In an old house, nestled behind a playground, lived a very, very tiny ghost named Esme. She wasn't a spooky, "BOO!" kind of ghost. Oh no. Esme was a shimmering, transparent pale blue, like a reflection on a puddle after a rain shower. She was about the size of a five-year-old, with misty hair that danced around her head even when there was no breeze.

Esme had two very favorite things in the whole wide world. The first was coloring. She loved to make photos of flowers and her with friends playing. Her favorite colors were sunshine yellow and grass green. 

The second was the wind. The wind was her best friend; it helped her zoom, twirl, and feel like she was flying on a giant, invisible slide.

But her most favorite thing of all, her toy voodoo doll, Buttons. Buttons wasn't scary. He was small and made of faded purple felt, with a slightly lopsided, stitched smile. His eyes were two big buttons, which is how he got his name. Buttons never spoke, but Esme told him everything.

"Oh, Buttons," Esme would sigh, clutching him close. "Look at them play!" Every day, from her window sill  in the old house, she watched the real children in the playground. They laughed loud, they ran fast, and they kicked colorful balls. More than anything, Esme wished she could join them.

One sunny afternoon, a group of children was drawing with bright chalk on the sidewalk. Esme floated down, her heart shimmering with hope. She picked up her invisible sunshine yellow crayon and carefully drew a big, happy flower right next to a little girl's blue circle. "Look, Buttons! I'm helping!" she whispered.

But then, the little girl giggled and accidentally wiped her hand right through where Esme's invisible flower bloomed. Her hand passed right through Esme too, who felt a cold, lonely shiver go through her misty form. The little girl never even noticed. Esme's invisible yellow flower, and her hopes, vanished like smoke.

Esme tried to push a rolling red ball, but her hand went right through it, and the ball kept rolling. It was so hard being invisible when all you wanted was to be seen!

Feeling sad and a little bit swirly, Esme floated up, up, up! She went to her favorite spot: a windy corner of the old house attic. She snuggled Buttons close. "They don't even know I'm here, Buttons," she whispered, her voice a tiny gust of sadness.