Lea's Dream Garden Dilemma

Lea loved art class more than anything. Her little heart bounced with joy every Tuesday, knowing she'd get to mix bright paints and squish soft clay.

This week, their teacher, Miss Lily, gave them a special project: to create a 'Dream Garden' using any materials they liked. Lea imagined a garden with sparkling flowers and a rainbow path.

"You have until tomorrow, darlings," Miss Lily chirped, "to finish your first sketch and gather your special bits and bobs!" Lea felt a happy flutter, ready to start.

After school, Lea carefully laid out her big drawing paper and her favourite crayons. She started sketching a giant, friendly sunflower.

Just then, her best friend, Tom, peeked in. "Lea! My mum's set up a super bouncy castle in the backyard! Want to come jump?"

Lea's eyes widened. A bouncy castle! She looked at her half-drawn sunflower, then back at Tom's excited face. Jumping sounded much more fun than drawing.

"Oh, alright!" Lea giggled, quickly putting her crayons away. "The garden can wait! Bouncy castles don't!" She skipped off with Tom, forgetting all about her Dream Garden project.

They bounced and laughed, soaring high and tumbling soft. Lea pretended to be a superhero flying through the clouds, completely happy and forgetting her homework.

The afternoon zipped by in a blur of joyful shouts and wobbly landings. When Lea finally got home, tired but happy, it was already time for dinner and bed. Her drawing paper lay untouched.

The next morning, Lea woke up with a sleepy stretch. She remembered art class! "Oh no!" she gasped, looking at her bare drawing paper. Her heart thumped a little faster.

In class, Miss Lily asked everyone to show their Dream Garden sketches. Lea's tummy did a nervous flip-flop. All her friends had wonderful, colourful drawings.

Little Ben next to her looked sad. His colours had smudged, and a tear was threatening to fall. "My cloud looks like a muddy puddle," he sniffed.

Even though Lea felt a big knot of worry about her own empty paper, she still leaned over kindly. "Oh, Ben," she whispered, "it's not muddy! It's a special storm cloud, ready to make rainbow rain!"

Ben looked up, a tiny smile peeking through. "Rainbow rain?" Lea nodded, "Yes! And maybe your flowers will be extra sparkly from it!"

Miss Lily walked over to Lea's desk. "Lea, where is your Dream Garden sketch?" she asked gently, her voice soft and understanding.

Lea's cheeks felt hot. "I... I played on a bouncy castle, Miss Lily," she mumbled, looking down at her shoes. "I forgot to draw."

Miss Lily smiled warmly. "I understand, Lea. Playing is wonderful. But sometimes, choices now mean a bit more work later. You can use your art time today to catch up, but you'll have to work very quickly."

Lea felt a little sad but also relieved. She still felt the flutter of worry, but now she knew what she had to do. It was going to be a busy art class for her.

Lea dipped her brush into bright green paint and started sketching her sunflower again, this time with a very focused mind. She worked really, really hard.

Her garden wasn't as grand as she first imagined, but it had a cheerful, friendly sunflower and a path of smooth river stones. It felt special because she had worked so hard to make it.

When Miss Lily saw it, she gave Lea a big, encouraging smile. "Well done, Lea! You showed great determination today. And you still had time to be kind to Ben!"

Lea beamed. She had learned that day that a bouncy castle was fun, but finishing her work felt even better. And being kind, even when she was worried, made everything feel a little bit brighter.