Story for Children- Chapter 3

"Did you know, tortoise, that polar bears are actually nudists evolved over the years?" The yellow tortoise bobbed at her feet, clearly startled.

"When early man introduced the concept of clothing, there was a section of society that begged to differ. The nudists set up a colony in the Arctic, far away from their hitherto fellow men. As time passed by, the nudists evolved into creatures with heavy fur to protect themselves from the biting cold. We know them as polar bears."

The little boy, who was following this carefully, was flabbergasted. The little girl was either clearly mad, or sagely beyond her years. The little boy could glimpse the Bottle on a shelf nearby, and tried to softly make his way to It.

SQUEEEAAAK!

The little boy looked around, startled, and realized that he had stepped on a blue giraffe near the door, which had squeaked loudly in turn. He sheepishly met the little girl's mildly surprised gaze.

"Hello, there," he ventured. And, feeling obliged to render an explanation, "I came in through the bathroom window."

"Wasn't it dreadfully slippery with all the moss growing on the walls?," she asked, in mild concern.

"Oh, it was OK, I managed quite alright."

The little girl smiled mildly. She was turning out to be a very mild person.

"Can I help you in any way?" she asked.

The little boy narrated the entire story to her, with some passion. The little girl listened sympathetically.

"So, you came back for the Bottle," she said. "You're welcome to be my guest to have it."

She led the way to her living room, where all the Bottle stood in resplendent splendour in the midst of the other bottles. The little boy stood before the holy scene for awhile; he could not be sure, but he thought he heard conversation from the altar, from the bottles themselves!

"Can you hear anything?," he asked the little girl.

"Why, no! Do you? I expect it's the neighbors. They do carry on so. Their parents were recently married, you see, and are on a honeymoon. When the cats are away, the mice will play!" she ended wisely.

The little boy fell silent. He knew what he must do. He mustered courage.

"May I stay at your place for some time?"

The little girl cocked her head mildly and looked seriously at the boy. "You're welcome if you want to," she said. "I'm gone most of the day - I work in an IT company, you know - so you should find it comfortable here."

"What work do you do?"

"I am a Self-Motivations Catalyst. I help people stay motivated in their work, and help them see a future in the company."