Once upon a time, there was a little bear named Martin. He lived with his family in a cozy wooden house on the edge of the forest.
Martin was cheerful and full of energy. He also had a big box filled with toys that he loved very much.
But he had one habit: he didn’t like to share.
Whenever his friends came to visit, he would say,
“These are my toys! No one is allowed to touch them.”
His friends felt disappointed, but they respected his choice.
One beautiful morning, Martin received a wonderful red ball.
“This is the most beautiful ball in the world!” he exclaimed.
He played with it all day long.
The next day, he invited his friends to play by the river.
The rabbit, the squirrel, and the hedgehog admired the ball.
“Can we play with you?” asked the rabbit.
“No,” Martin replied. “It’s my ball.”
His friends sat down a little farther away.
While playing by himself, Martin threw the ball a little too hard.
The ball bounced off a rock and fell into the river.
“My ball!” cried Martin.
The current quickly carried it away.
Martin ran along the riverbank, but he couldn’t catch it.
His friends immediately came to help.
“We’ll help you!” said the squirrel.
The rabbit ran ahead to follow the ball.
The hedgehog found a long branch.
Working together, they managed to retrieve the red ball.
Martin felt relieved.
“Thank you so much!” he said.
Then he lowered his head.
“I never wanted to share my toys with you, but you still helped me.”
The hedgehog smiled.
“That’s what friends do. They help each other.”
Martin thought for a few moments.
Then he held out the ball to his friends.
“Would you like to play with me?”
“Yes!” they answered happily.
They spent the whole afternoon playing, laughing, and running through the meadow.
That evening, Martin returned home with a big smile.
He had learned something important: when you share, happiness becomes even greater.
From that day on, Martin always welcomed his friends with a big smile and said,
“Come and play with me!”