Once upon a time there were three bears, Papa Bear, Mamma Bear and Baby Bear. Papa Bear was very big and growly. Mamma Bear was middle-sized and pleasant. And Baby Bear, well, he was small, and sometimes he squeaked! They lived in a pretty little house on the edge of the forest. Papa bear loved to fix things around the house; Mama bear loved to grow flowers in her garden; and, Baby bear loved playing in the yard. They were very happy. One day Mamma Bear made some fine porridge. “It smells good!” she said. “It looks good!” said Baby Bear. “But it’s too hot,” finished Papa Bear. “Let’s take a walk while it cools.” So away they went. Soon after a little girl came down the path. Her name was Goldilocks, because her hair was like sunshine. She was very pretty and quite curious. Seeing the bear’s house, she thought, “I wonder who lives here. I think I’ll stop to visit.” She went right inside, and there was the porridge on the table. “It looks so good,” she said to herself, “I’m going to try it.” That is just what Goldilocks did. But she found that the porridge in Papa Bear’s bowl was much too hot. And in Mamma Bear’s middle-sized bowl, it was too cold. So–she tried the porridge in Baby Bear’s tiny bowl. And, do you know, it was just right and Goldilocks ate it all up! Now she was so full she thought she would sit down and rest. First she sat in Papa Bear’s big chair, but it was too hard. Then she tried Mamma Bear’s middle-sized chair, but it was so soft she could hardly climb out of it. Last of all, she tried Baby Bear’s tiny chair and , do you know, it was just right! Goldilocks sat down as happy as can be. But Baby Bear’s chair was very small. Goldilocks had been sitting quietly for only a minute when–CRASH! Down it fell and broke into pieces. As Goldilocks was trying to stand the chair back up, she saw the staircase. To satisfy her curiosity, she ran right up the steps to see what she could see. There was Papa Bear’s big, wide bed. Goldilocks lay down on it, but it was too hard. Then she tried Mamma Bear’s middle-sized bed, but it was so soft she could hardly see over the top of the quilts. Last of all, she tried Baby Bear’s tiny bed and, do you know, it was just right! It felt so good that Goldilocks fell fast to sleep. And while she slept, the three bears came home. Papa Bear went right to his big bowl. “Someone,” he growled, “has been tasting my porridge!” “Someone tasted mine, too,” said Mamma Bear as she peeked into her middle-sized bowl. Baby Bear waved his tiny bowl in the air. “Someone ate all my porridge,” he squeaked in his little bear voice. “And look here,” said Papa Bear. “Someone has been sitting in my big chair.” “And someone has been sitting in my middle-sized chair,” said Mamma Bear. “Oh, oh,” squeaked Baby Bear, “Someone has broken my tiny chair, all into pieces!” Then they went up stairs. “Someone has been lying on my big bed, “ growled Papa Bear. “And someone has been on my middle-sized bed, too,” said Mamma Bear. “Oh, look!” squeaked Baby Bear. Someone has been lying on my bed–and she’s still here!” Just then Goldilocks woke up. She saw the three bears staring at her as startled as she was. With one leap, she was at the top of the stairs. And with another, she was downstairs. She ran out the door as fast as she could and kept running until she got home. She learned to never stray that far from home again. And she also learned to use her curiosity more wisely.