It was a cloudy afternoon, with gray clouds that looked like soft pillows in the sky. Violet, Alex, Ella, and Lori were playing in Violet's garden. They had built a tent with blankets, using chairs as support. Inside the tent they had put all their favorite stuffed animals.

"This is our secret house!" said Violet with her determined little voice, fixing a blanket that was slipping.

"I want to be the guardian!" exclaimed Alex, jumping out of the tent and getting into position, with his arms crossed like a little soldier.

Ella was sitting inside, quiet, stroking a teddy bear. Lori was running around the tent making wolf sounds. "Awooo! Awooo!"

Martha, Violet's mom, was watching them from the kitchen window, always attentive to what her little girl was doing. "Be careful not to knock down the chairs!" she said with a sweet voice.

It was at that moment that they heard a distant sound.

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

The four children all stopped together. They knew that sound!

"The little train!" shouted Lori, running toward the garden gate.

From the driveway came Toby the Magic Train. He was small, colored red and blue, with a smiling face painted on the front. From his chimney came little clouds of smoke that smelled like candy.

"Hello children, what a beautiful day, a new adventure will come your way! Through mountains and meadows I'll take you along, and show you special things all day long!" said Toby the Magic Train with his cheerful voice.

"Where are we going today?" asked Violet, who was always the first to ask questions.

"To a green place where water flows free, where mist on the meadows is all you can see!" replied Toby the Magic Train.

The children didn't quite understand, but they were too excited to think about it. They all climbed onto the little train: first Violet, then Alex who jumped on with energy, then Ella who sat down calmly, and finally Lori who almost tripped in his hurry.

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

The little train departed, and Violet's garden disappeared. Around them appeared beautiful colors: green, blue, yellow. They were crossing a rainbow! Then, slowly, they arrived in a new place.

It was a valley. A valley is like a big meadow that sits between mountains, as if the mountains were the walls of a very big room. This valley was all green, with tall, soft grass. There were streams, which are little rivers where water runs making the sound "gurgle gurgle gurgle."

But there was something strange. A light mist covered everything. Mist is like a cloud that stays on the ground, and it makes everything a bit hidden and mysterious.

"I can't see well," said Ella, squinting her eyes.

"It looks like a magical place!" said Alex, looking around with bright eyes.

"BZZZZ! BZZZZ!"

A strange sound reached their ears. The children looked at each other.

"What was that?" asked Lori.

From nowhere appeared a bee. But it wasn't a normal bee. It was as big as an apple, with wings that shone with gold, and around its neck it wore a little necklace made of drops of golden honey. It smelled so much like honey, that sweet smell you notice when mom puts honey on bread.

"Good morning, young visitors," said the bee with a calm and gentle voice, like that of a little grandmother. "I am Beatrice, the wise bee of this valley."

Violet took a step forward. She wasn't afraid. "Hello Beatrice! We are Violet, Alex, Ella, and Lori."

Beatrice flew in a circle around them, observing them with her big, sweet eyes. "I see that you are brave children. And that is good, because today the valley has a big problem."

"A problem?" asked Alex, always ready for adventure.

"Yes," said Beatrice. "My friend Celeste, a beautiful butterfly with wings as blue as the sky, can no longer find her favorite garden. The mist has confused her and now she is lost. She is very sad."

"Poor thing!" said Ella with her sweet little voice.

"Where is she now?" asked Violet, with her blue eyes shining with determination.

Beatrice pointed with one of her little legs. "She's over there, near the big rock. But be careful: the mist can be tricky. You will need to be perceptive."

The children looked at each other confused.

"Percep... what?" asked Lori, scratching his head.

Beatrice smiled. "Perceptive means being good at understanding things, at noticing small details that others don't see. Like when you look for a hidden toy and search in all the possible places."

"Ah, like when I look for trading cards under the sofa!" said Alex.

"Exactly," replied Beatrice.

The children walked through the mist, following Beatrice who flew slowly in front of them. The mist became thicker. Now they could see even less than before.

"I'm a little scared," whispered Ella, taking Violet's hand.

"Don't worry," said Violet with a confident voice. "We're together."

It was very true. When you're together, fear becomes smaller.

Finally they arrived at the big rock. And there, sitting on a blade of grass, was Celeste the butterfly. Her wings were closed and she was trembling a little. Her wings were truly blue, but they seemed dimmed by sadness.

"Celeste!" called Beatrice. "I brought helpers!"

The butterfly raised her little head. "Oh, Beatrice! I'm so confused. I can't find my garden anymore. All the flowers look the same in the mist!"

"We'll help you!" said Violet, taking a step forward.

But right at that moment, the mist became even denser. The children could barely see Beatrice flying above them anymore.

"I can't see anything!" shouted Lori, a bit scared.

"Stay calm," said Beatrice from above. "Nature will give you signals. You just have to learn to recognize them."

"Signals? What signals?" asked Alex.

But Beatrice didn't answer right away. The children were alone in the mist, with the sad butterfly beside them.

"And now what do we do?" asked Ella.

Violet thought hard. She was a tenacious child, and she never gave up. "Wait! Celeste, what is your favorite garden like? What's special about it?"

The butterfly opened her wings a little. "Oh, it's beautiful! There are red flowers that smell like strawberry, and you can always hear the sound of water singing."

"Water singing!" exclaimed Alex. "I can hear sounds! I have big ears!"

Alex closed his eyes and listened carefully. In the mist, he managed to hear a distant sound. "Gurgle gurgle gurgle" — the stream!

"That way!" said Alex, pointing with his finger. "I hear water!"

The children started walking in the direction Alex indicated. But after a while, they came to a fork. Two paths split apart.

"And now?" asked Lori. "Which path do we take?"

"I smell something!" said Ella suddenly. "It smells like strawberry!"

It was true! A sweet smell was coming from the left path.

"The left path!" said Violet. "Celeste said the flowers smell like strawberry!"

But the path was dark and narrow. The children were a little scared.

"I'll go first!" said Lori, because he wanted to be brave. He ran ahead quickly.

But after a few steps, the path ended in front of a big bush full of thorns.

"Oh no!" said Lori. "We can't get through!"

Everything seemed lost. The mist was thick, the path blocked, and Celeste was sadder and sadder.

But then Violet noticed something. On the bush there were red berries, and birds were all flying in the same direction, passing over the bush.

"Look!" said Violet. "The birds know where to go! Let's follow them!"

The children went around the bush, following the direction of the birds. And finally, as if by magic, the mist began to clear.

Before them appeared the most beautiful garden they had ever seen. Red, yellow, orange, and purple flowers. A stream sang its song. The sun peeked out from between the clouds.

"MY GARDEN!" shouted Celeste, opening her wings that now shone a beautiful blue. She flew happily among the flowers, dancing in the air.

Beatrice came flying and landed on Violet's shoulder. "You did it! You used your talents!"

"Our talents?" asked Violet.

"Of course," said Beatrice with her wise voice. "Alex used his ears to hear the water. Ella used her little nose to smell the scent. Lori used his courage to go first. And you, Violet, used your attentive eyes to see the birds."

The children looked at each other and smiled.

"Each of us knows how to do something special!" said Alex.

Celeste flew around them. "Thank you, friends! Without you I would still be lost. You are all wonderful, each in your own way!"

At that moment they heard a familiar sound.

"CHUFF CHUFF!"

Toby the Magic Train arrived on the meadow, with his painted smile.

"You found the enchanted garden so bright, and each talent you used just right! Now home I will take you today, and I'll remember you always, come what may!"

The children said goodbye to Beatrice and Celeste, then climbed onto the little train.

"We'll come back to visit you!" shouted Violet.

"We'll be waiting for you!" replied Beatrice.

The journey home was quick. In an instant, the children found themselves in Violet's garden. The blanket tent was still there, with all the stuffed animals inside.

Martha ran outside. "There you are! Where had you gone?"

The children looked at each other and smiled. It was their secret.

That evening, while Violet was getting ready for bed, she thought about what she had learned. Everyone is good at something different. Alex hears sounds, Ella smells scents, Lori is brave, and she knows how to look carefully.

And when everyone uses their special talent together, they can do wonderful things.

**The moral of this story is:** Everyone has their own talent. Everyone knows how to do something special. It doesn't matter if you're good at running, drawing, singing, or listening. Your talent is important, and together with others, you can do great things!

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