Once upon a time, in a land far away, there was a special place called Monster Village. It was not a scary place. It was a happy place! The grass was soft like a green carpet.
The sky was bright blue. The houses were made of big, colorful mushrooms. Red ones, yellow ones, and orange ones! In this village lived a very special monster named Hugo.
Hugo was big and fuzzy. He was as purple as a grape. He had three big eyes that twinkled like stars. He had two little horns on top of his head that were round and soft.
But the best thing about Hugo was his heart. His heart was huge! Hugo loved one thing more than anything else in the world. Can you guess what it was?
Hugs! Hugo loved to give hugs. Big hugs, small hugs, fuzzy hugs, and warm hugs. Every morning, Hugo woke up with a big smile.
He stretched his arms wide. Up, up, up! He opened his window and smelled the sweet flowers. sniff, sniff.
It was a beautiful day. 'Today is a good day for hugs,'said Hugo. He stepped outside his mushroom house. stomp, stomp, stomp.
His feet were big, but he walked carefully. He saw his friend, a little blue monster named Benny. Benny was sitting on a rock. He looked sad.
His head was down. His shoulders were slumped. Hugo walked over to Benny. 'Good morning, Benny!
'said Hugo. 'Why are you sad? 'Benny sighed. 'I dropped my ice cream,'said Benny.
'It went splat on the ground. 'Hugo smiled a warm smile. 'Do you know what fixes a dropped ice cream? 'asked Hugo.
Benny shook his head. 'No. ''A big monster hug! 'said Hugo.
Hugo opened his arms wide. He leaned in and wrapped his fuzzy purple arms around Benny. Squish, squeeze, snuggle! He held Benny tight.
It felt like being wrapped in a warm blanket. Benny started to smile. Then Benny giggled.
Then Benny laughed! Ha ha ha! 'I feel much better,'said Benny. 'Thank you, Hugo!
''You are welcome,'said Hugo. 'Remember, a hug makes everything better. 'Hugo walked on. He saw a tall yellow monster named Lily.
She was trying to reach a shiny apple on a tree. She stretched and reached. Stretch, reach. Stretch, reach.
But she was too short. She looked frustrated. Hugo walked up behind her. 'Need some help?
'asked Hugo. 'Yes please,'said Lily. Hugo did not pick the apple. First, he gave Lily a hug.
Squish, squeeze, snuggle! 'Now you have happy energy,'said Hugo. Lily tried again. She jumped high.
Boing! She grabbed the apple. 'Yay! 'shouted Lily.
'Your hug gave me power! 'Hugo felt very happy. He loved making his friends smile. He walked to the park.
He saw a tiny pink monster named Mia. Mia was crying. Her tears went drip, drop, drip. She was sitting all alone on a bench.
Hugo sat down next to her. The bench creaked. 'Hello, Mia,'said Hugo softly. 'Why are you crying?
''I lost my favorite teddy bear,'said Mia. 'I am scared and lonely. 'Hugo knew exactly what to do. He did not say a word.
He just opened his big purple arms. He pulled Mia close. Squish, squeeze, snuggle! He hugged her for a long time.
He rocked her gently. Back and forth. Back and forth. Mia stopped crying.
She took a deep breath. She felt safe. She felt loved. The scary feeling went away.
'I still lost my bear,'said Mia,'but I know I will find him. ''We will help you,'said Hugo. Just then, Benny and Lily ran over.
'We will help too! 'they said. Everyone hugged together. It was a big monster pile-up.
Squish, squeeze, snuggle! There were purple monsters, blue monsters, yellow monsters, and pink monsters. They were all laughing. Hee hee hee!
It was the best feeling in the world. Can you give a big hug? Try it! Stretch your arms wide.
Wrap them around yourself or someone you love. Squish, squeeze, snuggle! Does that feel nice? Hugo found Mia's bear behind a tree.
Mia was so happy. She gave Hugo a kiss on his fuzzy cheek. Mwah! The sun began to go down.
The sky turned orange and pink. The stars started to come out. Twinkle, twinkle. It was time for sleep.
Hugo walked home to his mushroom house. He was tired but his heart was full. He climbed into his big bed. His blanket was soft.
He closed his three eyes. He dreamed about hugs. He dreamed about his friends. And he knew that tomorrow, he would give even more hugs.
Goodnight, Hugo. Goodnight, Monster Village. Squish, squeeze, snuggle!