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"I don’t want to do my homework!" wee
Jeremy pouted. "I don’t want to learn how to read and write. I don’t care
about history and science." He stomped out of the mouse hole and then ran
into the back garden.
His mum sat at the table. She tried
to think of a way to get wee Jeremy to enjoy doing his schoolwork. An idea
came to her. She picked up a piece of cheddar cheese and went outside to
find the lad. He was sitting under a fluffy purple thistle. "I brought you
a piece of cheese," she said, handing it to him. He took it from her and
gobbled it down. "You like cheese, don’t you?"
"All mice like cheese, Mum," wee
Jeremy answered.
"Why is that? Why don’t we like
asparagus or beetroot? Why do we like cheese so much?" she asked.
"I don’t know. Mice have always
liked cheese."
"Have you ever wondered where cheese
comes from?" his mum asked.
"From the refrigerator," he giggled.
"Do you think it appears in the
refrigerator by magic?"
"I’ve never thought about it. Where
does cheese come from?" wee Jeremy was now curious.
"Take a walk with me, lad. It’s a
lovely day. Let’s go over to the meadow and see Bonnie, the cow," Mum
suggested.
Wee Jeremy took his mum’s hand and
they walked through the grass. "I see Bonnie. She’s eating grass. Why does
she eat grass? I think that would taste disgusting," the lad said.
"Let’s go and ask her," Mum said.
They climbed up on the fence and sat next to Bonnie’s head. "Bonnie, why
do you eat grass?"
"Moo! It tastes delicious and makes
creamy milk," Bonnie said.
"How do you get milk from grass?"
wee Jeremy asked, puzzled.
"The grass turns into milk inside of
me. Every day Farmer Graham milks me and then uses my milk to make butter
and cheese," Bonnie explained.
"Cheese? Cheese comes from milk?"
wee Jeremy asked. His eyes were bulging with excitement.
"Why, of course. You’re a mouse.
Surely you knew that," Bonnie said.
"No, I didn’t know that. I do now
though," he smiled.
"There’s a lot to learn about
cheese. There are dozens of types of cheeses too. While most of it comes
from cows, you can get some cheeses made from the milk of goats and even
camels," Bonnie continued.
"Camel milk? Goat milk? That’s
funny," we Jeremy smiled.
"Cow milk is used for many things.
There’s yogurt, cottage cheese, cream, and ice cream," Bonnie said.
"Ice cream? Ice cream comes from
cow’s milk? That’s brilliant!" wee Jeremy exclaimed.
"Why don’t we go home and read some
books about milk and cheese?" his mum suggested.
"I can’t read very well," he said,
somewhat ashamed.
"Well, your mum will help you and
you can soon learn. When you’ve learned everything there is to know about
cheese, come back and see me and I’ll give you some fresh milk and
cheeses," Bonnie said. She let out a loud moo and went back to eating the
grass.
Wee Jeremy and his mum rushed back
to the mouse hole. "Mum, do we have any books on cheese?"
"I’ve got one right here. Why don’t
we sit down and I’ll help you read it," she said.
She handed the lad the book. He
started looking at the pictures and reading with her help.
He leaned against his mum. "I love
you, Mum. Thanks for helping me learn about cheese," wee Jeremy said. His
mum smiled and then they finished reading the book. |
