Max's Blue Christmas

In a magical Aussie forest, where the gum trees shimmered with silver light and the kookaburras laughed like jingly bells, lived a little boy named Max. Max loved to draw more than anything. With his box of colourful crayons, he would draw the wiggly paths, the bouncy kangaroos, and the bright, cheeky parrots that filled his world.

Christmas was just around the corner, and the air smelled sweet like blooming bottlebrush and Mum's baking. Max decided to draw the most special picture ever for Santa. He drew a tall, pointy Christmas tree and a cosy, crackling fire to keep Santa warm. He thought it was the best picture he’d ever made.

He proudly showed his drawing to his family. "It's beautiful, sweetie," said Mum, giving him a cuddle. But his older cousin looked puzzled. "Why is the Christmas tree blue? And the fire is all green!" Max looked down at his picture. The tree looked the right kind of woody blue, and the fire looked the right kind of leafy green. A sad, wobbly feeling started in his tummy. Was his drawing all wrong?

The next day, Max tried to fix it. He stared at the pine trees outside, but they still looked blue to him. He looked at the crackling barbecue flame, but it still looked green. "It's all muddled!" he whispered, feeling frustrated. He hid his crayons under his bed and decided he wouldn't draw for Santa after all. Christmas didn't feel so sparkly anymore.

On Christmas morning, Max woke up feeling a little glum. He tiptoed into the living room, and his eyes opened wide. It was a wonderland! The Christmas tree was covered in sparkling blue tinsel and shiny blue baubles. And flickering in the fireplace were strands of twinkly green fairy lights, glowing just like in his picture. "We wanted to see Christmas your way, Maxy," said Dad with a huge smile. "It's the most beautiful Christmas we've ever had."

Under the tree was a tiny present from Santa—a pair of special glasses. When Max put them on, he gasped! He saw a brand new colour called red on the baubles. But he took them off and smiled at his family's wonderful blue-and-green world. He realised his way of seeing wasn't wrong, just different. And different was beautiful. He grabbed his crayons and drew a new picture with blue trees and red trees, all standing happily together.