Mae Mae's Magical Tree

by Jack OBrien 

In the middle of a sunny California backyard stood a beautiful bright pink tree.

But it wasn't just any tree.

It was Mae Mae's special tree.

It's flowers and leaves were bright and shimmery, and were the color of cotton candy and pink flamingos.

Mae Mae always said the tree was a little magical.

"When you're kind", she'd tell the children, "it blooms a little brighter."

One spring morning, the tree began to shimmer and shine with more pink flowers than it's ever had before.

And right there, in the middle of that pink tree wqs a tiny little blue bird.

The little blue bird looked at the children and began to chirp and sing right at them as if it was trying to say, "Good morning beautiful children."

The children named her Bluey, and from that day on, Bluey was always there.

When they played tag, Bluey zipped around the tree from branch to branch, cheering them on.

When they built sandcastles, Bluey sang songs that sounded like laughter from way up in the sky.

And when one of the children got hurt or had a bad day, Bluey would fly over and land on their shoulder and softly chirp to them, like a whisper that said, "You're ok. I'm right here. I love you."

The children began to notice something else too. Mae Mae was right!

Whenever they did something kind like sharing a cookie, helping a friend, or giving a hug, the tree would sparkle even more.

"Look!" they'd say. "The tree's so proud of us!"

Sometimes they'd sit under the tree and tell stories about Mae Mae, like how she used to work up in the sky on an airplane and would go to really neat faraway places. They talked about how she taught them art and music, and they laughed at how she thought clouds looked like big fluffy marshmallows for giants.