53 - "The Time Travelling Penguin"

10.31.06

THE AUDIENCE sits in a semicircle on brightly carpeted floor. In the center of the semicircle is a comfortable wooden chair with no arms. Soon the teacher enters, dressed in soft cotton colors and tweed. The teacher puts on glasses and addresses the AUDIENCE.

TEACHER
Today we’re going to read one of my favorite picture books. This book is called “The Time Traveling Penguin.” It is by Maximilian Griffin, who also drew the pictures. Isn’t the cover wonderful?

The TEACHER carefully shows the cover to the audience.

TEACHER
Here we go. Page one. “THE TIME TRAVELLING PENGUIN, BY MAXIMILIAN GRIFFIN. Once there was a scientist who liked to do amazing experiments. She would cure diseases, collect animals and invent wonderful new soda-pops that were actually good for you!”

The TEACHER stops to hold the book out to the audience. With one hand, the TEACHER holds the book open to display a picture of a kind old scientist sharing a brightly colored soda with a penguin. The TEACHER turns the page after all have had a look.

TEACHER
“One day, the scientist decided to invent a time machine. After hours of planning, building and calibrating, the scientist had finished. She made some sandwiches and filled a canteen with water, and loaded up the time machine with supplies.”

The TEACHER stops again. This time the picture is of the scientist muddied up like a mechanic, with the penguin eating a sandwich from her pack. The time machine is big and bronze, with rivets.

TEACHER
“When the scientist was ready to test out her new invention, she sat in the pilot’s seat and pressed the big red button. Only nothing happened. She couldn’t understand why, after all, she had worked really hard on her time machine!”

The TEACHER stops, though this time a bit faster and carelessly. Now the picture is of the scientist pressing a big red button with a furrowed brow, while the penguin sits next to her worried. The TEACHER rushes through showing this picture around. Some of the audience doesn’t get to see this picture unless they object. The TEACHER continues the story.

TEACHER
“’I’m going around back to see what the trouble is’ said the scientist ‘what ever you do, penguin, don’t push the red button.’ And so the scientist went around the back, where she found that all she needed to do was put in the batteries! Meanwhile, the penguin sat alone with button…”

Now the picture is of the scientist outside while the penguin stares at the red button nervously.

TEACHER
“…And waited…”

Now a picture of the penguin alone with the big red button.

TEACHER
“…And waited…”

Now a picture of the penguin sweating over the button.

TEACHER
“…Until the penguin couldn’t stand it any longer. The penguin lost all patience and pushed the big red button. Unfortunately, the scientist had just finished changing the batteries a moment before, and the time machine flew off into the future!”

The TEACHER shows a picture of the time machine and the penguin exploding in a flash of color, while the scientist still. The TEACHER finds this particularly funny.

TEACHER
“The penguin steered the time machine through a strange vortex of color. Different clocks whizzed past the time machine, and all sorts of weird sounds buzzed around the penguin’s ears. It was very disorienting!”

A picture of the penguin flying through space and time.

TEACHER
“Finally the penguin landed in the future. The time machine stopped in the scientist’s lab, only now it was filled with even more inventions, including a new time machine! The penguin also saw that there was a new penguin, or rather, a different penguin that looked much older.”

A picture of the two penguins. One has a long white beard.

TEACHER
“ All of a sudden, the penguins heard a noise from outside the lab. It was the scientist! Only now she was very, very old. She walked with a cane spoke with a weak voice.”

A picture of the scientist greeting the penguin. She too has a long white beard. The TEACHER points this out with a giggle.

TEACHER
“‘PENGUIN! There you are!’ she said ‘I told you not to push the red button! Now you are in the future, and you need to go back! There can’t be two of you! You are supposed to be unique! Get back in your time machine and push the red button again!’ And so the penguin went back into the time machine…”

A picture of the penguin getting back into the time machine sheepishly while the old scientist and the old penguin yell.

TEACHER
“…And again, the penguin pushed the red button. Going back in time was different from going forward. The past looked like the world from high up, and the penguin felt like the time machine was falling down fast. Clocks flew up beside the time machine, as it picked up more and more speed.”

The TEACHER stares at the picture for a moment, forgetting about the audience. The picture is of the time machine falling toward the Earth very fast, with the penguin holding on for dear life. The TEACHER does not show this picture unless the audience protests.

TEACHER
“The time machine fell so fast that it went through the earth and landed in the past! The landing was soft, like falling on a million pink pillows. When the penguin got out of the time machine, it was in the lab again. Only now the lab was nearly empty, except for a small chemistry set. Again the penguin heard a rumbling from outside…”

A picture of the penguin in a sparse room with a lone chemistry set. A big shadow looms large from outside.

TEACHER
“…And it was a little girl! Instantly the penguin recognized the little girl to be the scientist, but the scientist did not recognize the penguin. The penguin waved hello and how-do-you-do, but the little girl was scared and thought the penguin was a stranger.”

A picture of the penguin flailing about in front of a nervous little girl. The TEACHER points at all the different ways that the penguin tries to say hello.

TEACHER
“So the penguin decided to go back to the present. It went back inside the time machine and pushed the red button one last time.”

A picture of the penguin in the time machine again, dejected.

TEACHER
“When the penguin came back to the present, the scientist didn’t even notice it was gone. It was as though the penguin was gone for less than a moment. The scientist climbed back into the time machine and patted the penguin on the head. But right before she pressed the big red button…”

A picture of the scientist with the penguin in the time machine.

TEACHER
“…the penguin leapt out of the time machine! There was a big bright flash!”

A picture of the penguin leaping out of the time machine, surrounded by a bright light.

TEACHER
“When the penguin landed, it saw the time machine as though nothing had happened. The scientist walked out a little confused and turned to the penguin, saying ‘You’re glad you didn’t do that. The future was scary, and no one recognized me in the past. I think I’ll just stick around in the present and live in the day to day.”

A picture of the scientist and the penguin, both looking dazed.

TEACHER
“And the penguin agreed. ‘It’s fun to visit the past, and it’s exciting look at the future’ the penguin thought ‘but living for today feels like the right thing to do.’” That’s the end.

The TEACHER holds up a page that says “THE END.” The TEACHER pauses and looks into the eyes of everyone in the audience. They are both the past and the future. The TEACHER either smiles with contentment or frantically runs out of the room without saying goodbye.