In this story you will learn about some extraordinary travellers: germs. They travel anywhere and everywhere. But one of their favourite destinations is the tummy of a child who doesn’t wash their hands. How to get rid of such keen travellers, you may ask? Read on.
There they were again, that gang of germs — sitting on the toilet seat, all plump and hairy, with their teeny sharp teeth and claws, holding briefcases in their tiny hands and wearing hats. Some of the hats were askew, and they looked quite jaunty!
Alas, tired of hanging around in the same place, they couldn’t wait until the opportunity arose to go on a trip. In the next instant, the light came on in the bathroom. A few seconds later, little Jake carefully sat down on the toilet seat.
“Guys, let’s go!” shouted the biggest, fattest germ. The others merrily obeyed. They all rushed forward and leapt onto the palms of Jake’s hands. They grabbed on tightly and did not let go.
“Yaaaay, at last we’re going on a trip!” they cheered in unison. But the biggest germ swiftly interrupted.
“Don’t be too quick to rejoice, chums. What if the boy washes his hands afterwards? Our trip would be over at once.”
When he was finished, the boy got up from the toilet seat and flushed. As he neared the wash basin, the germs began feeling anxious, wondering what Jake would decide to do next. Some of them bit into his palm out of sheer nervousness. Is he going to wash his hands or not?
Aha! The germs could now celebrate, as Jake neglected to wash his hands. He passed the basin, not even noticing the nicely scented soap, and went straight to the kitchen. The germs on Jake’s palms were thrilled, singing a roaring cheer.
“Hoorayyyyy — he didn’t wash his hands! We’re going on a trip! We’re going on a trip!”
Jake walked through the kitchen, grabbing a boiled sweet from the bowl on the countertop.
“OK guys — ready, steady, go!” called out the biggest germ, and they all put on their swimming goggles, preparing to jump. Jake popped the sweet into his mouth and the whole furry gang jumped onto his tongue at high speed. And the party began. One germ bit Jake’s inner cheek. Another burrowed in-between his teeth and scratched the soft skin with its sharp claws. The rest of the germs just danced about.
Once the boy swallowed, they all slid in the saliva, rolling down the long chute that led from his throat directly to his belly. It was so much fun — the germs slid from side to side along the way, like kids on a toboggan. And then, all bunched together, they landed in Jake’s tummy with a mighty splash!
It was like landing in a swimming pool. They jumped around, diving and whooping: “What a great trip this is!”
But, as we know, germs are malicious by nature. They had already started to irritate Jake’s tummy. They poked at it with their long claws, jumped on top of the food he had eaten a short time ago, and also fought amongst one another.
“Mum, I suddenly don’t feel very well,” Jake called out to his mother, frowning and holding his belly. “Why do I feel so awful?”
“Maybe you ate something bad, honey,” his mother suggested.
“But since coming back from the loo, I’ve only had one sweet,” Jake said. He was looking pale now.
“And did you wash your hands properly?” his mother asked. Feeling guilty, Jake pursed his lips and shook his head.
“So that will be why. You see, now you have germs in your stomach that are making you feel yucky. I’ll make you some herbal tea and you will feel better.” While the kettle was boiling, she put Jake to bed. After some minutes, she brought him a lovely warm cup of tea.
“Drink it all up. And remember, after using the toilet, always wash your hands properly with soap and warm water. Germs don’t like it.”
“Does that mean they wouldn’t be able to get into my mouth afterwards?” asked Jake, double-checking.
“Yes, they’d be rinsed down the plug hole and wouldn’t be able to harm you,” his mother explained, stroking the boy’s hair.
So Jake happily drank the tea, feeling reassured. And indeed, after a little while he felt better. In the meantime, the germs in his mouth and stomach were furious about the warm herbal mixture that had washed over them. They punched the air with their fists and shouted that the boy was spoiling their trip. Now they had no choice but to pack their bags and leave Jake’s stomach.
“Hey, boss,” said one of the furry germs, “what would we do if every kid washed their hands? Who would we be able to bite and irritate?”
“Well, we simply mustn’t allow that to happen. It would mean the end of us!”
Find this and more stories in Readmio
Readmio is an app full of children’s stories brought to life with sounds that react to your voice. Many stories are free, and we add new ones every week.
