Once upon a time, there lived a bear family in the forest: Papa Bear, Mama Bear, and their little son, Mishka the Bear Cub. One day, Papa and Mama Bear went into the forest to gather berries and pine cones for the winter, and before they left, they told Mishka: "We're going to be gone all day, so mind yourself, wait for us at home, and don't go anywhere beyond the yard!" And off they went into the forest.
Mishka sat at home for a while, but the sunshine outside was calling to him so much that he decided to go play in the yard. He rolled around in the grass and basked in the sun. He spotted a butterfly on a flower, crept up to catch it, but it fluttered away and landed on another flower. He jumped after it again, but it flew even further away.
Mishka chased the butterfly and chased it, but didn't notice how far from home he'd wandered until he suddenly found himself in an unfamiliar part of the forest.
The little bear got scared and ran back and forth across the clearing, looking around but unable to see his home anywhere. He called and called for his mother, but no one heard him. Then Mishka sat down under a tree and cried bitterly.
At that moment, a sharp-nosed mosquito was flying through the forest. He saw the little bear cub sitting under the tree. The mosquito was delighted, thinking he would bite Mishka on the nose and have a good meal. But just as he flew up to Mishka and was about to bite his nose, he saw that the bear was crying and wiping away tears. The mosquito felt sorry for Mishka and decided to ask why he was so upset.
Why are you crying, little bear?
How can I not cry, mosquito? I've gotten lost! I ran away from home chasing a butterfly and got lost in the forest. You fly high up—can you go higher and look around? Maybe you'll see my home!
The mosquito flew up high and kept flying until he got tired. But the tall spruces and pines in the forest made it hard to climb higher. Just then, a quick little sparrow flew by. He saw the mosquito and thought about eating the insect.
He was just opening his beak to swallow the mosquito when the mosquito cried out: "Wait! Don't eat me, sparrow! Help me find Mishka's home instead—I'm too tired to fly any higher!"
The sparrow looked down and saw Mishka sitting and crying. The sparrow decided to help. He flew up higher than the spruces and pines, looked around, and spotted Mishka's home. Then he came back down to the little bear and chirped: "Follow me, Mishka! I'll show you where your home is!"
The little bear ran after the sparrow, ran and ran, and burst out onto a clearing near his home. His parents were already back from the forest and were looking for him. When he saw them, he cried out with joy: "Mama, Papa, I'm here!" His parents hugged him tightly: "You scared us, Mishka the Lost Bear. Don't go into the forest alone again—listen to your mama and papa, or something bad might happen!"
Mishka promised them that from now on he would always listen to his parents. And the mosquito and sparrow became his friends from that day on.
