Once there was a bear who lived in a meadow.
He was very big.
And he was always very hungry.
His name was Bo Bo.
One day, Bo Bo smelled honey.
He followed his nose to a tree.
Then he looked up.
There he saw a huge beehive hanging on a branch!
"My lucky day!" he said.
Carefully, Bo Bo climbed the tree.
And, carefully, he climbed out onto the branch.
But Bo Bo was too heavy.
The branch broke.
Down he fell, with the beehive, to the ground. THUMP!
The bees came out, and started to chase Bo Bo.
Bo Bo ran away.
He ran faster and faster.
"HELP ME!" he screamed. "Somebody help me!"
Freddy the frog heard Bo Bo screaming.
Then he saw the bees.
"Quick! Jump in the pond!" Freddy yelled.
Bo Bo jumped right in, and the bees flew away.
"Thank you!" said Bo Bo when he came up for air.
"You saved my life!"
"You're welcome," said Freddy kindly.
"This pond is my home.
You were lucky to be running this way.
Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure," said Bo Bo.
"Why were those bees chasing you?"
Bo Bo scratched his fuzzy head.
"I don't know. Maybe they were angry."
Freddy was smarter than most frogs.
And he was definitely smarter than Bo Bo.
"I bet you wanted their honey, right?" he asked.
"Oh yeah," Bo Bo remembered sadly.
Freddy thought for a moment.
He felt sorry for the bear.
Then he said, "Are you hungry?
I know where you can catch some tasty fish, and I can catch some tasty flies."
He licked his lips.
"Sure!" said Bo Bo happily.
He followed Freddy to a stream.
"There are lots of fish here," said Freddy.
"Just wait and you'll see."
Bo Bo waited. Soon he saw lots of fish.
Better than honey!
He jumped into the water to grab a fish.
But then he heard Freddy screaming.
Bo Bo dropped the fish.
He saw a snake hissing at Freddy.
"GRRRRRR!" Bo Bo growled at the snake.
The snake slipped away.
"Th-th-thank you," Freddy said, shaking all over.
"You saved my life."
"That's what friends are for.
They help each other," said Bo Bo.
"Does that mean we're friends now?"
"Yes, I think it does." Freddy smiled.
"Let's catch some dinner. I'm hungry."
They had a great time catching as many fish and flies as they wanted.
Freddy showed Bo Bo where all the fish were hiding.
And Bo Bo scared away the snakes.
The two friends sat on the bank of the stream, watching the sun set over the hill.
"I'm glad I met you," said Bo Bo.
"I'm glad I met you," said Freddy.
Then after a while he said, "This is only the beginning."
"The beginning of what?" asked Bo Bo.
"Of our friendship," said Freddy.
And they watched the sun set, feeling full and happy.