The Day the Pond Turned Orange

Read-aloud note

Read slowly, soften your voice near the end, and leave a small pause before the final goodnight line.

Story

In the sparkly blue pond, three little fish were best friends. There was Red Fish, who blew the biggest bubbles. There was Blue Fish, who could swim in a perfect circle. And there was Yellow Fish, who hummed a little hum whenever she was happy. Every morning they swam to the round flat rock in the middle of the pond and said hello. But one morning, something very funny had happened. The pond wasn't blue anymore. It was orange. Bright, warm, glowing orange, all the way to the edges.

Red Fish looked left. Blue Fish looked right. Yellow Fish stopped humming and said, "Where did our blue go?" They swam to the top and looked up. They swam to the bottom and looked down. The water was definitely, completely, wonderfully orange. "Maybe the pond drank too much carrot juice," said Red Fish. "Maybe it put on a cozy sweater," said Blue Fish. Yellow Fish didn't say anything yet. She was noticing something. Every time she swished her tail, a little ripple of yellow spread out around her. She swished again. More yellow. She looked at Red Fish. "Swish your tail," she said. Red Fish swished, and little ripples of red went floating out through the water.

Then Yellow Fish smiled her biggest smile. "Blue Fish," she said. "You too." Blue Fish swished, and out came ripples of soft, soft blue. And do you know what happened? The red and the yellow mixed together and made orange. That was where the orange came from. All three of them, swishing in their sleep, had mixed their colors up in the night. "We made it together," said Blue Fish. "While we were dreaming," said Red Fish. Yellow Fish started humming again, because now she knew, and knowing felt very good.

They decided to leave a little of the orange, right there in the middle near the round flat rock, as a reminder. Most of the pond slowly swirled back to its sparkly blue. But that one warm orange patch stayed, glowing gently like a nightlight under the water. And every morning after that, when the three friends swam to the rock and said hello, they gave their tails one little swish. Just to say, we're still here, we're still together, we made this beautiful thing.

Scenes

Three Friends at the Round Flat Rock

In the sparkly blue pond, three little fish were best friends. There was Red Fish, who blew the biggest bubbles. There was Blue Fish, who could swim in a perfect circle. And there was Yellow Fish, who hummed a little hum whenever she was happy. Every morning they swam to the round flat rock in the middle of the pond and said hello.

The Pond Turned Orange

But one morning, something very funny had happened. The pond wasn't blue anymore. It was orange. Bright, warm, glowing orange, all the way to the edges. Red Fish looked left. Blue Fish looked right. Yellow Fish stopped humming and said, "Where did our blue go?"

Funny Guesses

"Maybe the pond drank too much carrot juice," said Red Fish. "Maybe it put on a cozy sweater," said Blue Fish. Yellow Fish didn't say anything yet. She was noticing something. Every time she swished her tail, a little ripple of yellow spread out around her.

We Made It Together

Red Fish swished, and little ripples of red went floating out. Blue Fish swished, and out came ripples of soft, soft blue. The red and the yellow mixed together and made orange. "We made it together," said Blue Fish. "While we were dreaming," said Red Fish. Yellow Fish started humming again, because now she knew, and knowing felt very good.

One Little Swish

They decided to leave a little of the orange right there in the middle near the round flat rock. Most of the pond slowly swirled back to its sparkly blue. But that one warm orange patch stayed, glowing gently like a nightlight under the water. And every morning after that, the three friends gave their tails one little swish. Just to say, we're still here, we're still together, we made this beautiful thing.