Children bedtime stories
A new road was built at the edge of the forest, and cars of various sizes sped along it, kicking up clouds of dust.
Nan Nan liked to stand by the road and count the cars—one, two, three… Every day when she got home, her mom would say, “The dusty kid is back.”
One day, after Nan Nan had taken a bath, her mom tucked her into bed and said, “From now on, you need to take a nap at noon.” As she spoke, she drew the curtains and quickly left the room.
Nan Nan lay in bed, unable to fall asleep. Suddenly, she heard a strange sound, as if someone was pushing the window.
“Whoosh!—Eek!—” The window glass kept making noises.
“Who’s there?” Nan Nan asked.
“It’s me, Cinderella.” A shadow appeared on the curtain.
Nan Nan pulled the curtain aside, and a girl she had never seen before was waving at her from outside the window. The girl had a fair face, sparkling black eyes, a sky-blue dress, and a colorful top, making her look incredibly beautiful.
“Who are you?” Nan Nan had never seen such a beautiful girl.
“Whoosh!—Eek!—I’m Cinderella,” the girl said.
“The Cinderella from the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale!” Nan Nan recalled the story her mom had told her.
“Please come in,” Nan Nan said.
Nan Nan opened the window, and in no time, Cinderella had made a circle around the room and finally sat on the windowsill. Everywhere she went, a thin layer of dust settled.
“Whoosh!—Eek!—I’m not a character from a fairy tale. I’m the daughter of the earth—Dust,” Cinderella explained.
“Hehe, what a mischievous girl,” Nan Nan imitated her mom’s tone, “always joking.”
“Whoosh!—Eek!—” Cinderella laughed too. “I really am dust. In people’s minds, I’m a bad kid, a dirty girl who pollutes the air and spreads germs. But in fact, I constantly do things that benefit humanity.” Cinderella lifted her skirt and said, “I scatter my blue sky skirt and spread violet, blue, and green light into the air, making the sky blue. Take a look at my top.”
Nan Nan noticed that Cinderella’s top was arranged in an orderly sequence of red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple, and she asked, “What kind of outfit is this?”
“A sunset dress,” Cinderella replied. “Before and after sunrise and sunset, I block a lot of short-wavelength light from the sun, leaving behind the glow of twilight.”
“I’ve heard of it, I’ve heard of it,” Nan Nan clapped her hands in excitement.
“Have you ever heard the story of the glass slipper?” Cinderella pointed to her shiny, glass-like shoes.
“I know, I know,” Nan Nan said, feeling a bit smug. “The prince found Cinderella based on the glass slipper.” She was referring to the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale.
“That’s not right,” Cinderella said. “My glass slipper is truly made of condensed water. You know, clouds in the sky form from water vapor, but water droplets need dust particles as a core to condense around; otherwise, no matter how much water vapor there is, it can’t form water droplets or clouds.”
“Oh,” Nan Nan seemed to understand.
“Whoosh!—Eek!—” Suddenly, Cinderella seemed to hear something and said, “I have to leave now.”
“Will I be able to see you again?” Nan Nan asked.
“Of course! I’m always around people,” Cinderella said as she left.
Mom opened the door and guess what? The room was spotless, and Nan Nan was sound asleep, breathing evenly.
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
