Many years ago there was a little boy. Of all the toys he had, a teddy bear was his favorite toy. It was a nice bear, with light brown fur made of plush and dark brown glass eyes. Every night, the bear would sit on the bed beside the pillow, and the boy would talk over the day with him until he fell asleep. When he was sad, the bear would comfort him. The boy loved him very much and cuddled him often. With time, the fur became worn and thin.

When the boy finally had to go to school, he missed his bear very much at first. But after a time, he found some friends and got used to play with them. Teddy now found himself at the foot of the bed more often than not.

As it happens, playing with other boys was sometimes rough and disappointing. And school also was not much fun. So whenever something went wrong or marks were not so good, teddy was back in grace, listening to the sorrows of the little boy and providing consolation.

The boy grew older, went to high school, discovering a lot of new things. He now rarely looked at teddy anymore. But when he fell in love for the first time and was turned down, he secretly pulled teddy out of a drawer at night and told him all his sorrow.

High school went by, college came and went and the boy, now a young man entered university. He had to travel far away and, just for fun, he took teddy along. Sometimes, now, teddy would sit on a shelf, sometimes he was hidden in a cupboard or drawer, particularily, when friends came to visit. But from now on, teddy came along, when the young man moved. In all that changes, teddy lost an eye for good measure.

Having graduated from university, the young man found a job. Later, when he got married, Teddy was relagated to an old suitcase, stored in the attic. There he stayed for years, until the children of the man discovered the suitcase and began to squabble over their finds.Alarmed by the noise, the parents came running to separate the two. To prevent further quarrels, the mother wanted to throw the old teddy bear away, but the husband stopped her.The man took up the teddy and all his childhood memories came back. So teddy had a new lease of live, living a shamefaced existence in the toolroom of the man.

The years went by, the children left home, living lifes of their own. Sometimes, the son came home and he and the man would work in the toolroom. And always, he would have a look, if teddy still was there.

The man grew old and retired from work. Then his wife got ill and, after some time, passed away. When the man came back from the hospital, he went straight to the toolroom, took teddy from the shelf and held him in his arms.

Alone now, and not in the best of health, either, the man decided, to move to a nursing home. His son helped him to smuggle teddy into his luggage. In the evenings, when others were watching TV or playing bridge, he would sit in his room and look at teddy, thinking over his life.

One night, the man woke up and saw teddy beside his bed. He looked all new, with curly fur and both glass eyes shining. Teddy touched his arm and said: "Come, my friend, this is no life for us. I know a better place." And off they went.

When the son came with his wife, after the funeral, to clear out the room, he took up the worn looking old toy. But his wife grabbed it and said: "About time, that rubbish is removed." and threw it in the waste basket.