Children have stars as friends.
These stars watch over them.
If you want to see your star,
you do not need to go far into the forest.
You can follow it from
the window of your bedroom.
Once upon a time there was a little girl called Nathalie. She was often alone at night, waiting for her mom to return home from work. While she was waiting, she would stand by the window and speak to a star, always the same one.
One night, she decided to join her star, to get closer to her. She put on her little red coat and went out into the starry night. She started to walk toward the star, but it moved faster than she did. It was like a game and it made her laugh a lot.
Then she began to run towards the star, stretching out her arms toward it as if to kiss it or melt into it. Her heart was joyful and leapt in the same way that her little legs were jumping over the bushes. She ran and ran behind her star. At each hop, she leapt up to try to touch her beloved star. But when her feet touched the ground again, she could see it moving away.
There was no question of giving up; she had to join the star. She started running faster, as if her little feet had sprouted wings. She was so enraptured by the star that she was literally flying.
Breathless by this endless race, she stopped and crouched for a while, holding her sides. It was very dark now, so she hardly could see the tips of her shoes.
While catching her breath, she started hearing strange noises. They made her jump and when she looked around her, she realised that she was surrounded by tall dark trees. Her body stiffened with fear, as she was lost. Fear knotted her stomach. It was so dark, so silent. She began to feel cold. Very cold. She pressed her little red coat against her body, but the cold was creeping into her bones. She started shivering now.
“I’m so small! I don’t know what to do! Please, help me little star!”
Suddenly she heard creaking branches and footsteps. There! A shadow! Her mind was racing: what if it is a wolf? She began to cry, thinking of her cosy home so far away. Nathalie got up and ran. She ran wildly, further into the darkness of the forest. Crossing a clearing, she saw her star again and it seemed so close to her. Maybe if she could reach for it, her star would swoop her away, but instead she felt a sudden pain in her ankle and collapsed on the ground.
She looked behind and saw a massive silhouette appear. “That’s larger than a wolf,” thought Nathalie. “It looks like a dog!”
She could now clearly see the outline of a large dog, very much like the mountain dogs with nice smiles on their faces. The dog approached her and licked her hands. Its eyes were soft and so full of expression that they almost seemed to speak. It was strange, she felt as if they could understand each other. The dog had a coat as blue as the night, almost black with silver highlights.
With his kind eyes, he seemed to say, “I know you’re tired, little girl. Climb on my back, I’ll carry you and you can rest. “
Nathalie felt reassured. She climbed onto his back and clasped his large blue ears.
Still a little worried, she whispered, “Will you take me back to my home?"
The dog seemed to understand and started running.
“But how does he know the way to my home?” the little girl wondered. They flew through the forest again, and through some fields, Nathalie bouncing on the dog’s back. They went on for a long time and she began to feel safe and almost sleepy. She lost track of time.
Suddenly the blue dog slowed to a halt, as they were standing outside Nathalie’s home. A light was on inside and her mother was waiting. Nathalie hugged the dog and ran towards the door. Before pushing the door open, she had a look up at her star. The star winked back at her.
From that day on, whenever Nathalie went to bed, she never forgot to go look at the sky through the window. Children have stars as friends. These stars watch over them. If you want to see your star, you do not need to go far into the forest. You can follow it from the window of your bedroom. And when you grow up, you will learn how your star is by your side at any time, and how it guides your life.
It is simple; turn your eyes into your heart! At the beginning it will look like the deep dark forest of the story. Whatever the difficulties and while it is dark there, remember the star, remember its light. It is always in your heart.
Illustrations by GABRIELLE RAJKUMAR
