater than it was in the past. The prairie dog dances with his shadow and exclaims how large he appears. His bigger brother laughs and continues to walk to their borrows. 

     The prairie dog shouts proudly, "I look larger than any prairie dog in the plains! I'm sure if I ran onto the highway a car will see how big I am and stop to let me pass!" His larger brother stares at him puzzled and confused as to why he thinks this. Suddenly, the small prairie dog runs through the grass to the edge of the highway. His brother laughs thinking he is only trying to show off his newly found bravery. A tiny truck can be seen on the horizon. The small brother slowly walks to the middle of the highway. He stands up tall and waits as the truck grows near. The once small truck is now suddenly a large sixteen wheeler. The small prairie dog begins to dance and cheer in front of the truck. His shadow, appearing only three times his size, mimics his actions. The truck honks its horn and merely hits a speed bump.

     As the sun rises the next morning on interstate sixty-five, the large prairie dog watches traffic alone.

Photo of Prairie Dogs

Author's Note:

I wrote this story as an adaption of The Wolf and His Shadow taken from Aesop (Winter): Page 5. In the original story, the wolf becomes overwhelmed by the size of his shadow and believes he can frighten a lion. However, the lion is not intimidated by the wolf's shadow and actually kills him. This is similar to the small prairie dog as he finally feels as if he is larger than he seems. In correlation to the original story, he "fancies" his large shadow and forgets the reality that he cannot actually stop a fast moving vehicle. I wanted to maintain the "fable style," but also wanted to modernize the concept. That is why I chose to use highway traffic as a main element to the story. I am not exactly sure why I used prairie dogs in my story as they are not a very common animal in storytelling. Well not a common animal used in stories I have read at least. I started writing the story with two raccoons, but it just didn't sound right when I read the story to myself. Overall, I enjoyed writing the story and the title was definitely the hardest part to think of. I am not sure how I thought to make a play off of the "Little House on the Prairie," but it was the last thing I did before publishing the blog post.


Winter, Milo. The Aesop for Children (1919)
"The Wolf and His Shadow"