The Little Boy Who Didn’t Like Bathing

It was a summer evening, and Dani was rocking back and forth on his chair at the dinner table. The table was still cluttered with the remains of the recently devoured spaghetti with tomato sauce. Underneath, the family dog, Pamacs, was busy scavenging for the bits of cheese that had been carelessly dropped.

“Dani, if you rock on that chair one more time…” – his dad warned, but he didn’t get to finish because Dani leaned back too far. Luckily, nothing happened to him.

“I was just testing gravity!” – Dani replied with a cheeky grin, making his mom burst into laughter.

“Well, gravity passed with flying colors, son. Now off to the bathroom!” – his mom said as she tried to wipe Dani’s messy face with a napkin.

“But mom! Why do I have to bathe every day?” – he whined, turning his face away from the napkin in protest.

“Because we don’t want the dirt to get so thick on you that you won’t need a coat in winter!” – his dad added.

“You know, Dani,” his mom continued, “if you don’t wash up, the germs on your skin can make you sick. I’m serious—it’s important!”

“That’s just something you made up to scare me!” he grumbled, stomping off to the living room to avoid further convincing. Eventually, since it was getting late and Dani was very tired, his parents gave up the argument, and he was allowed to skip his bath and go straight to bed.

But that night, something extraordinary happened.

In his dream, he found himself in a strange world. It was as if he had entered a magical, mysterious realm where everything suddenly became huge and exciting. The ground was slightly ridged, and thin strands of hair stood upright around him. That’s when he realized he was on his own skin, now transformed into a vast landscape.

“Where am I?” he asked in confusion as tiny creatures began jumping around him. They were strange, slimy little beings, scurrying and buzzing as if he had stumbled into a grand celebration.

“Welcome, Dani! We are the bacteria!” – exclaimed a small, round, purple figure.

“Bacteria?” Dani took a step back. “What are you doing on me?”

“Well, we live here! The dirt, sweat, and grime brought us. We love it here—there’s plenty to eat, and it’s a perfect place to multiply!” – said a long, tentacled bacterium.

“But that’s not fair! This is my skin!” – Dani protested.

“Yes, but if you don’t bathe, we’ll stay and grow stronger! Eventually, you’ll get sick. Coughs, rashes, even infections could happen!” – laughed a nastier bacterium.

Dani started to feel itchy and awkwardly tried to scratch his arm. The bacteria were already celebrating their victory when suddenly a brave, clean, soap-shaped figure appeared, shouting at them in a commanding voice!

“Hey, you sticky little troublemakers! I’m Soap, the greatest enemy of harmful bacteria!”

The bacteria panicked. The soap turned to Dani and said:

“Dani, if you help me, together we can get rid of these pesky bacteria! You see, I’m Soap, but I’m not a superhero on my own. I need a partner who uses their hands and water so we can banish them for good! All you have to do is wash thoroughly every evening, and I’ll handle the dirty work.”

Dani nodded, and the soap added:

“Remember: cleanliness protects you from harmful bacteria and keeps you fresh!”

Dani woke up and stared at the ceiling for a while, thinking about the strange little creatures he had seen in his dream. Could bacteria really live on his skin? And was it really that easy to get rid of them with soap? “That’s why the dog doesn’t like being near the bathtub,” – he thought to himself.

That evening, when Mom called out that it was time to bathe, Dani didn’t respond with his usual “Why every night?” Instead, he jumped up, dashed to the bathroom, grabbed the soap, and got to work. While scrubbing, he muttered with a smile:

“Just you wait, you dirty little troublemakers. The Dani-Soap Super Team is here!”