Once, there was this man named Ned,
Who really liked to paint walls, especially red.
But his ladder was crooked—it wobbled a bunch,
Which made painting hard, and he had to hunch.
The ladder seemed to have its own funny brain,
Swaying left and right, kinda like a train.
But Ned wouldn’t trade it, not even for gold,
“I can make it work!” is what he always told.
One day, Ned got a really big gig,
He had to paint the tallest wall—oh, it was big!
He climbed up high, paintbrush in his hand,
Hoping his ladder wouldn’t make him land.
As he painted a stripe, so wide and so tall,
The ladder tipped left, he almost did fall!
He grabbed the wall, his brush went flying,
And made a bear shape—he wasn’t even trying!
People below started to clap and shout,
“Hey, look at that bear!” they were really loud!
They thought Ned meant to make it like that,
But he was just trying not to fall flat!
The ladder leaned right, and so did Ned,
He tried to stay steady, but paint spilled instead.
It made a funny face next to the bear,
And people said, “Wow, you’ve got real flair!”
Ned laughed, and the crowd did too,
Even though his ladder should be in a zoo.
That wobbly thing made the best art yet,
And in that town, no one would forget.
Now folks come from places near and far,
To see Ned’s art that’s really bizarre.
And he still uses that old crooked friend,
‘Cause making mistakes is the best in the end!