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carnival of money stories: bedtime story edition

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Are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll begin.

Once upon a time, there was a very little naughty boy, and his name was George. George didn’t like to do important things, and he didn’t often learn from his mistakes.

One day, George’s mother asked him to go and count the eggs in the larder. Mother and father were going to the pictures that evening, so they were going to have boiled eggs and soldiers for an early tea.

George stomped his feet loudly and grumbled but his father gave him a stern look, so he went to the larder and counted the eggs.

‘One, two’, he said in a cross voice.

‘Well, that’s not enough‘ said his mother. ‘There are three of us today. You will have to go to Mrs Nickelby’s shop to get some more, and you can post this envelope on the way’

His mother gave him some shiny coins, and told him that if there was any money left over, he could have it for his piggy bank. George counted the coins carefully, there were five of them. There might be enough for the new toy car he’d seen in the shop window last Thursday.

George opened the little white gate and walked down the lane towards Mrs Nickelby’s shop. As he walked along the lane, he saw some big boys playing rounders in the field opposite the church and in the meadow next to the boys were some very hungry goats.

‘Wouldn’t it be funny’ thought George, ‘if I let the goats out. I wonder what they’ll do’.

George opened the gate where the goats were busy munching on grass, and soon they ambled off in the direction of the village, with George in hot pursuit.

In the middle of the village green was a bright red phone box, and just nearby, two girls were playing with a skipping rope. The goats headed towards the two girls, and butted the smaller one into a muddy puddle.

When she got up, she was covered from head to toe in mud, and feeling very sorry for herself.

‘Oh no’ she said, ‘this was my only clean dress, and it’s not washing day until Monday. Mummy will be cross’.

‘And here she comes now’ said the bigger girl.

The girls’ mother looked very cross indeed. She started telling the little girl off.

‘Just look at your clothes - covered in mud, and there’s a tear in that dress’, she said. ‘I told you to be careful, because you haven’t any more clean dresses. When you get home, you can go straight to bed without any supper.’

The little girl burst into tears, and George felt very mean. But he didn’t say anything. He didn’t want the cross lady to start telling him off.

Just then, the vicar, and Mrs Nickelby the shopkeeper, came hurriedly towards the group.

‘You’ve made a mistake‘ said Mrs Nickelby. ‘It wasn’t Susie’s fault that she fell into the puddle. The goat pushed her, I saw it all from my shop window.’

‘Well how did the goats come to be in the village green’, said Susie’s mother. She turned to look at the vicar.

‘Aren’t they your goats?’ she asked him. ‘ Look at my Susie, she’s got a tear in her dress, someone will have to pay for that to be mended. You really should keep the gate closed.’

‘I do’ said the vicar, ‘I saw a naughty little boy opening the gate when I was locking up the church, and I was worried about the havoc they might cause, so I followed them up here to try and catch them.’

George tried to make himself smaller and hide behind the goats, but the vicar spied him.

‘You’, he said ‘it was you I saw opening the gate. It’s George, isn’t it.’

‘Yes’ mumbled George. ‘I thought it would be funny.’

‘Well, it’s not very funny is it?’ said Mrs Nickelby ‘what are you supposed to be doing?’

‘My mother sent me to get some eggs for tea, and she said I could have the left over money’ George replied ‘I want to buy the toy car in your shop window.’

‘I think you’d better give those coins to Susie’s mother, so she can have Susie’s dress repaired, don’t you’ said Mrs Nickelby. ‘Vicar, you’d better see to those goats, and I’ll take George home and see what his mother and father have to say. I expect they’ll teach him a lesson.’

Well, I don’t know what will happen to George when his mother and father hear what he had done, perhaps if he is really sorry, things will come out right. I’m sure he won’t let the goats out of the meadow again. What a thing to do!

With thanks to brip blap, dividends 4 life, collecting my cash, just shoot me now, debt-free revolution, paid twice, ask mr credit card, the financial blogger, being frugal, money blue book, chief family officer, free money finance, millionaire money habits, father sez, cash money life, contrarian goldfish, me vs. debt, debt marathon, what I think about, and of course, classic children’s storyteller Enid Blyton.

Other great posts that I couldn’t work in to the story:

• Dave Ramsey Gives Bad College Savings Advice! | Moolanomy
• Low Level Venture Capital | Quest For Four Pillars
• Why you should keep your money in your 401k plan | Gather Little by Little
• From My Experience During Last Month - Why You Need Health Insurance. | My Two Dollars
• How I became financially independent in 5 years - Part III Early Retirement Extreme
• Dollar Frugal: Living With an Extreme Frugal Person
• Credit Gift Cards, The Worst of Both Worlds | Credit Withdrawal

Image by DreamnBig

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