Paws & Tales

David Carlson: Hi, David Carlson, creator of Paws & Tales here. I've been a children's pastor now for 14 years, so I know it can be a confusing world to raise your kids in. Paws & Tales was designed from the beginning to deliver one big message in hundreds of creative ways.

That message: God is just crazy in love with His children. Kids need to hear that, and so does every adult. All of us here at Paws & Tales want the whole world to hear this message, but we need help to do that.

Would you join us in this mission to invite kids and their parents to receive the love that God is offering to His children? Just log on to pawsandtales.org, click on the donate button, and support us with a donation of any size. It would be so great to have you join the club.

Insight for Living: Welcome to the world of Paws & Tales. Wildwood Mountain can be a pretty dangerous place. If you stay on the trails and stick with me, there are adventures to be had there, too. Insight for Living is proud to present Paws & Tales.

Narrator: Howdy, and welcome to Wildwood. Today is a very special day in the life of Mrs. Collins, for this is the day that her sister-in-law, Eunis McGruff, is coming to visit.

Mrs. McGruff’s husband was, as the stories told, an international entertainer before he passed away just a few years ago. Now the two sisters-in-law are both widows, and for the first time in years, the two are getting together.

Mrs. Collins: It has been years, but she was such a delicate young thing, sweet, a dear little bear really.

Mrs. McGruff: You are dragging the trunk! Lift it, you lazy mule!

Guest (Male): Yes, ma'am. Sorry, ma’am.

Mrs. McGruff: Daisy, dear Daisy, my long-lost sister-in-law.

Mrs. Collins: Eunis, how are you? How was your voyage?

Mrs. McGruff: A trial until the end! I tell you, in the past, service was for the passenger. Now it seems it's too much trouble. The whole of the ship was run by fools. It's a miracle that we went in the right direction.

Mrs. Collins: I'm sorry to hear that, Eunis. Let's get you home and have some tea to calm your nerves.

Mrs. McGruff: I fear only chamomile will do. Do you have chamomile tea?

Mrs. Collins: I believe we do. This way to the car, Eunis.

Narrator: The rest of the morning went along pretty much the same way. The complaining went on through tea and on into lunch. The only thing that saved Mrs. Collins at all was that Eunis McGruff laid down for a nap about three o'clock, just about the time that the boys came over to play and pretend.

Ned: I'll never forget the day I discovered this priceless old lantern buried deep inside a dark cave in the middle of the jungle.

CJ: Ha! And I'll never forget the day I snatched this rare gem from the very mouth of a ferocious alligator.

Narrator: Mrs. Collins was about the kindest, most generous woman in Wildwood. Before her husband died some twelve or thirteen years ago, he had traveled the globe exploring the wonders of God's creation.

Each time he visited a new place, he filled huge crates with items from that place and shipped them back to his mansion in Wildwood. For every one of these shipments that came to the mansion, he had another room built on to hold the stuff.

Now, he fully intended to slow down one day and open up all these crates and set up all the rooms into a sort of museum. Unfortunately, he passed away before he could. So now the mansion has more rooms than you can count, and most all of them are full of unopened crates full of stuff from who knows where.

CJ: I was completely surrounded by angry gorillas. If it wasn't for this rare old spoon, I would have never dug my way out of there.

Narrator: Mrs. Collins places no real value on all of this stuff, so she lets the kids of the town come over to explore and pretend.

Ned: I carried this vase on my head 200 miles from the waterhole to save a small village from a terrible drought.

CJ: What kind of village? That's a pretty nice urn.

Ned: As a matter of fact, it was a Grecian village, and I had to bring the water from China.

CJ: Bet you were pooped after that.

Ned: I was halfway there when I realized I had forgotten the cups.

CJ: I hate that.

Ned: I know. I had to carry the cups and balance this urn on my head like this.

CJ: Ned, be careful. That's really expensive. Hey, it's over here.

Ned: No kidding. You better put it down. You're going to drop it. Hey, I balanced this on my head for about 10,000 miles. I think I can balance it for a minute here.

CJ: It looks fragile. You better just put it down.

Ned: My bad.

CJ: You smashed it!

Ned: I didn't mean to.

CJ: I told you to put it down.

Ned: Maybe I can put it back together. Here, help me.

CJ: Watch the sharp edges.

Ned: There's too many pieces. It's useless. Look, no one knows we broke it. If we clean it up quick, we'll be okay.

CJ: We did not break it. You did.

Narrator: Well, someone did know that Ned broke the urn. The two rats that lived there in the mansion were watching the whole thing. Most of the time, disobedience is found out.

Rick: Professor Madhavi, it's happened again. Ned smashed an urn.

Professor Madhavi: Yes, Rick, I heard.

Narrator: Now, Madhavi had traveled widely with Mr. Collins and he is now a world-renowned authority on ancient history. He corresponds with professors from all over the globe.

The problem is that no one knows he's a rat. Mostly, rats are only interested in their next meal. They don't plan, they don't want to learn, and they are usually pretty willing to wreck anything they need to get what they want.

Madhavi is afraid that if he were found out to be a rat, no one would deal with him again. If Mrs. Collins found out he was in her mansion, she would set traps or fumigate and fill the place with poisonous gas.

Rick: So, how bad is it?

Professor Madhavi: Not too. We have moved most of the valuable things in this room some time ago. I believe that it was nothing more than a rather attractive flowerpot.

Rick: So, no real damage done here?

Professor Madhavi: If they do the right thing and tell Mrs. Collins, I doubt that there will be any negative consequences.

Mrs. Collins: CJ! Ned!

Ned: She heard! What do we do?

CJ: Let's just tell her and get it over with.

Ned: No, I have a better plan. Hide the mess!

Mrs. Collins: Would you boys like some lemonade?

Ned: Okay, Mrs. Collins, we'll be right down.

CJ: We've got to tell her what happened.

Ned: Okay. Let me know how it turns out.

CJ: Wait, Ned, wait up. CJ? Is everything okay? I think Ned's worried about something, Mrs. Collins.

Mrs. Collins: Oh. Anything I can help with?

CJ: Oh, no. No. I'll go see if he's okay. See you later, Mrs. Collins.

Mrs. Collins: Oh, well, I made snacks. Okay. Bye, CJ. Hmm.

Mrs. McGruff: Daisy! Daisy!

Mrs. Collins: Eunis, what is it?

Mrs. McGruff: My urn! My Grecian urn is broken! Who did this?

Mrs. Collins: I can't imagine. The boys were here, but...

Mrs. McGruff: Boys! Young boys?

Mrs. Collins: Well, nine years old.

Mrs. McGruff: Nine-year-old boys in here? What are you thinking? Well, of course there are broken urns. That's what young boys do. They break things.

Mrs. Collins: Not these boys.

Mrs. McGruff: Well, if not them, then who? This door! It's unlocked.

Mrs. Collins: Of course it is. I don't lock these doors.

Mrs. McGruff: You don't lock them ever? At night?

Mrs. Collins: Eunis, this is a small town. I know everyone here. No one would steal anything.

Mrs. McGruff: Well, I can see that I came just in time. This place is being overrun with vandals! Nine-year-olds!

Mrs. Collins: Eunis, what is the matter?

Mrs. McGruff: I saw a rat! I saw a filthy, nasty rat!

Ned: Hello, hello. Is this thing on? This is Ned the Beaver, star of Paws & Tales. Now, before anyone comes back in, I just got to tell you that I just posted the official map of Wildwood on our website, pawsandtales.org/wildwoodmap.

Now you can have your folks visit the site and download your own copy today. But remember, I can only keep this up for a while. Oh, what if we break the internet? That would be so much fun.

Narrator: Well, CJ went looking for Ned. Figuring that Ned was probably scared and ashamed, he looked high and low in all the best hiding places he could think of, but with no sign of Ned anywhere. Old CJ was just walking back home when he found him. Ned was right there in his own backyard, playing out in the open like nothing had happened at all.

CJ: Ned, what are you doing?

Ned: Is this a trick question? I'm swinging. You've seen me do it before. You've done it yourself, remember?

CJ: We have to talk.

Ned: Well, as long as I don't have to stop swinging.

CJ: Ned, if you saw someone do something they shouldn't, would you ever tell on them?

Ned: Sure, I'd sing like a bird.

CJ: Really?

Ned: Oh, call like a raven.

CJ: What if that person was your friend?

Ned: Doesn't matter. I'd crow like a rooster.

CJ: Your best friend.

Ned: What are you getting at?

CJ: What if it was my best friend?

Ned: I thought I was your best friend.

CJ: You are.

Ned: Why didn't you say so? That's completely different.

CJ: I thought you just said you would.

Ned: I would. You, on the other hand, should be very quiet. Ned! Shh. But shh! You're not trying. Watch. Lips closed.

CJ: Ned, you broke that vase and then ran out without telling Mrs. Collins.

Ned: Is that what this is all about? Don't give it another thought, CJ.

CJ: Well, then what are you going to do about it?

Ned: My plan is to do nothing and hope it goes away.

CJ: I'm afraid it's not that easy.

Ned: Sure it is. It's simple. Nothing, nothing, nothing. It's almost magical. Do it with me. Nothing, nothing...

CJ: Ned!

Ned: Ah, I knew I was going to have to stop swinging.

CJ: Mrs. Collins knows we were the only ones there. She saw you run off and me run after you. I told her you were worried about something. We're going to have to talk to her.

Ned: Hey, she saw you run off last, so the explaining is really your problem. You're the one who needs to think up some way to get us out of this.

CJ: Ned, you need to tell the truth to Mrs. Collins.

Ned: No, no way. I can't. Imagine how mad Mrs. Collins would be at me.

CJ: Ned...

Ned: I can't believe you're even asking me to confess. This is ridiculous. I thought we were friends.

CJ: We are. You're trying to make me feel guilty and I haven't even done anything wrong.

Ned: Nothing, nothing, nothing.

CJ: I'm serious. We've got to do something about this, and if you won't, I will.

Ned: Don't do anything I wouldn't do. In fact, don't do anything. It's over. No one knows and no one was hurt. Just let it go.

Narrator: Well, Ned couldn't have been more wrong. Eunis McGruff was on the warpath against the rats. She put traps out everywhere and would have had the place gassed, but Mrs. Collins would have none of it.

Mrs. Collins: Eunis, you only think you saw a rat.

Mrs. McGruff: You only think I saw a rat. I know for a fact that I saw one. If there's one, then there's a thousand.

Rick: Professor, this is taking a very serious turn.

Professor Madhavi: Well, Professor, it sounds like she's not going to fumigate. We just need to keep an eye out for those traps. I do not believe that Eunis McGruff will be happy until she sees a dead rat in one of her traps, and perhaps not even then. It would seem that Ned's breaking that silly flowerpot has had a very serious effect.

Rick: But on us, Professor. Not him.

Professor Madhavi: You are quite correct.

Rick: What do we do?

Professor Madhavi: For as long as Eunis McGruff is here, we must not under any circumstances be seen again. If she catches one more glimpse of either of us, it will be a death sentence, to be sure.

Narrator: Well, Eunis and Mrs. Collins were being affected by Ned's sin. Rick and Madhavi were certainly being affected. Even CJ was being affected. The only one who seemed to not be bothered by Ned's sinning was, well, Ned.

The next day, Papa Chuck was working on an old rocking chair for Mrs. Climmer when CJ walked by.

Papa Chuck: Hey, CJ, what are you up to today?

CJ: Nothing much. Can you fix it?

Papa Chuck: Oh, I think so. Looks like a pretty good chair. Just old and loose at the joints. Pretty much describes me.

CJ: I got a situation.

Papa Chuck: Oh, a situation. They can be quite a bother.

CJ: Yeah, well, this one sure is.

Papa Chuck: All right, I'm ready.

CJ: Well, I saw someone break something and then run away without telling anyone so he wouldn't get in trouble.

Papa Chuck: Sounds pretty serious.

CJ: I've never been in a situation like this before. He refuses to confess up to it or, you know, she does.

Papa Chuck: CJ, I think you understand how important it is to tell the truth. After all, you know what the Bible says.

CJ: I have chosen the way of truth. A truthful witness gives honest testimony, but a false witness tells lies. Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment.

Papa Chuck: That's good. I was thinking, "A truthful witness saves lives, but a false witness is deceitful."

CJ: You didn't let me finish.

Papa Chuck: Wow, I was supposed to go to a meeting tonight about how Sunday schools are failing our kids. Now I'm thinking my evening's going to be free.

CJ: The thing is, he kind of got away with it. Since he already got away with it, I'm kind of thinking that maybe I should just forget about it all.

Papa Chuck: I know this isn't easy. Oh, would you look at that? This old chair. Under the seat here, dry rot.

CJ: Can you fix it?

Papa Chuck: Well, I'd have to make a whole new seat. I'm not sure it's worth it.

CJ: Looks okay.

Papa Chuck: Yes, it does. Just by looking at it, you'd never know it could break right out from under you. The whole thing. Look how it just falls apart.

CJ: Good thing you found it.

Papa Chuck: Yes, it is. In this case, the most important thing about this chair is what you couldn't tell just by looking at it. Seems like a good chair, but it'll end up hurting someone.

CJ: You're setting me up, aren't you?

Papa Chuck: You're getting good, CJ. A little lie, a little deception can have disastrous consequences. Best take care of it now before it spreads and stuff starts falling apart, like friendships.

CJ: But that's my point. What if I tell the truth and he gets mad and I lose a friend?

Papa Chuck: Not taking care of this deception will cause problems. God sees everything. Nothing is done in secret. He knows that chair is rotten.

He knows your friend broke this thing, whatever it was. If it isn't taken care of now, it probably will become a bigger problem later.

CJ: Doesn't seem to bother him much.

Papa Chuck: Sin always affects us. Affects our relationship with God. That's the worst part of sin. It moves us away from God. Son, don't let that happen to you or your friend.

CJ: Thanks, Papa Chuck.

Papa Chuck: No problem. Say hi to Ned for me.

Narrator: CJ knew what he had to do next. His head hung low as he walked over to Mrs. Collins' house, stepped up on the front porch, and knocked.

Mrs. Collins: Oh, hello, CJ. I was expecting you.

CJ: Miss Collins, there's something I need to... You were?

Mrs. Collins: Mm-hmm. You came to tell me about the vase, right?

CJ: You know?

Mrs. Collins: Ned told me all about it. He said he felt bad about not saying anything earlier.

CJ: He did? Wow, what a relief. That's great.

Mrs. Collins: And I forgive you, CJ.

CJ: What?

Mrs. Collins: I forgive you. You know, it wasn't easy for Ned to come and tell me you broke the vase. He didn't want to betray your friendship, but he felt it would be better for both of you if he just told the truth.

CJ: He did, did he?

Mrs. Collins: Yep. That's quite a friend you've got there, CJ. You're one lucky guy.

CJ: Yes, ma'am, he's quite a friend all right.

Mrs. McGruff: You! You boy! You broke my urn, you little criminal!

CJ: Me? I'm not...

Mrs. McGruff: It was priceless, and you will pay! Eunis McGruff! Burglars, rats, and boys! We are overrun! But it will end! You will pay for your crime! I'll see to that!

Ned: Hi, this is Ned the Beaver, star of Paws & Tales. You might be surprised to know that each and every episode requires a bunch of actors, a writer, a songwriter, singers, genius web people. Okay, it takes a lot.

If you'd like to help us keep creating fun things that teach God's love to His children, just visit pawsandtales.org and go to the donate button. A gift of any size will help us to introduce Paws & Tales to families around the world.

Narrator: Well, CJ was now feeling the full effects of Ned's actions, and he was filled with a new resolve to face this head-on.

CJ: Okay, Mr. Stop Swinging.

Ned: Fine.

CJ: How could you? How could you lie to Mrs. Collins?

Ned: You're not seeing the big picture here.

CJ: All right, what is the big picture?

Ned: It's your fault I had to lie to Mrs. Collins.

CJ: And how did I do that?

Ned: If you had let it alone, no one would have known, and no one would have gotten in trouble. You wouldn't listen to me, so I had to get there first. She likes you better, and she's forgiven you already. No one's been hurt.

CJ: No one's been hurt? Look around, Ned. Mrs. McGruff wants to see me go to jail for the rest of my life. She's so afraid of burglars she won't let anyone inside. We can't play there anymore because of you, Ned.

Mrs. McGruff: There you are, you hooligans! I'm going to the police station right now. You will pay, the both of you!

CJ: And oh yeah, Mrs. McGruff wants to see us in jail. I can't believe she'd go this far.

Ned: I can't get arrested for breaking a vase, can I?

CJ: No, but if we don't settle this with Mrs. Collins and Mrs. McGruff, it's just going to go on and on.

Ned: All right. Mrs. Collins or Mrs. McGruff first?

CJ: Definitely Mrs. Collins.

Ned: So, I just wanted you to know, Mrs. Collins, that it wasn't CJ who broke your beautiful vase. It was me.

Mrs. Collins: So you lied?

Ned: Yes, ma'am.

Mrs. Collins: And CJ, you couldn't have just told me Ned did it?

CJ: Well, I wanted Ned to.

Mrs. Collins: I see. I must say that I am disappointed in you both. Eunis, Mrs. McGruff, has been on a rampage. At first she thought there were burglars, then she talked me into firing Katie, my housekeeper.

CJ: What? Oh no. I'm so sorry. Can we replace the vase? How much was it worth? Probably priceless.

Mrs. Collins: Well, no, it was not priceless. It was a flower vase.

Mrs. McGruff: It was a Grecian urn! From France!

Ned: If it's Grecian, how can it come from France?

Mrs. McGruff: It was a gift from the Baron von Hauer, you boy!

CJ: Can we pay you back?

Ned: No, it was my fault. Can I pay you back?

Mrs. McGruff: If you could swim the wide sea, scale the Tibetan Alps...

Ned: I thought it was from France.

Mrs. McGruff: If you could paddle up the mighty Rhine, then, then perhaps you could repay me.

Ned: I could use some help here.

Mrs. Collins: Ned, it's all right.

Mrs. McGruff: It most certainly is not!

Mrs. Collins: Eunis, I have seen the same exact vase at the general store. It cost a dollar seventy-five. Can you boys gather up that amount?

CJ: Yes, ma'am.

Ned: Sure.

Mrs. McGruff: Well, I will not stand here and be contradicted.

CJ: Will she be okay?

Mrs. Collins: She'll be fine. Ned, why didn't you just come to me?

Ned: I don't know. I didn't think it mattered.

Mrs. Collins: It always matters, Ned. It's not about whether you think you can get away with it or not.

CJ: Nothing's done in secret. Papa Chuck said so.

Mrs. Collins: That old grizzly has a lot to offer you both. You'd be wise to listen to him. Sit down, you two. Cookie?

CJ: Thanks.

Ned: Thank you.

Mrs. Collins: Some folks only worry about what they see, but we know that God sees everything, all the time.

You'll know that you are growing and becoming more like Christ when you start thinking more about what He sees than what others see. I've heard Papa Chuck say that we can make God smile.

CJ: He says that all the time.

Mrs. Collins: We can also make God grieve, make him sad.

Ned: That would be me.

Mrs. Collins: Yes, in this instance, it is you. Now, let's make it a goal to please Him. Things would work out a lot better if we did more of that, aim to please God first, whatever else we do.

CJ: Yes, ma'am, we will.

Mrs. McGruff: Daisy! I... Ow! My toe! Get it off, Daisy! Get it off my toe!

Mrs. Collins: Stand still!

Mrs. McGruff: It may be broken! Call for an ambulance!

Mrs. Collins: Sit here while I get you some tea.

Mrs. McGruff: Chamomile, Daisy! It must be chamomile!

Mrs. Collins: Of course, Eunis. Now, I need some help collecting about 200 mousetraps. Any takers?

CJ: Yeah, I'm in.

Mrs. Collins: Get a broomstick and snap each one shut before you...

Mrs. McGruff: Daisy! Where is my tea?

Mrs. Collins: Eunis, you fired her!

Mrs. McGruff: I need some tea!

Mrs. Collins: I've got a pot of tea to brew. We'll get started.

Mrs. McGruff: Has Katie called for an ambulance? There may be internal damage! Daisy!

Ned: Boy, have I learned a lesson. When you mess up, the best thing you can do is tell the truth.

I used to think a tiny fib would cover my tracks, but it just made things worse every time. So now this beaver’s a believer in sticking to the facts. So I’m telling you, I’ve made up my mind. No more little lies, I will say what's true. Even if it's tough, that's what I will do.

Yes, I'm standing tall, like an old oak tree. If you want to know the truth, you can count on me. Yeah, yeah.

CJ: Honesty's much easier than hide and sneak, watching every move you make. Yeah, it's better to own up than to be up a creek. So I hope that you'll believe me, believe me when I say, no more little lies, they just don't hold true.

Not with chewing gum, not with super glue. So I'm standing tall like an old oak tree. If you want to know the truth, you can count on me. Yeah, yeah. If you want to know the truth... If you want to know the truth...

Ned: I want to live my life the way I should, becoming all the Lord wants me to be. So though it's hard to say I've not been good, when I do I know that God is smiling down on me. Yeah, yeah.

So I'll stand up tall, tell you honestly, if you want to know the truth, that is what you're going to hear. If you want to know the truth, I'm going to say it loud and clear. If you want to know the truth, you can count on me. Yeah, yeah.

Narrator: "The Grecian Urn" was written by Nathan Carlson and Jeff Parker, and directed by David Carlson. Our script supervisor was Phil Lawler. The song, "If You Want to Know the Truth," was written by Sandy Howell, Michael Bengiat, and Nick Brown. Music was by Tim Hosman, and our sound designer was Eric Bezel.