The Lazy Boy and his Cat

Once, there was a lazy boy. He was so lazy that when he finished coloring, he left his crayons and markers out on his desk. After reading a book, he just left it where he had been sitting. When he finished playing with his toys, he just left them where they were. And when he took off his dirty clothes, he left them on the floor.

One day his mother was doing her spring cleaning. She looked into the boy’s room. She was shocked! The floor was covered with clothes and books and toys and markers and crayons. There was no way she could dust or vacuum or do any of the chores she had planned.

She called for the boy. “Son,” she commanded, “You must clean your room. I am doing my spring cleaning and I cannot do anything with your room until you pick up all of this mess!” Then she went off to scrub the bathrooms.

The boy looked around at his room. It certainly was a mess. He thought, “This mess is too big for me to clean up. I must find someone to do it for me.”

Now this boy had a calico cat. Everyone knows that calico cats are particularly wise and helpful cats. And as the boy was thinking about who he could get to do his work for him, he looked around and spied his cat.

“Cat,” he called, “Cat, come here!”

The cat was a wise creature, and she guessed what the boy wanted from her. She knew how lazy he was. But being a helpful cat, she came when he called.

“Cat,” he commanded, “My mother says I must clean my room so she can do her spring cleaning. This room is so messy that I cannot clean it up. So you must clean it for me.”

“I will be glad to clean your room for you,” said the cat. And she began.

First, she picked up all the crayons and markers, one by one. When she had her paws full of crayons and markers, she walked over and dumped them in the trash can.

“No!” cried the boy, “They don’t go in the trash can!”

“I am so sorry!” said the cat “Perhaps you can show me where to put them.”

The boy fished his crayons and markers out of the trash can and put them in their box. The cat helped, too. Then he put the box in his desk drawer.

“That’s where the crayons and markers go,” said the boy. “Now, continue cleaning my room.”

“Of course,” agreed the cat.

So she picked up all the books, one by one, and began to make great piles of them on the boy’s bed. Soon the books covered the bed completely.

“What are you doing?” the boy demanded. “The books are covering my bed! I won’t be able to sleep in it tonight!”

“Perhaps you could show me another place for the books,” the cat suggested.

So the boy took the books off the bed. Pile after pile disappeared as he carried them to his bookshelves. The cat helped, too. Together they arranged the books neatly on the shelves.

“Books always go on the bookshelves,” the boy explained. “Now, continue cleaning my room.”

“Of course,” agreed the cat.

The cat began to pick up the toys. One by one, she tossed them into the boy’s clothes hamper.

“No, no, no!” shrieked the boy. “Toys do not go in the clothes hamper!”

“Would you please show me where they should go?” asked the cat.

So the boy gathered up armfuls of toys, and began to dump them into his toy box. The cat helped, too. Soon the toy box was full, and the clothes hamper was empty.

“My toys belong in the toy box,” the boy informed her. “Now, continue cleaning my room.”

“Of course,” agreed the cat.

The cat snatched up the dirty clothes. When she had her paws full, she staggered over to the bed, and shoved the clothes underneath.

“Not again!” the boy shouted. “You don’t put dirty clothes under the bed! They’ll never get washed!”

“Where do dirty clothes belong?” the cat inquired “Please show me.”

So the boy dragged his clothes hamper over to the bed, and began digging the dirty clothes out from beneath it. The cat helped, too. They stuffed the clothes in the hamper, and the boy returned it to his closet.

“Dirty clothes go in the hamper.” the boy told the cat.

Then he looked around the room. All the mess was gone! Everything was in its proper place.

Just then, the boy’s mother walked in.

“Well, this certainly looks much better! Perhaps you can help me vacuum and dust. Two people work much faster than one,” she told him.

“Of course,” agreed the boy.

So the boy and his mother dusted and vacuumed his room. Then the boy helped his mother clean the rest of the house. The spring cleaning was done by supper time, and as a treat, his mother took the boy out for an ice cream cone.

The boy never again let his room get so messy. He picked up his crayons and markers when he finished coloring. He put his books back on the shelves when he was done reading. He put his toys away when he finished playing with them. And when he took off his dirty clothes, he put them in the hamper.

And he never again asked his cat to clean his room.