The King Who Couldn't Sleep

It was bedtime at the palace. The queen had been out all day, shopping for a new crown and she was very tired. She even nodded off during pudding and woke up with her face in a bowl of ice cream. It was definitely time to go to bed. "Goodnight, dear," she said, giving the king a strawberry and vanilla kiss. The king, however, wasn't a bit tired.

He brushed his teeth, put on his pyjamas and snuggled down in his royal bed with his teddy bear. However, the king could not get to sleep. He tossed and turned, wriggled and jiggled, fidgeted and fussed.

"It's no good," he sighed wearily. "I'm just not sleepy. Perhaps someone in the castle can help." So, he climbed out of bed and crept downstairs.

At the bottom of the stairs, he met the royal treasure keeper, who was weighed down with bags of jewels and stacks of gold coins. "I can't get to sleep," complained the king.

"I know just the thing to help you," said the treasure keeper. "Follow me." He took the king to the treasure chamber and gave him a soft, yellow cloth.

The king looked at the polishing cloth and smiled. "Oh, what a lovely blankie !" he said. "Can I cuddle it? I'm sure that will help me get to sleep."

"Erm, no, your majesty," explained the treasure keeper. "It's not a blanket, it's a cleaning cloth for polishing all the coins and jewels. I always doze off while I'm cleaning the royal treasure."

The king polished for ages and soon had the diamonds dazzling, the sapphires sparkling and the gold coins glittering like the sun. But he still did not feel sleepy.

"Thank you for finishing my work," yawned the treasure keeper, pulling on his nightcap. "I'm off to bed, goodnight."

"Oh, well," thought the king, "perhaps a snack will help me snooze."

In the castle kitchen, the cook was busy kneading dough to make delicious, fresh bread for breakfast. "I can't sleep," moaned the king.

"You've come to the right place," said the cook. "I always need a nap after kneading the bread dough. It's very tiring!"

The king was soon surrounded by a fog of flour, as he pushed and pressed the dough. Although he worked very hard, he still felt wide awake.

"Sorry you're not sleepy," yawned the cook. "Now the dough's done, it's time for me to say goodnight." Then, grabbing a glass of water, she set off for bed. The king waved, but some of the flour got up his nose and made him sneeze. "Good - Achoo! - night!" he sneezed. "I need some - Achoo! - fresh air."

In the castle grounds, the royal gardener was cutting the grass. "I can't get to sleep," wailed the king.

"I've got just the job for you," said the royal gardener, handing the king a tiny pair of scissors. "Every blade of grass needs to be exactly the same height," he explained. "It usually puts me to sleep after a while!"

The king knelt down and started snipping. He measured each blade of grass against his finger, to make sure it was the right height.

The queen, who had got out of bed, was most surprised to find the king crouched down, with his bottom in the air, poking a finger in the lawn. "Are you quite alright, dear?" she asked.

"I can't get to sleep," howled the king, "and no one can help." "

Don't be silly," said the queen and she took him indoors for a nice cup of milk.

The king took a sip of his milk. "I think I'll just snuggle down for a minute," he said. The queen was just about to read him a bedtime story when she heard a soft snoring sound. After all the activity, the wide-awake king was finally fast asleep.