The Light Switch and the Picture Frame
James wanted a story one tea time; when I asked him what about, these were the first things he saw looking round the kitchen.
Once upon a time, in a lounge, there was a light switch and a picture frame. The light switch was not for the main room lights, but for a little light above the picture frame.
Now it so happened that the light switch and the picture frame were not good friends. They always argued and bickered about which was the most important.
“I'm the most important!” said the light switch, “Without me, no one would even look at you.”
“I'm clearly the most important,” said the picture frame, “because if I wasn't here, they wouldn't even have bothered getting you!”
So it went on for years. When people entered the room and turned the switch on, the picture frame would call over to it and say, “See? I'm most important – they only turned you on so they could get a better look at me!”
When people left the room and turned the switch off, it would call across to the picture frame, “There you are, you see, without me, you're nothing!”
Then, one day, the light switch broke. An electrician came and took it away. The picture frame was suddenly very lonely and became sad.
“I didn't realise how much I liked the old switch, for all its bickering and moaning.”
Meanwhile, the switch was stuck on the electrician's workbench, with just a few broken toasters and bits of wire to keep it company.
“I didn't realise how much I liked the old picture frame, for all its moaning and bickering.” it thought sadly to itself.
Before too long, the electrician fixed the switch and took it back into the lounge. It worked fine again.
Do you think the light switch and picture frame would be friends, now they had realised how much they missed each other?
“See?” said the light switch, “I told you I was the most important, that's why they went to all that trouble to fix me!”
“Rubbish!” said the picture frame, “they only bothered fixing you so they could look at me!”
So it continued for many years more, but secretly, both the light switch and the picture frame were very pleased to be back together again.