Zachary Godfrey

Freddie the Forklift

A bedtime story

Once upon a time...

There was a little forklift named Freddie. He was the smallest forklift in the warehouse, but he had a dream. Freddie wanted to be the first forklift to lift a crate of forks.

Every day, Freddie would work in the warehouse picking up crates and putting them on shelves. He would always read the labels to see what was in the crates that he was lifting, but none of them had forks inside.

One day, a new crate was delivered to the warehouse. It was the biggest and heaviest crate that any of the forklifts had ever seen. The bigger and stronger forklifts tried to put it onto the shelf, but none of them could lift the weight.

Freddie wondered, "What could be in that crate?" He looked at the label and his eyes got really big. "It has forks!" Freddie was so excited!

He wanted to see if he could lift it. He got his arms under the crate and gave it a try. As he tried to lift it, his arms started to bend from the weight and his wheels started to squeel. The other forklifts laughed, "Oh, Freddie! That was a good try, but it's impossible. That crate is too heavy - even for us."

He couldn't lift it yet, but Freddie was determined. He knew that he had to get stronger to make his dream come true. Every day, Freddie would try again to lift the crate of forks. He would get his arms under the crate, start to lift, and he'd whisper to himself, "I think I can." Each time he tried, Freddie got a little bit stronger.

One day, as Freddie tried to lift the crate of forks, the crate started to move! Freddie started chanting, "I think I can. I think I can. I think I can." The other forklifts stopped their work and gathered around to watch Freddie. He was doing it! He lifted the crate off the ground. He couldn't get it high enough yet to put it on the shelf, but he was so proud of his progress. After that, each time Freddie tried the other forklifts would gather around to cheer for him - and each time he lifted it a little bit higher.

Then, on a random Tuesday morning, Freddie came into the warehouse and told the other forklifts, "Today's the day." He went straight to the crate of forks and got his arms under it. His voice was quiet at first, "I think I can." The crate lifted off the ground, and his voice got a little louder, "I think I can." The crate rose up to eye level, and he started to shout, "I think I can!" He got the crate up over his head, and he changed his chant, "I know I can!"

Freddie held the crate of forks over his head and carried it to the shelf as he continued to shout, "I know I can! I know I can! I know I can!" He placed the crate on the shelf and let out a big, deep breath. The shelf creaked under the weight. The other forklifts cheered and congratulated him. Freddie had done it, his dream had come true!

The end.