One lunchtime our Geronimo,

Would not eat up his dinner,

Jane sighed "If you keep on like this,

You’ll surely get much thinner."

"I know," wailed Teddy miserably,

"But vegetables I hate,

And so for chocolate pudding,

I really cannot wait!"

But to his utter horror,

His friend turned him down flat,

"Hard lines," she told him firmly,

"I’m not allowing that.

You didn’t eat your dinner up,

Just like a small Bear should,

And so as far as I’m concerned,

You can’t have any pud!"

Teddy thought this was outrageous,

And he began to wail,

"Chocolate pudding is my favourite,

This is quite beyond the pale!"

"It isn’t," said the little girl,

"You let your food go cold,

And that’s why at this moment,

My temper I can’t hold."

"In fact your bad behaviour,

Has ruined the whole day,"

And with a face like thunder,

She took his plate away!

Our Furry chum was furious,

He yelled "You’re such a bore,

I can’t stand all your nagging,

So I’m heading for the door!"

He trudged right down the garden path,

And groaned "The so and so,

All thanks to her my humdrum life,

Has reached an all time low.

"Although I’m getting bigger,

She nags me something rotten,

This gross infringement of my rights,

Will never be forgotten!"

However in a little while,

The sun began to shine,

And Geronimo gasped "Golly,

It’s cured those blues of mine.

I’ll hold my head up proudly,

And stop being so dense,"

And before he even knew it,

He’d reached his neighbours fence.

Our Furry friend peered over it,

And gasped in sheer surprise,

Because a huge allotment,

Was right before his eyes.

"Fantastic," he grinned broadly,

"A secret place I’ve found,

And since John’s nowhere to be seen,

I’ll have a snoop around."

"After everything I’ve been though,

I need a bit of pleasure,

And if I climb the fence right now,

I might find hidden treasure!"

But as soon as he had made his move,

He shouted out "Oh no,"

For lots and lots of vegetables,

Were standing in a row!

But as Bear went to take his leave,

He heard a little squeak,

And someone said "I’m Penny Pea,

My taste is quite unique!"

"Good heavens!" giggled Teddy,

"This has to be a joke,

For even though I’m all alone.

I swear someone just spoke!"

"They did," the voice piped up again,

"I’m down here on the ground,

We’re very, very happy,

That you’ve come to look around!"

Our Hero glanced down quickly,

And saw that it was true,

A pea was smiling up at him,

And she was talking too!

"I told you," she laughed loudly,

"My Christian name is Penny,

Now come and meet these friends of mine,

Because I have so many.

Next to me is Peter Parsnip,

I do not want to boast,

But we make the ideal partnership,

Beside the Sunday roast!"

Geronimo thought "Golly,

That’s my worst nightmare come true,"

But he just looked up at Peter,

And grinned "How do you do!"

"I’m fine," the Parsnip giggled,

"You look so very sweet,

And all us lovely vegetables,

Are good enough to eat."

"Do come a little closer,

I promise we won’t bite,

In fact my next door neighbour,

Is an absolute delight.

"She’s a lovely cauliflower,

Known as Colly to her friends,

And once you get to meet her,

The fun just never ends."

The little Bear got on his paws,

And then what do you think?

Molly-Colly looked right up at him,

And gave a cheeky wink.

"Top of the morning to you,"

She giggled very loudly,

"My leaves are quite fantastic,

So I display them proudly!"

"Well good for you," smiled Teddy,

"They’re very, very grand,

That’s why your pride is something,

I can really understand

There is a small confession,

That I really have to make,

I didn’t eat my dinner,

Which was a bad mistake."

"I didn’t know that vegetables,

Were as wonderful as you,

But now you’ve made me realise,

That is just what I must do."

Mollie-Colly was delighted,

And grinned from ear to ear,

While all her fellow vegetables,

Gave an almighty cheer.

When all the noise had faded,

Our Chum laughed "I must go,

However I’m most grateful,

For all you’ve done you know!"

After that he headed homeward,

Feeling absolutely great,

And ever since that meeting,

He has always cleared his plate!

THE END.