It was a sunny morning, the kind that made everything feel just a little more cheerful. CUTIS, the clever farmer who had taken in a mischievous baby monkey named Lala, was bustling around the house, trying to finish his morning chores. Breakfast was already simmering on the stove, and the scent of rice porridge drifted through the air. Meanwhile, Lala, full of energy and curiosity, was bouncing from room to room, eager to play.
CUTIS had recently renovated part of the house, including adding a new wooden staircase that led to a cozy loft. It had become one of Lala’s favorite places to climb, swing, and nap. But this particular morning, something unusual happened—and it all started with a big, comfy pillow.
Earlier, CUTIS had been airing out some large pillows in the sun and decided to stack a few on the landing of the stairs. They were meant to be brought up to the loft later, but he got distracted when the rice porridge started boiling over. He rushed to the kitchen, leaving the stairs partially blocked. He didn’t think much of it.
That’s when Lala came scurrying around the corner, banana in hand, looking for her favorite toy: a pink stuffed elephant she had named “Boo.” Boo was often hiding in different parts of the house because Lala loved to toss it around. She was certain Boo was upstairs.
She scampered to the base of the stairs, ready to leap up two steps at a time as she usually did—but stopped abruptly.
“What’s this?!” Lala squeaked in her monkey chatter, eyes wide.
The huge pillow tower now sat like a fortress on the fourth step, completely blocking the path. Lala tilted her head left and right, assessing the situation like a little engineer. The sun poured in from the side window, casting long shadows over the soft obstacle.
“Oops… am I blocking the staircase?” CUTIS muttered to himself when he came back, noticing Lala frozen in confusion at the base of the steps.
From Lala’s point of view, this was a major problem. The staircase was her highway to fun, and now it was shut down. She turned to CUTIS with a confused chirp, gesturing with her tiny hand as if saying, “Excuse me, what is this nonsense?”
CUTIS chuckled. “Sorry, Lala. I forgot.”
Instead of removing the pillows right away, CUTIS decided to watch and see what Lala would do. She was clever, after all, and often surprised him with her problem-solving skills.
Lala paced in front of the stairs, mumbling to herself in monkey speak. Then she poked the bottom pillow with her finger. It jiggled but didn’t fall. She jumped up and landed softly on the second step, bringing her nose level with the fluffy barricade.
She tried to climb over the pillows, but they were too tall. She tried to move one, but it flopped right back into place. She even tried sneaking around the side, but the stair rail got in her way. After a few more dramatic attempts, Lala threw herself onto the bottom step and groaned, her arms stretched out.
CUTIS, stifling a laugh, finally said, “Alright, alright. Let me help.”
But just as he stepped forward, Lala jumped back up with a new idea. She sprinted to the other side of the room, pulled over a little plastic stool she used as a step to reach the counter, and dragged it with effort toward the stairs. CUTIS was amazed—she was going to build a detour!
She propped the stool next to the staircase and climbed onto it. From there, she stretched her body as far as she could, trying to leap over the pillow tower directly onto the sixth step. CUTIS gasped.
“Lala, wait—don’t fall!”
But Lala was already mid-air. She landed clumsily on the pillow tower, wobbled like a jelly bean, then tumbled backward. Thankfully, the stool and the soft pillows broke her fall.
CUTIS rushed over and scooped her up. “You silly monkey! Are you okay?”
Lala blinked a few times, then broke into giggles. She wasn’t hurt—only more determined.
“Okay, I give up,” CUTIS said. “Let’s clear this thing together.”
With Lala perched on his shoulder, CUTIS grabbed the pillows one by one and carried them to the loft. When the staircase was finally clear, Lala gave a victorious screech and clapped her hands. She zipped up the steps in record time, immediately hunting for Boo the elephant, who had—of course—rolled under the bed.
Once she retrieved Boo, Lala settled in her favorite corner, hugging the toy and looking down at CUTIS, who was still downstairs cleaning up the morning mess. She gave a proud little shout as if to say, “See? I win!”
CUTIS smiled, shaking his head. “Yes, yes, you always win.”
Later that afternoon, while sitting outside under the shade of the mango tree, CUTIS told his friend Thuy about the morning’s chaos.
“She’s too smart for her own good,” he laughed. “She almost built her own jungle gym to get past a few pillows!”
Thuy smiled. “And next time, maybe you won’t block the staircase, hmm?”
CUTIS chuckled. “Lesson learned. She runs the house anyway.”
That evening, as the sun dipped low and the crickets began their nightly song, Lala curled up next to CUTIS, Boo tucked safely under one arm. Her tiny body rose and fell with each breath, completely at peace.
CUTIS looked at her sleeping form and whispered, “You know, one day you’re going to outsmart all of us.”
And in her sleep, Lala twitched slightly, as if dreaming of staircases, pillow towers, and great adventures yet to come.
Moral of the Story:
Sometimes the biggest obstacles are made of fluff, and the smallest heroes can teach us patience, creativity, and the value of clearing a path—especially when it leads to something we love.
