The Raindrop Song
One soft grey morning, Irie and Omie sat by the window and watched the clouds. The clouds were round and puffy.
"Look, Omie!" said Irie, pointing up. "That cloud looks like a sheep. And that one looks like a whale!"
Omie clapped his hands. "Cloud! Cloud!"
Irie smiled. "Let's sing a song about a raindrop," she said. "A tiny raindrop who goes on a great big journey."
And so they began to sing.
Up in the Cloud
High above the town, in a soft and sleepy cloud, lived a tiny raindrop named Pip. Pip was so small you could hardly see her, but she loved to sing.
All around her, other tiny drops were gathering close, holding hands in the cool air. The cloud grew heavier and greyer, and Pip giggled as she bumped gently against her friends.
"Ready, everyone?" called Pip. "One, two, three — let's go!"
Irie and Omie sang with her:
Little Pip in a cloud so high,
Floating softly through the sky.
Drops join hands, the cloud grows grey,
Soon it's time to fall and play!
Down Comes the Rain
Pip let go and tumbled down, down, down through the fresh morning air. Pitter-pat, pitter-pat went the rain on the rooftops. Plip-plop, plip-plop went the rain on the leaves.
Irie opened the window just a crack and held out her hand. A cool drop landed on her palm, and Omie laughed as one landed right on his nose.
"Rain!" said Omie, waving his arms in the air.
Irie sang the next part, and Omie bounced along to the beat:
Pitter-pat on the roof and tree,
Plip-plop, here comes Pip, whee!
Falling gently, soft and light,
Rain is dancing, what a sight!
Pip splashed into a puddle and spun around like a tiny dancer. Then the puddle overflowed, and Pip slipped into a little stream hurrying downhill.
Down the River
The stream bubbled over smooth stones and under a little wooden bridge. Pip floated past ducks and reeds, past a frog sitting on a lily pad.
"Hello, Pip!" croaked the frog. "Where are you going?"
"To the sea!" sang Pip. "Come and sing with me!"
Soon the stream joined a wider river. The river sparkled in the light and carried Pip along, round the bend and past the tall green trees. Irie pretended her finger was Pip, wiggling its way across the windowsill, while Omie made bubbling sounds like the stream.
They sang together:
Bubbling brook and river wide,
Pip goes floating with the tide.
Over stones and under trees,
Sing along, river, please!
Out to the Sea
At last the river reached the sea. The sea was big and blue and sparkly. Pip splashed happily into the waves.
"Hello, sea!" sang Pip. "What a wonderful place!"
The waves rocked her gently, back and forth, back and forth. Fish swam beneath her, and a seagull called out overhead. Pip floated on the warm water and sang a slow, sleepy song, just like a lullaby.
Irie rocked Omie gently, back and forth, as they sang:
Waves are rocking, soft and slow,
Where will little Pip go?
Sun is warm and skies are blue,
Something new is coming true!
Up to the Sun
Then the sun came out, warm and golden. Its rays touched the sea and warmed the water, and something magical happened. Pip began to rise, lighter and lighter, floating up into the air like an invisible balloon.
She wasn't a raindrop anymore — she had turned into tiny water vapour, so light she could float up to the sky. Up, up, up she went, higher than the birds, until she reached a soft, new cloud.
"Hello again!" laughed Pip, as her friends gathered around her. "I've been to the river and the sea, and now I'm home in the sky!"
Irie stretched her arms up high, and Omie stretched his arms up too.
They sang:
Sunshine warms the sparkling sea,
Up floats Pip so happily.
Light as air, she rises high,
Back to her cloud in the sky!
The Song Goes Round and Round
And that is the water cycle, Irie explained to Omie. Water falls as rain, flows down rivers to the sea, rises up with the sun, and gathers in clouds again — round and round, again and again.
"Again!" said Omie, clapping. "Again!"
So Irie and Omie sang the whole song one more time, from the very beginning. They sang about the cloud, the rain, the river, the sea, and the sun, and they sang it louder and happier than before.
Outside, the sun was shining now, and a fresh white cloud was drifting across the blue sky. Was Pip up there, getting ready for her next journey? Irie thought so.
She winked at Omie, and they sang the last verse together:
Cloud to rain, to river, sea,
Sun lifts Pip up, wild and free.
Round and round the song will go,
Now you know the way drops flow!
The End. Now it's your turn — can you sing The Raindrop Song all the way round again?