The Flying Book

 

The Old Bad Habit

Joy was a bright student in the first standard, known for his excellent academic performance. However, there was one bad habit he couldn’t shake: he would sometimes steal things from his classmates. His friends had noticed this and often warned him, explaining that stealing was wrong and could lead to serious consequences.

Despite their warnings, Joy couldn't resist temptation. One day, he spotted a book in his classmate’s bag that he liked very much. It was a beautiful, shiny book, and he wanted it for himself. Even though his friends had cautioned him against stealing, Joy's mind was set. He decided to take the book when no one was watching.

The opportunity came when the teacher was out of the classroom, and the physical education teacher took everyone outside for practice. While most of his classmates were busy, Joy’s thoughts kept drifting back to the book. He thought it was the perfect moment to grab it.

He quickly asked for permission to drink some water, giving an excuse that the heat was making him thirsty. The teacher agreed, and Joy rushed back to the classroom, snatched the book, and hid it under his jacket. But just as he was about to return to his seat, he heard footsteps approaching. In his haste to hide the book, he tripped over a rod on the floor and hurt his toe. He winced in pain, seeing blood start to flow, and sat down to nurse his injury.

When the class teacher returned, she noticed the blood and asked what had happened. Rather than scolding the class, she decided to teach them a valuable lesson. She gathered the students around and began telling them a story.

"A few years ago," she began, "a flying book chased after a boy named Shine. The book zoomed through the air so fast that Shine couldn’t escape. No matter how hard he tried to run, the book followed him into his home."

The students listened intently.

The book spoke, "You cannot hide. If you don’t surrender yourself, we will send our workers to take you away."

Shine was frightened. "I haven’t done anything wrong," he protested. "What do you want from me?"

The book responded coldly, "We are from the world of books. We saw you steal a book from Siri’s bag, and now we’re going to take you to our world to punish you."

“What kind of punishment?” Shine asked nervously.

“We will teach you a lesson," the book replied. "First, we will hit you with letters, and then throw you into a paper-mixing machine to turn you into toilet paper."

The book then showed Shine a picture of a former classmate, who had been turned into paper the year before. Shine’s heart sank.

At that moment, Joy, who had been listening closely, grew terrified. He jumped up, shouting, "I will never steal again! Please don’t send me to the book world, teacher!"

The teacher smiled gently and hugged him. "Don't worry, Joy. We won't send you to the book world. But you must learn that stealing always leads to trouble."

Moral of the Story: Stealing is wrong. Always respect other people's belongings.