English Original
A long time ago, animals looked different. Kangaroos had no tails, and wombats had high, round heads.
Mirram the Kangaroo and Warreen the Wombat were good friends who lived together in a bark hut built by Warreen. Mirram loved sleeping under the stars and often teased Warreen for preferring the warmth of the hut.
"Sleep outside with me!" Mirram would say. "The fresh air and stars are wonderful."
"It's too cold and wet outside," Warreen would snuffle. "I like my warm fire."
Mirram kept taunting Warreen until one night, the wombat agreed to try sleeping outside. He soon got cold and waddled back inside, much to Mirram's amusement.
When winter came, the winds grew harsh. Mirram, sleeping outside, endured the cold rain, telling himself he wasn't afraid. One stormy night, he could bear it no longer. Soaked and freezing, he hopped to the hut and banged on the door.
"Let me in!" he screamed.
"No! There's no room!" yelled Warreen.
Angry and shivering, Mirram forced the door open. "I'm inside now, and you can't throw me out!"
Grudgingly, Warreen let him sleep in a damp corner by a hole in the wall. The fire went out, and Warreen slept soundly, even laughing in his dreams, which made Mirram furious.
In the morning, stiff and sore, Mirram took revenge. He dropped a large rock on Warreen's head, flattening his forehead. "For not helping me! Now you will always live in a damp hole to remember this night."
Their friendship ended. Warreen planned his own revenge. He made a spear and, when Mirram was washing, threw it with all his might. It struck the base of the kangaroo's spine and stuck fast.
"From now on, that will be your long tail!" Warreen yelled. "And you will never have a home!"
And so, to this day, wombats have flat foreheads and live in dark, damp burrows, while kangaroos have long tails and sleep outside under the stars.
中文翻译
很久以前，动物的样貌和现在不同。袋鼠没有尾巴，袋熊则长着又高又圆的头。
袋鼠米拉姆和袋熊瓦林是好朋友，一起住在瓦林用树皮搭的小屋里。米拉姆喜欢睡在星空下，经常嘲笑喜欢待在温暖小屋里的瓦林。
"跟我一起睡外面吧！"米拉姆会说，"新鲜的空气和星星多美妙啊。"
"外面又冷又湿，"瓦林总是吸着鼻子说，"我喜欢我温暖的火堆。"
米拉姆不断嘲笑瓦林，直到有一天晚上，袋熊同意试试睡在外面。他很快就觉得冷，摇摇晃晃地回了屋，这让米拉姆觉得很好笑。
冬天来临，寒风凛冽。睡在外面的米拉姆忍受着冰冷的雨水，告诉自己他不害怕。一个暴风雨的夜晚，他再也受不了了。浑身湿透、冰冷刺骨的他跳到小屋前，猛敲门。
"让我进去！"他尖叫着。
"不行！没地方了！"瓦林喊道。
又气又抖的米拉姆强行推开了门。"我现在进来了，你休想把我赶出去！"
瓦林不情愿地让他在墙边一个漏风的潮湿角落睡下。火熄灭了，瓦林却睡得很香，甚至在梦里笑出声来，这让米拉姆怒火中烧。
早上，浑身僵硬酸痛的米拉姆实施了报复。他将一块大石头砸在瓦林头上，砸扁了他的前额。"这是对你不帮我的惩罚！现在你将永远住在潮湿的洞里，记住这个晚上。"
他们的友谊就此终结。瓦林计划着自己的复仇。他做了一支长矛，趁米拉姆洗澡时用尽全力投了出去。长矛刺中了袋鼠的脊柱末端，牢牢卡住了。
"从今以后，那就是你的长尾巴！"瓦林喊道，"而且你将永远没有家！"
因此，直到今天，袋熊都有着扁平的前额，住在黑暗潮湿的地洞里；而袋鼠则有着长长的尾巴，总是睡在户外的星空下。