Speaker 1: That morning, the sky was gray like a pigeon's belly,
and a soft mist slid between the houses. Lily, Ziggy, Sky,
and Dash were in the garden, all bundled up in
their windbreakers, playing at catching the mist with their hands.
Look it disappears when I touch it, laughed Dash, running
back and forth. But Lily had stopped. Her blue eyes
were fixed on the far end of the garden, where
the mist seemed to move in a strange way. There's
something over there, she said, I can feel it. It's
just a cat, said Ziggy, shrugging, or the wind, whispered Sky,
who was the calmest of them all. But Lily was
not the kind to let things go. When something made
her curious, she had to find out. She took one step,
then another, and all at once the mist opened like
a curtain, chew, chew. There in front of them, sparkling
with tiny drops, was Toby the Magic Train. He puffed happily,
his smoke, drawing little heart shaped clouds. Climb aboard. My friends,
don't be afraid. Off we go with a whistle parade.
I'll take you far to a beach of gold where
a secret sleeps, Or so I'm told. The four children
looked at each other with wide open eyes. A secret
under a wave. Lily was the first to hop on.
I want to find it, she said, Come on, Ziggy,
Sky and Dash climbed up, and Toby set off with
a whistle. The carriages raced through the clouds, then down
toward the sea, faster and faster, until they stopped with
a soft, little bounce on a beach of pale sand.
It was a tiny, tiny island full of palm trees,
but there was something very strange. The palm trees were
all white on the branches. There was snow soft as
whipped cream, even though it was warm, and the sun
was shining snow on the palm trees, said Ziggy. But
that's impossible. It's beautiful, murmured Sky, reaching out a hand
to touch a flake. But Lily had already noticed something else.
At the far end of the beach, there was a
little harbor with lots of colorful boats, and the fishermen
on the shore all looked sad. Let's go and see,
said Lily, and she set off boldly. An old fisherman
with a crooked hat shook his head. Our boats can't
set sail, he explained, the ropes have all tied themselves
in knots. Look it was true. The ropes of the
boats were tangled into huge knots, hard as stones. No
one could untie them. And without boats we can't fix USh,
sighed the fisherman, And tomorrow the island's children will be hungry.
Dash tried to pull a rope with all his might.
He dug in his feet, pulled and pulled, and all
of a sudden he slipped backward and landed sitting in
the sand with his legs in the air. Ouch, he said,
Then he burst out laughing. These knots are more stubborn
than me. Ziggy tried too, but nothing. The knots wouldn't move.
Sky sat down near by, a little discouraged. Maybe we
won't be able to do it, she said quietly. But
Lily clenched her fists. There must be a reason, she said,
ropes don't tie themselves. I want to understand why. You see,
that was just how Lily was. Where the others saw
a problem that was too big, she saw question to solve.
She looked at the white palm trees. She looked at
the sea, She looked at the knots and then she
saw a thin trail in the sand, as if something
had slithered away this way. She said, follow me. But Lily,
where are you going, asked Ziggy to find the secret,
she answered, already walking. The others hesitated. The trail led
into a dark little grove of snowy palm trees, and
it was a bit scary, but Lily didn't stop, and
so one after another they followed her. The trail led
them to a pond hidden among the palm trees. The
water was green and still, and all around there was
a strange silence. Then from the middle of the pond,
something popped up, first two big yellow eyes, then a
wide green head, and finally on that head a little
golden crown, all crooked. It was a toad, but not
just any toad. It was the toad King, the ruler
of the pond, who disturbs my silent kingdom, said the
toad in a deep voice. But then he gave an
enormous yawn. Excuse me to day, I'm very sleepy. The
toad king was a sleepy head. He kept closing his
eyes and opening them again, and every now and then
a little snow slipped out. Lily took a step forward bravely.
Good morning, your majesty. The ropes of the boats have
tied themselves in knots. Do you happen to know why?
The toad king nodded slowly. Alas, it's my fault, he said.
When I sleep, I toss and turn and pull the
ropes with my tongue without noticing. But there is one
thing that could fix it all. What Lily asked right away?
The white palm trees, said the toad that's not snow.
They are flowers that closed up from the cold of
my sleeping pond. If the flowers bloomed again, the warmth
would melt the knots. But you need something special to
wake them. What they all asked together? The toad king
raised one paw and said, a strange word. You need
a melody. The children looked at each other. A mellow
What asked Dash, scratching his head. The toad smiled kindly.
A melody means a beautiful song, he explained, a sweet
tune made of notes in a row. The flowers only
bloom if they hear a melody made up from the heart,
A song that makes flowers bloom. Lily repeated and her
blue eyes sparkled. Then we'll make one up, but it
wasn't easy. Ziggy tried a song full of jumps, fast
and funny, but the flowers didn't move. Dash made up
a song with lots of raspberries and everyone laughed, but
the palm trees stayed white. Sky tried with a sweet tune,
but on her own, her voice was too shy. The
sun was going down, the fisherman had said that tomorrow
the children would be hungry. Time was slipping away, and
the knots were still there. We can't do it, said Dash, tired.
Maybe it's too hard, whispered Sky. For a moment, there
was silence, and it really seemed like there was nothing
left to do. But Lily never gave up. She sat down,
closed her eyes and thought. She thought about everything they
had discovered that day, the mist, the little train, the sea,
the sleepy toad, and then she understood something. I've got it,
she cried, jumping up. Each of us tried on our own,
But a beautiful melody is made together. Ziggy you keep
the beat with jumps, Dash you make the funny sounds,
Sky you sing the sweet part, and I'll hold it
all together. One two, three go, and so all together
they began. Ziggy stamped his feet in time, Dash made
the cheerful sounds, Sky sang with her tender voice, and
Lily led them all like a little orchestra conductor. A
melody was born, warm and funny and sweet, all at once,
and it filled the whole island. And then it happened,
one after another. The white flowers on the palm trees
began to open, ping, yellow, blue, purple. They bloomed everywhere,
and the petals broke loose and flew into the air.
From the sky came a rain of colorful, sweet smelling petals,
dancing all around the children like springtime confetti. The warmth
of the flowers spread all the way to the harbor,
and there, as if by magic, the knots in the
ropes all came undone at once, with a sound like
lots of little giggles. The boats, the boats are free,
cried the fisherman happily. The toad king awake and touched,
clapped his paws. Thank you, little friends, he said, you
untied the knots and filled the island with colors. And
it all began because one of you wanted to know why.
Everyone looked at Lily, who smiled and blushed a little.
Just then they heard the familiar whistle shoot, chew Toby.
The magic train had come back for them, covered in
sweet smelling petals. Well done, my crew, so brave and bright,
you woke the palms with your song. To night who
asks the questions and won't give in, finds hidden treasures
and always will win curiosities, a gift so fine and true.
Now home to rest, off we go, me and you.
The children climbed on, laughing their pockets full of petals.
As the little train rose above the sea, they waved
to the toad king and the fishermen, who could now
set off to fish. During the journey, Sky rested her
head on Lily's shoulder. You were right, she said, sweetly.
You wanted to understand why, and in the end we
saved everyone. Lily smiled. She had learned something important and
that day she understood it well. Being curious is not
a fault. Curiosity is a gift. Someone who is curious
is never satisfied, asks questions, goes to find out and
so every time they learn something new, and sometimes they
even help others. When they got home, the gray morning
mist was gone, and the sun was shining in the garden.
But in the pockets of the four friends there were
still some colorful petals, the little treasure of a big adventure.