Once upon a time, near a big green forest, there was a small carpenter’s workshop.
Every morning, the carpenters came there to work. They cut wood. Saw, saw, saw! They hammered wood. Tap, tap, tap! They made chairs, tables, doors, and many other things.
Near the workshop, there lived a group of playful monkeys. They loved to jump from tree to tree. Boing! Boing! Boing! They loved to swing on branches. Swing! Swing! Swing! And they loved to watch everything around them.
One little monkey was the most curious of all. His name was Miki. Whenever Miki saw something new, he asked, “What is that?” “How does it work?” “Can I try?”
One sunny day, Miki saw two carpenters cutting a big log of wood. One carpenter stood on one side. The other carpenter stood on the other side. They pulled the big saw back and forth. Zzzz… zzzz… zzzz! The log was slowly opening in the middle. To keep the log open, the carpenter placed a small wooden wedge inside it.
Miki looked from a tree branch. His eyes became big and round. “Ooooh!” said Miki. “What is that little piece of wood?” The older monkeys said, “Miki, stay away. That is not a toy.”
But Miki was very curious.
After some time, the carpenters became hungry. “It is lunchtime,” said one carpenter. “We will come back soon,” said the other. They put down their tools and went away.
The monkeys started playing again. But Miki did not play. He kept looking at the log. He looked at the wooden wedge. He looked left. He looked right. Then slowly, slowly, slowly… Miki climbed down from the tree.
“Miki, come back!” called the older monkeys. But Miki said, “I will only look.”
He went closer to the big log. Then he climbed on top of it. He touched the wooden wedge. Tap! Nothing happened. He touched it again. Tap, tap! Still nothing happened.
Then Miki pulled the wedge a little. It moved! “Oh!” said Miki. “I can pull it!” He pulled again. And again. And again.
Suddenly… POP! The wooden wedge came out! The big log closed quickly. Snap!
“Oh no!” cried Miki. His little tail was stuck in the log. “Ouch! Ouch!” cried Miki. “Help me!” The other monkeys became worried. “Stay still, Miki!” they said.
Just then, the carpenters came back. They saw Miki sitting on the log. “Oh dear,” said the carpenter. “Little monkey, this is why tools are not for playing.”
The carpenter gently opened the log and helped Miki free his tail. Miki jumped down and rubbed his tail. “I am sorry,” said Miki softly. “I was too curious.”
The carpenter smiled kindly. “It is good to be curious,” he said. “Curiosity helps us learn. But some things are dangerous. Always ask a grown-up before touching tools.” Miki nodded.
From that day on, Miki was still curious. He still asked, “What is that?” “How does it work?” “Can I learn?” But he never touched tools without asking.
And whenever he heard… Saw, saw, saw! Tap, tap, tap! Miki sat safely on a tree branch and watched. “I can look,” said Miki. “I can learn.” “But I will not touch dangerous things.”
And all the monkeys laughed happily. Chee-chee! Chatter-chatter!
The end.
Little Lesson
Curiosity is good, but we must be careful. Tools are not toys. Always ask a grown-up before touching something new.