Colobok is the name from an old Slavic fairy tale about a bread roll that rolled off a window ledge and ran round the world making friends and growing larger by picking up crumbs of goodness from each country it visited.

Once upon a time an old man and woman lived in a village. One day the old man asked the woman to make a Colobok. The old woman mixed some floor with sour cream and shaped it into a Colobok, a kind of little round bun. Then she fried it and left it on the windowsill to cool.

After a while the Colobok suddenly got up and rolled. It rolled from the sill to the bench, from the bench to the floor, across the floor to the door. It hopped over the threshold and into the hall. From the hall it rolled onto the porch, from the porch into the garden and from the garden out through the gate. Farther and farther it went.

I'm Colobok, Colobok! I was scraped up in the flour-tin, Swept up from the corn-bin, Mixed with sour cream into a bun Fried in butter till I was done, Then left on the sill till I cooled some. I ran away from grandfather, I ran away from grandmother too, And I'm sure I'll have no trouble, hare, running away from you."

And off it rolled down the road, so fast that the hare could only stare. The Colobok rolled down the road until it met a wolf.

I'm Colobok, Colobok! I was scraped up in the flour-tin, Swept up from the corn-bin, Mixed with sour cream into a bun Fried in butter till I was done, Then left on the sill till I cooled some. I ran away from grandfather, I ran away from grandmother, I ran away from the hare too And I'm sure I'll have no trouble, wolf, running away from you."

And off it rolled down the road, so fast that the wolf could only stare. The Colobok rolled down the road until it met a bear.

I'm Colobok, Colobok! I was scraped up in the flour-tin, Swept up from the corn-bin, Mixed with sour cream into a bun Fried in butter till I was done, Then left on the sill till I cooled some. I ran away from grandfather, I ran away from grandmother, I ran away from the hare, I ran away from the grey wolf too And I'm sure I'll have no trouble, bear, running away from you."

Again it, rolled off down the road, so fast that the bear could only stare. The Colobok rolled down the road until it met a fox:

I'm Colobok, Colobok! I was scraped up in the flour-tin, Swept up from the corn-bin, Mixed with sour cream into a bun Fried in butter till I was done, Then left on the sill till I cooled some. I ran away from grandfather, I ran away from grandmother, I ran away from the hare, I ran away from the grey wolf, I ran away from the big bear too And I'm sure I'll have no trouble, fox, running away from you."

But the fox said: "I believe that must be a fine song, but you know I am rather hard of hearing. Colobok, be so kind as to sit on my nose and sing your song again, a little louder."

The Colobok hopped onto the fox's nose and sang the song again a little louder.

Then the fox said: "Colobok, many years ago my grandgrandmother requested your grandgrandfather to sit on her tongue and sing the song just one more time and she gobbled it up. But the time has already changed to the better and the foxes do not eat bread now so I am going to teach you Origami and after that you, Colobok, run round the world and bring the beautiful art of paper folding to all children. I would like the children of all countries to grow happyy and healthy."

Since that time Colobok is rolling off down the road to you and your friends, singing the song "The Peace Tree" and saying "WOW! What an Amazing World!" to all of us.

Illustrations by Savchenko Anatoly