Joe Cartwright, the youngest son of Ponderosa ranch owner Ben Cartwright, had together with his wife triplets. The children listened to the names Marie, Felicia and Polly. The girls didn’t have a shortage of anything according to their parents. At least that was what Joe and Cora thought. But their daughters had other thoughts about it.
On a morning the 3 year old girls saw their beloved grandpa at work on the yard of their ranch. Near Ben worked the foreman Candy Canaday. Unnoticed they kept an eye on the little ones.
At a certain moment Felicia came to them and she asked, “Grandpa?”
Of course Ben stopped with working at once and kneeled down near his granddaughters. Polly and Marie ran to him.
“What is the matter?”, asked the rancher.
“Why does daddy never read to us?”, Marie wanted to know.
“I don’t know that”, answered Ben.
Candy said then, “Your father has read the story of Chicken Little for a class. I was listening in secretly and got thrown out of school by him.”
The girls now looked begging at the foreman so that Ben said, “Candy, why don’t you read them that story? The book is in the library upstairs.”
“Come gals”, the foreman said smiling.
He went into the ranch house followed by the triplets. Ben went to work again, but not for very long. Two young cowboys came riding upon the yard .
“Look Matt, now grandpa does work”, said the 1st cowboy.
“I see that indeed”, said the 2nd cowboy.
The rancher recognized the voices and stopped again with working. He walked up to them and looked at the boys smiling.
“Hello grandpa. I thought that Candy was at work too”, said Mitch, who was the oldest grandson of Ben.
“He was at work but now reads to the triplets. The girls complained that their father never reads to them. So now Candy may do that”, answered the rancher.
He looked at them for a moment and asked then, “How is it with your wives?”
Mitch (the twin brother of Pam) said, “Polly becomes bigger all the time and doesn’t come far from home anymore. She does sit outside a lot on the porch.”
Matthew (who got addressed by his family with Matt) said, “The same goes for Pam.”
“When are Polly and Pam due?”, asked Ben.
“In about 6 weeks. Only: I can’t read to Jake and Emma because I can hardly read myself”, answered Mitch.
Jake and Emma were the children of Mitch and Polly.
“Mitch, you can’t read to your children but you can teach them how to play baseball though”, said Ben.
“Mitch, shall we just go home before grandpa goes to read to us?”, Matthew asked laughing.
His brother-in-law nodded. They turned their horses and rode away. Ben went back to work again.
Candy had found the book about Chicken Little quickly and was reading to the triplets and their cousins Inger and Petra. Inger and Petra were the daughters of Hoss and Betsy, the 2nd son and daughter-in-law of Ben. The girls were all crazy about the foreman too who always had time for them. Even though he had to work.
A bit later on Ben again got interrupted with his duties because his youngest son Joe came home.
“Hello pa. Working hard?”, he asked cheerful.
“If I didn’t get interrupted by my son and grandchildren yes. You are the 3rd one who makes sure that my work doesn’t get finished”, answered Ben.
Joe looked at his father questionable.
The rancher explained, “First your daughters come to do their complaining about the fact that you never read them to you. Now does Candy do that. When I was working again my 2 grandsons came to bother me. And now you.”
“There you have children and grandchildren for”, said Joe.
“And later my great-grandchildren come to keep me off my work too”, said Ben.
“And you do mind that, don’t you? By the way, which story does Candy read to the gals?”, asked Joe.
“I really wouldn’t know, Joseph. They are inside”, answered Ben.
Joe went inside quickly and just heard Candy saying, “That was the end of the story. Just ask if daddy reads this story tonight.”
“We do that”, said Polly.
She grabbed the book and brought it to their room. Of course Joe didn’t understand a thing of it. But the little ones didn’t say anything and Candy of course neither.
“Girls, it was cozy but unfortunately I must go back to work again”, said the foreman.
He got up and went outside. The rest of the afternoon Joe tried to find out which story Candy had read to his daughters and nieces but he got none the wiser.
Just in the evening when the triplets laid in bed and Joe wanted to read another book Felicia said, “Daddy, you must read this one.”
First Joe looked at the book and started then to read. The girls remained awake until the book had been finished.
After the good night kiss said Polly (the youngest of the bunch), “Candy told it funnier.”
“Candy read this to you, Inger and Petra?”, asked her father.
There was a 3 times nod Joe knew enough.
“Goodnight all 3”, said Joe.
The girlsd fell asleep at once. Joe went downstairs but Candy wasn’t there.
Cora asked teasing, “How did they find the unknown story?”
“They remained awake until I had finished the book and then Polly said that Candy had told it funnier”, answered her husband.
“Joseph, how was it to read to?”, Ben asked smiling.
“Great. I don’t understand why I haven’t done it more often. But now I will do it each evening. But never again something about Chicken Little”, answered Joe.
Joe kept his word and read to his daughters each evening from then on.