Marty Tells the Truth

Marty was a little mouse
who wanted bigger things.
He wanted to be popular
like presidents and kings.

He wanted to be noticed
and to feel important too,
but Marty felt so small
and he did not know what to do.

He always was a good mouse
who did what his parents said,
but one day Marty
let a bad idea get in his head.

He thought that if he told a lie
about something he did,
he'd make his friends believe
that he was one outstanding kid.

So Marty told his friends
that he could outrun any cat.
He said he did it lots of times
and he was proud of that.

His friends were all amazed
and they believed in Marty's lie.
To run from a big cat
was something they were scared to try.

Soon Marty became popular.
The town all knew his name.
They thought he ran with cats
and that brought Marty lots of fame.

But Marty's lie was tested
when a cat came walking by
and one of Marty's friends said,
"Marty, give that cat a try!"

When Marty saw the cat
he was so scared that he fell down.
Before he could get up
the cat pinned Marty on the ground.

The cat held Marty up,
about to have him for his lunch;
when down upon his head
came a big tree branch with a crunch!

The cat was seeing stars,
so he let Marty down again.
When Marty looked up he knew
he was just saved by his friends.

They chewed the branch off of the tree
which saved him from the cat.
He would have been a gonner
if his friends had not done that.

So Marty thanked his friends
and said, "I'm sorry that I lied.
I should have told the truth;
and without you I might have died

He told them that he wanted
to do something big and great.
But he did not know that a lie
could cause him such a fate.

His friends told him that he was great
and big enough for them,
but most of all they hoped
he learned to never lie again.

In time Marty grew bigger
and much wiser than in youth.
His life was so much better
when he simply told the truth.

~ THE END ~