In tonight's bedtime story for kids, we're going to join Thalia and her talking cat, as Bella introduces Thalia to more magical creatures. These are friendly invisible beings that surround her, hiding in plain sight and talking in riddles and rhyme - that's right, giants! Relax, get sleepy, and let’s begin!
Upgrade to Koko Club Today! 🔓👑
Remove the ads, enjoy bonus episodes every Wednesday and go Yearly to get a shout out from Abbe!
Start your 7-day free trial now on Spotify, Castbox & more 🤩👉https://kokoclub.supercast.com
Join via Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/joinkokoclubonapple
Follow For More Fun 🥳🪄
Check out our YouTube: @koalamoonfm
Instagram: @koalakids.fm
Tiktok: @koalakids.fm
About Koala Moon 🐨🌕
The No1 kids bedtime stories & sleep meditations podcast that helps children sleep like a dream. Hosted by the world's biggest fan of bedtime stories, Abbe Opher! All episodes are safe for babies, children and really big kids 0 to 100, so settle down tonight and get sleepy with the world's greatest bedtime stories & sleep meditations for kids.
How are we doing with the show? Let us know ✍️
Upgrade to Koko Club 🔓👑
- Bonus episodes every Wednesday.
- 100% Ad-free listening, for quicker bedtimes.
- Go YEARLY for a shout-out from Abbe.
- Exclusive 12-Hour Compilation episodes.
- The entire back catalogue of 200+ episodes.
- The full series of favourites like Hector & Sunny & Jupiter Twins.
Start your 7-day free trial now 🤩👉 https://kokoclub.supercast.com
Narrator 🎙 Abbe Opher
Author ✍️ Elisha Ainsley
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
00:00:10
Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome back to Koala Moon, her podcast of
00:00:14
Speaker 1: original children's bedtime stories and meditations designed to make bedtime
00:00:20
Speaker 1: a dream. Tonight, we're saying hi and giving us super
00:00:25
Speaker 1: sized welcome to our all American group of new recruits.
00:00:28
Speaker 1: Great to have you join us as afore Dead from
00:00:31
Speaker 1: New Jersey, Isabelle from Texas, and Claire from Arlington, Virginia.
00:00:36
Speaker 1: Some of you have just discovered us, and we're super
00:00:39
Speaker 1: happy you've decided to join up so quickly. Now you'll
00:00:42
Speaker 1: have a boatload of new stories to enjoy, and hopefully
00:00:45
Speaker 1: you'll find a new favorite in there. In tonight's story,
00:00:49
Speaker 1: we're meeting up with Tarlia and her talking cat Bella.
00:00:53
Speaker 1: Ever since Tylia's adventure with her jar of fallen Stars
00:00:57
Speaker 1: remember that one, things have been a bit different around
00:00:59
Speaker 1: her house, mainly on account of her now talking cat.
00:01:04
Speaker 1: There's also an episode about that. Thanks to her wise
00:01:07
Speaker 1: chatty cat, Tylia discovered once that there are fairies in
00:01:11
Speaker 1: her garden, and today she's about to have some more
00:01:14
Speaker 1: magical secrets revealed to her. Bella can't wait to introduce
00:01:19
Speaker 1: Tarlia to the friendly invisible beings that surround her hiding
00:01:23
Speaker 1: in plain sight and talking in riddles and rhyme. Before
00:01:29
Speaker 1: we get started on this adventure, though, make sure you're
00:01:31
Speaker 1: relaxed and ready for bed, with the lights dimmed, your
00:01:35
Speaker 1: pillow and blankets arranged just right, and your body in
00:01:39
Speaker 1: its most comfy spot. Release a few deep breaths and
00:01:44
Speaker 1: snuggle down a little bit more. Perhaps close your eyes
00:01:49
Speaker 1: or simply just let them rest. It's time to find
00:01:53
Speaker 1: out who these mysterious friendly beings are that Tarlia hasn't
00:01:57
Speaker 1: met yet, but Bella the cat knows so much about.
00:02:01
Speaker 1: This is Tarlia's Talking Cat and the Hidden Giants by
00:02:06
Speaker 1: Alicia Ainslie. It was a windy day and Tylia was
00:02:17
Speaker 1: wrapped up warm in her coat, hat and wooly scarf
00:02:20
Speaker 1: to protect herself from the cool breeze. She rocked from
00:02:24
Speaker 1: foot to foot as she played in the garden with Bella,
00:02:26
Speaker 1: her cat, trying to keep her body moving to prevent
00:02:29
Speaker 1: getting cold. After some time, Bella the Cat noticed that
00:02:34
Speaker 1: Tarlia couldn't stand still and asked, what are you doing, Tlia?
00:02:40
Speaker 1: Have you got ants in your pants? Tarlia giggled and replied, no,
00:02:45
Speaker 1: of course not. It's just a little bit windy and
00:02:48
Speaker 1: I'm trying not to get cold. Bella rolled her eyes
00:02:53
Speaker 1: and responded, knowingly, Ah, yes, it is a bit windy today,
00:03:00
Speaker 1: isn't it. The cloud giants must be a little flustered.
00:03:06
Speaker 1: Tarlia stopped what she was doing, looking at Bella with intrigue.
00:03:11
Speaker 1: Cloud giants? What were they? What is a cloud giant, Bella?
00:03:18
Speaker 1: She questioned her talking cat. Bella pured with amusement and answered,
00:03:24
Speaker 1: what does it sound like? They are giants that live
00:03:28
Speaker 1: in the clouds. Tarlia's eyes grew wide with amazement. She
00:03:35
Speaker 1: didn't realize that giants were real. It seemed that she
00:03:39
Speaker 1: was constantly learning about new magical creatures from Bella. First
00:03:45
Speaker 1: it was the fairies in the garden. Now there are
00:03:48
Speaker 1: giants in the clouds. Tarlia's curiosity was pulsing through every
00:03:54
Speaker 1: part of her body, and she begged Bella to tell
00:03:57
Speaker 1: her more about the cloud giants. Bella sat down on
00:04:03
Speaker 1: her fluffy feline bottom and offered, instead of telling you
00:04:10
Speaker 1: about the giants, I could just show you. Tarlia started
00:04:16
Speaker 1: jumping up and down with glee. Oh yes, please, she squealed.
00:04:22
Speaker 1: Bella stood up on her fore paws and led the
00:04:25
Speaker 1: way out of the garden, swooshing her long fairy tail
00:04:29
Speaker 1: while Tarlia hopped along after her. Noticing that Tarlia was
00:04:35
Speaker 1: still a bit fidgety, Bella suggested, maybe we can ask
00:04:41
Speaker 1: the cloud giants to make it a bit less windy too,
00:04:45
Speaker 1: Then I won't have to watch you hop around so much.
00:04:48
Speaker 1: You're making me feel dizzy. Tarlia grinned and followed her
00:04:53
Speaker 1: knowledgeable cat down the street and over to the fields
00:04:57
Speaker 1: near her home. Wondered what the cloud giants would look like.
00:05:03
Speaker 1: Would they look like really tall humans? And how did
00:05:07
Speaker 1: they stay up in the clouds without dropping to the ground.
00:05:12
Speaker 1: Could they fly or were they so light that they
00:05:16
Speaker 1: could simply walk around on the clouds without falling through them.
00:05:21
Speaker 1: She couldn't wait to find out. They walked across the
00:05:24
Speaker 1: field and stopped in the center. Here it was especially gusty,
00:05:31
Speaker 1: and Tarlia's hair blew around and got tangled in the wind.
00:05:36
Speaker 1: Why have we stopped here, Tarlia asked, looking around and
00:05:41
Speaker 1: up above her head. I don't see any giants in
00:05:45
Speaker 1: the sky. Bella, the cat smiled and replied with a
00:05:50
Speaker 1: pur I can I can see the giants? Take another look.
00:06:00
Speaker 1: Tylia lifted her head to the gray, cloudy sky and
00:06:04
Speaker 1: squinted her eyes. She watched the clouds float in mid air,
00:06:10
Speaker 1: peaceful and unmoving. Amazingly, the longer she looked at the clouds,
00:06:17
Speaker 1: they appeared to change out of nowhere. Tarlia noticed that
00:06:23
Speaker 1: the big gray cloud she was looking at had the
00:06:26
Speaker 1: outlines of two shadowy eyes, a snub fluffy nose, and
00:06:32
Speaker 1: a hole in the cloud that moved in the same
00:06:34
Speaker 1: way that a mouth does on its blowing air passed
00:06:37
Speaker 1: its lips. Tarlia gasped, I think I can see her face.
00:06:45
Speaker 1: Is that a cloud giant? She pointed at the cloud,
00:06:50
Speaker 1: and Bella, the cat grinned, Yes, it is. Bella replied,
00:06:57
Speaker 1: there are giants all around us. You just have to
00:07:01
Speaker 1: open your eyes and look a bit closer. This is Cleo,
00:07:07
Speaker 1: the cloud Giant. Tarlia waved at the cloud giant with delight, Hello,
00:07:15
Speaker 1: Cleo the cloud Giant. To Taralia's surprise, the hole in
00:07:20
Speaker 1: the cloud widened, and a gust of wind blew directly
00:07:24
Speaker 1: through it, swooped down towards Tarlia and swirled around her
00:07:29
Speaker 1: mystically on the breeze. Tarlia heard a gentle voice speak
00:07:35
Speaker 1: to her, good day, young child, how might you be?
00:07:44
Speaker 1: You opened your eyes and now you can see. Tarlia
00:07:51
Speaker 1: stuttered with amazement. She turned to Bella and whispered, did
00:07:56
Speaker 1: the cloud giant just talk to me? Bella laughed and
00:08:02
Speaker 1: confirmed that it had. Cloud giants are well known for
00:08:06
Speaker 1: being very friendly and polite, or be it a bit
00:08:10
Speaker 1: moody sometimes. Tarlia wondered why the cloud giant was making
00:08:16
Speaker 1: town so windy to day. Maybe Cleo, the cloud giant
00:08:21
Speaker 1: was in a bad mood and that was why the
00:08:23
Speaker 1: weather was a bit stormy. She thought she had better
00:08:27
Speaker 1: check that the cloud giant was all right. Cleo, Tarlia
00:08:32
Speaker 1: called out into the wind, why are you making it
00:08:35
Speaker 1: so Windy's something bothering you? She waited to see if
00:08:41
Speaker 1: the giant would respond again, and after a few moments,
00:08:45
Speaker 1: another gust of wind blew down and words floated past
00:08:50
Speaker 1: Tarlia's ears. Don't worry, child, now, do not fret. You
00:08:58
Speaker 1: would know if I were upset, for I would cry
00:09:03
Speaker 1: and tears would fall, and rain would come to soak
00:09:08
Speaker 1: you all. Tarlia chuckled at the cloud giant's rhyme, why
00:09:15
Speaker 1: are you making it so indy? Though she continued to
00:09:19
Speaker 1: question the cloud giant. It wasn't blustery like this all
00:09:23
Speaker 1: the time, so there must be a reason why the
00:09:26
Speaker 1: weather was so tumultuous today. Cleo, the cloud Giant softly replied,
00:09:35
Speaker 1: have you ever taken a breath and held it really tight,
00:09:41
Speaker 1: then blown out slowly with all your might? Try this
00:09:47
Speaker 1: trick and you'll feel better. It's the perfect mood resettter.
00:09:56
Speaker 1: Tarlia looked at Bella with confusion, but the cure curious
00:10:00
Speaker 1: cat urged her to give it a go. Cloud giants
00:10:05
Speaker 1: are very wise, so if they recommend something, it's certainly
00:10:10
Speaker 1: worth a go. Tarlia stood still and closed her eyes.
00:10:17
Speaker 1: She took a deep breath in through her nose and
00:10:21
Speaker 1: felt the cool breeze flow through her body and into
00:10:24
Speaker 1: her lungs. Her chest expanded with the breath, and she
00:10:30
Speaker 1: held it in there as she counted in her head
00:10:34
Speaker 1: five four, three, two one. Then Tarlia slowly breathed out
00:10:43
Speaker 1: through her mouth, pursing her lips to blow, just like
00:10:47
Speaker 1: the cloud Giant appeared to do. She blew and blew
00:10:52
Speaker 1: until she had no air left in her lungs, and
00:10:55
Speaker 1: she took another deep breath in the cloud Giant was right.
00:11:01
Speaker 1: This did feel very nice. The more breaths Tarlia took
00:11:06
Speaker 1: this way, the better she felt. After a few more breaths,
00:11:12
Speaker 1: Tarlia opened her eyes, expecting to see Cleo the cloud
00:11:16
Speaker 1: Giant still hovering in the sky. However, to her surprise,
00:11:22
Speaker 1: they were moving on. Tarlia sighed as the cloud started
00:11:27
Speaker 1: to drift away, revealing a clear blue sky and the
00:11:32
Speaker 1: shining sun behind them. The wind died down and the
00:11:37
Speaker 1: air fell quiet. Cleo the Cloud Giant had moved on
00:11:43
Speaker 1: to spread their gusty breath elsewhere. Now Tarlia could happily
00:11:49
Speaker 1: take off her hat and scarf and stop jittering around.
00:11:54
Speaker 1: Bella sighed with relief. Tarlia asked Bella enthusiastic sickle, are
00:12:01
Speaker 1: there any other giants around here? Bella nodded her head
00:12:06
Speaker 1: and answered, yes, there are lots of them. There are
00:12:12
Speaker 1: the tree giants and the mountain giants, and of course
00:12:19
Speaker 1: the river Giant. Tarlia couldn't believe it. She begged Bella
00:12:25
Speaker 1: to introduce her to them. She wanted to see what
00:12:28
Speaker 1: they all looked like. Luckily, Bella was happy to oblige.
00:12:34
Speaker 1: She enjoyed sharing secrets with Tarlia, and she loved to
00:12:38
Speaker 1: watch how excited Tarlia became at each new discovery. Follow me,
00:12:44
Speaker 1: Bella announced, Trotting towards the woods at the end of
00:12:48
Speaker 1: the field, Bella and Tarlia approached the edge of the
00:12:54
Speaker 1: woods and stopped in front of the tall trees. Bella announced, proud,
00:13:01
Speaker 1: meet the tree giants. Tarlia looked expectantly at the tall trees,
00:13:08
Speaker 1: assuming they would instantly start talking to her, but they
00:13:13
Speaker 1: just stood there like normal, like any ordinary trees. Hello,
00:13:20
Speaker 1: tree giants. Tarlia tried calling out, like she did before,
00:13:25
Speaker 1: are you in there? But the trees remained rock solid,
00:13:30
Speaker 1: and Tarlia couldn't hear any ethereal voices on the breeze.
00:13:35
Speaker 1: Maybe the tree giants couldn't speak. Bella, the cat stepped
00:13:41
Speaker 1: a bit closer to the woods and called out, It's
00:13:46
Speaker 1: all right, tree giants, she's with me. You can speak
00:13:51
Speaker 1: to her if you like. All of a sudden, the
00:13:56
Speaker 1: leaves on the branches started to rustle, and the branches
00:14:00
Speaker 1: themselves started to twitch. Tarlia watched in awe as the
00:14:06
Speaker 1: round hollows of the trees turned into mouths and the
00:14:11
Speaker 1: tree giants began to speak, Hello, little girl. One of
00:14:18
Speaker 1: the tree giants greeted her with a wave of his branch.
00:14:23
Speaker 1: I'm sorry we ignored you. Forgive us, we implore you.
00:14:32
Speaker 1: Tarlia smiled and assured the tree giants that she forgave them.
00:14:37
Speaker 1: She was just happy to be able to speak to them.
00:14:40
Speaker 1: She'd never known there were giants in the trees before.
00:14:45
Speaker 1: Taralia noticed that a small budding branch stuck out of
00:14:49
Speaker 1: the tree trunk just above the hollow, creating the illusion
00:14:54
Speaker 1: of a pointy wooden nose. Another tree giant responded in ah, yes,
00:15:02
Speaker 1: of course, we are in the trees. We are in
00:15:07
Speaker 1: the branches and the leaves. You'll find our spirits all around,
00:15:14
Speaker 1: in all of nature. We're sure to be found. The
00:15:20
Speaker 1: giants appeared to like to talk in rhyme and riddles,
00:15:24
Speaker 1: and they had lots of wise things to say, it seemed.
00:15:28
Speaker 1: Tarlia wondered whether the tree giants would have something enlightening
00:15:33
Speaker 1: to teach her, just as the cloud giant had with
00:15:36
Speaker 1: its calming breath. Tarlia asked the tree giants what they
00:15:41
Speaker 1: meant when they said that they could be found all around,
00:15:45
Speaker 1: and the tree giants were happy to explain, we giants
00:15:51
Speaker 1: watch over everything although humans can't hear the songs we sing,
00:15:58
Speaker 1: we can't tell you what we think and feel, but
00:16:02
Speaker 1: that doesn't make us any less real. Tarlia was touched
00:16:08
Speaker 1: by the wise tree giants words. They were right. Just
00:16:13
Speaker 1: because the trees can't talk to humans, it doesn't mean
00:16:17
Speaker 1: that they aren't alive and observing, thinking and feeling. The
00:16:22
Speaker 1: same goes for the animals that live in their branches.
00:16:26
Speaker 1: They too have feelings, they just can't tell us them.
00:16:30
Speaker 1: Well except for Bella, of course, but that was only
00:16:34
Speaker 1: thanks to the magic of a fallen star. Otherwise Tarlia
00:16:39
Speaker 1: would never know what Bella was thinking inside her head.
00:16:44
Speaker 1: Bella the Cat asked Tarlia if she would like to
00:16:48
Speaker 1: meet the mountain giants next, and Tarlia agreed wholeheartedly. After
00:16:55
Speaker 1: saying good bye to the tree giants and thanking them
00:16:58
Speaker 1: for their time, Bella guided Talia around the edge of
00:17:03
Speaker 1: the woods to a large hilly area in the local park.
00:17:08
Speaker 1: Here there were rocks and boulders, but Tarlia and her
00:17:13
Speaker 1: friends enjoyed climbing and grassy hills that they loved to
00:17:18
Speaker 1: roll and run down. There are giants here too, Tarlia asked,
00:17:25
Speaker 1: with surprise, Bella. The cat stopped and began licking her poor. Yeah,
00:17:32
Speaker 1: and you've met them before, you regularly climb all over them.
00:17:40
Speaker 1: Tarlia was taken aback. What did Bella mean she would
00:17:45
Speaker 1: never intentionally stand on a giant? Oh, but you do,
00:17:52
Speaker 1: Bella teased, shaking her poor at Tarlia look. Bella gestured
00:17:58
Speaker 1: to the rocky face on the hillside, and Tarlia appeared closer.
00:18:04
Speaker 1: Bella was right. Subtly carved into the rock was a face.
00:18:11
Speaker 1: The face looked sort of like it was wrinkled. It
00:18:15
Speaker 1: had a big, bulbous nose and two plump cheeks, narrow
00:18:21
Speaker 1: eyes that looked like it was sleeping, and a wide,
00:18:24
Speaker 1: thin mouth. Tarlia instantly apologized, I'm sorry that I've climbed
00:18:31
Speaker 1: all over you before, Mountain Giant. I just didn't realize
00:18:34
Speaker 1: you were there. The rock on the hillside began to
00:18:40
Speaker 1: make crumbling and cracking noises, and the wide thin mouth
00:18:46
Speaker 1: that Tarlia could see started to tremble as a soft,
00:18:51
Speaker 1: deep voice cascaded from its lips. Don't worry, dear, I
00:19:00
Speaker 1: like when you play. Hearing children's laughter brightens my day.
00:19:08
Speaker 1: The one thing I don't like, I suppose is when
00:19:14
Speaker 1: grown ups come hiking and step on my nose. Tarlia
00:19:21
Speaker 1: grimaced at the idea of somebody stepping on your nose.
00:19:25
Speaker 1: It must be painful, even if you are made out
00:19:28
Speaker 1: of rock. Tarlia thought it was very nice of the
00:19:34
Speaker 1: mountain Giant to allow everyone to climb all over it.
00:19:39
Speaker 1: She had to admit that she and her friends had
00:19:43
Speaker 1: enjoyed playing on the rocky hill side. She hoped that
00:19:47
Speaker 1: it wasn't too uncomfortable for the mountain Giant, but the
00:19:52
Speaker 1: gentle giant explained that it didn't mind. In fact, the
00:19:57
Speaker 1: mountain Giant welcomed visitors to I'm all over it. I'm
00:20:02
Speaker 1: here to admire as part of the land. If you
00:20:08
Speaker 1: want to climb, I'll always offer you a hand. All
00:20:13
Speaker 1: I ask is that you appreciate me, and when you're done,
00:20:21
Speaker 1: you leave me. B Talia whispered to Bella, what does
00:20:29
Speaker 1: it mean? Bella gestured to another rocky hillside close by,
00:20:36
Speaker 1: and Tarlia noticed that the poor mountain giants sitting there
00:20:40
Speaker 1: had pictures drawn in felt it pens all down its cheeks.
00:20:47
Speaker 1: That's not very nice, Talia thought to herself. She supposed
00:20:54
Speaker 1: that you ever took their pens to the rock. Hadn't
00:20:58
Speaker 1: known that a mountain giant they made within. But like
00:21:03
Speaker 1: the tree giants said, just because they cannot speak doesn't
00:21:10
Speaker 1: mean they can't feel. Tarlia walked over to the pen
00:21:15
Speaker 1: covered giant and sympathetically placed her hand on its cheek.
00:21:21
Speaker 1: She attempted to wipe away the brightly colored ink with
00:21:25
Speaker 1: her fingers and thumb. However, it was stuck on hard.
00:21:30
Speaker 1: She thought for a moment, how could she get the
00:21:34
Speaker 1: pen off the poor mountain giant's face. She glanced around
00:21:39
Speaker 1: for inspiration and noticed a puddle of rain water on
00:21:43
Speaker 1: the ground. Nearby. Water would be perfect for washing off
00:21:47
Speaker 1: the pen. Taralia rummaged around in her coat pockets and
00:21:52
Speaker 1: found a tissue. Then, carefully she dipped the tissue in
00:21:56
Speaker 1: the puddle to wet it and walked back over to
00:21:59
Speaker 1: the mountain giant. Ever so softly, she wiped the damp
00:22:05
Speaker 1: tissue across the giant's cheeks, Rubbing away at the pen drawings.
00:22:11
Speaker 1: With a bit of patience and determination, Tarlia gradually managed
00:22:16
Speaker 1: to wash away the pen until the pictures were merely smudges.
00:22:21
Speaker 1: Hopefully the rest would wash away with more rainfall. Thank you, dear,
00:22:28
Speaker 1: the giant said in a hushed voice. Noticing how quickly
00:22:34
Speaker 1: the day was passing by, Bella, the cat tottered over
00:22:38
Speaker 1: to Taria and told her that they must keep moving
00:22:41
Speaker 1: if they wanted to meet all the giants and be
00:22:44
Speaker 1: back home in time for Tea. So Tarlia said farewell
00:22:49
Speaker 1: to the mountain giants. Then she followed Bella across the hills.
00:22:55
Speaker 1: There was one final giant that she had to meet. Bella.
00:23:01
Speaker 1: The cat led the way through the park that Tarlia
00:23:05
Speaker 1: knew well, and eventually they reached the riverside. The river
00:23:12
Speaker 1: wound its way through the town, and its shallow waters
00:23:16
Speaker 1: trickled through the local park. Yellow flowers bloomed brightly on
00:23:23
Speaker 1: the river banks, and Tarlia and Bella sat themselves down
00:23:28
Speaker 1: between the pretty flowers to rest. Tarlia noticed a piece
00:23:35
Speaker 1: of litter stuck on the river bed, pushed up against
00:23:38
Speaker 1: the shore, so she grabbed a stick and reached down
00:23:42
Speaker 1: to pick it out. This belonged in a bin, not
00:23:47
Speaker 1: in the river. As soon as she had pried the
00:23:51
Speaker 1: piece of rubbish from the water, ripples began to form
00:23:55
Speaker 1: on the surface, and bubbles gently popped and fizzled. As
00:24:00
Speaker 1: a melodic voice spoke to them, thank you kindly for
00:24:06
Speaker 1: cleaning that mess. I can't do it alone. I have
00:24:12
Speaker 1: to confess. If only more people were as thoughtful as you,
00:24:20
Speaker 1: then my waters would sparkle all shiny, brand new. Tarlia
00:24:28
Speaker 1: kicked her legs excitedly. It was the river Giant. Bella
00:24:35
Speaker 1: meowed happily and introduced Tarlia to Ray the river Giant.
00:24:41
Speaker 1: It's nice to meet you, Tarlia said politely. I've met
00:24:47
Speaker 1: lots of amazing giants to day. I didn't even know
00:24:51
Speaker 1: you were here until now. I'll be sure to always
00:24:55
Speaker 1: say hello when I passed by from now on the
00:24:59
Speaker 1: river a giant appeared to laugh appreciatively as more bubbles
00:25:04
Speaker 1: spurted and splattered from its small waves. Bella confessed, I
00:25:12
Speaker 1: usually hate water, but I don't mind Ray the river Giant.
00:25:18
Speaker 1: She's very nice. And when I tumbled into her waves
00:25:22
Speaker 1: once she carefully guided me back to shore, my fur
00:25:29
Speaker 1: coat had never been cleaner. To Ray the River Giant
00:25:36
Speaker 1: laughed again and reminisced with Bella about the fateful day
00:25:40
Speaker 1: when they first met. They chatted like old friends and
00:25:46
Speaker 1: seemed so relaxed and happy in each other's presence. Tarlia
00:25:52
Speaker 1: thought that the river Giant was maybe the most joyous
00:25:56
Speaker 1: content creature she had ever met. Her waters flowed so
00:26:03
Speaker 1: gently and casually, with no rush about them, and Ray
00:26:09
Speaker 1: seemed peaceful for it. Tarlia asked, Ray the River Giant,
00:26:17
Speaker 1: what do you do? Ray? Do you have any special
00:26:20
Speaker 1: powers like the cloud giants do. Ray the River Giant's
00:26:27
Speaker 1: soft waves continued to flow, and Tarlia noticed a few
00:26:34
Speaker 1: orange fish suddenly appear swimming through her waters. Ray giggled
00:26:41
Speaker 1: as though she were being tickled, and replied, see where
00:26:47
Speaker 1: I flow. Nobody knows. I take life so very slow.
00:26:57
Speaker 1: If you want to be as happy as me, don't
00:27:03
Speaker 1: take things too seriously. Tarlia was a bit confused by
00:27:11
Speaker 1: Ray's riddles, but Bella responded, we don't all have to
00:27:17
Speaker 1: have special powers, Tarlia. Sometimes just enjoying the moment is
00:27:25
Speaker 1: a superpower in itself. Ray the River Giant flows peacefully,
00:27:34
Speaker 1: enjoying the world around her as she goes. Tarlia gazed
00:27:41
Speaker 1: around at the peaceful park, and she could understand why
00:27:47
Speaker 1: it was so picturesque with all the radiant flowers blooming,
00:27:52
Speaker 1: that Tarlia could happily sit here all day and admire
00:27:56
Speaker 1: the view. And it was so quiet and serene that
00:28:02
Speaker 1: Tarlia could easily lie down and have a nap. She
00:28:08
Speaker 1: closed her eyes and decided to enjoy the moment, just
00:28:13
Speaker 1: like Bella and the River Giant recommended. With her eyes closed,
00:28:19
Speaker 1: she could smell the sweet flowers even stronger, feel the
00:28:25
Speaker 1: fresh air on her skin more noticeably, and hear the
00:28:30
Speaker 1: rippling of the water and the tweeting birds in the
00:28:34
Speaker 1: sky more clearly. Tarlia smiled and enjoy taking it slow
00:28:41
Speaker 1: for a while. After a few minutes, Tarlia felt Bella's
00:28:47
Speaker 1: very poor rest on her hand, and she opened her
00:28:51
Speaker 1: eyes to see her friendly cat grinning up at her.
00:28:58
Speaker 1: Are you ready to go home now, Tarlia, Bella purred.
00:29:05
Speaker 1: Tarlia nodded her head sleepily. She had been enjoying the
00:29:10
Speaker 1: tranquility for a little too long, and she had almost
00:29:14
Speaker 1: fallen asleep on the river bank. Tarlia got to her
00:29:19
Speaker 1: feet and Bella said goodbye to her good friend Ray
00:29:23
Speaker 1: the river Giant. Then Bella and Tarlia began the walk home.
00:29:33
Speaker 1: Tarlia and Bella followed the river back into Tarlia's hometown.
00:29:40
Speaker 1: They navigated the familiar streets to find her house and
00:29:44
Speaker 1: promptly dashed upstairs to Tarlia's bedroom. Tarlia declared with delight,
00:29:51
Speaker 1: I'm going to draw all of the giants we met
00:29:54
Speaker 1: so that I don't ever forget them. She poured out
00:29:59
Speaker 1: several pieces of paper and buckets of colored pencils from
00:30:03
Speaker 1: her bedroom cupboard and scattered them all out across the floor,
00:30:07
Speaker 1: ready to create her masterpieces. Tarlia turned to her amazing
00:30:14
Speaker 1: talking cat and said, thank you for introducing me to
00:30:18
Speaker 1: the giant's bella. It was such a special day. All
00:30:23
Speaker 1: of a sudden, Tarlia's brother, Magnus, peeped his head around
00:30:27
Speaker 1: the bedroom door and asked, teasingly, are you talking to
00:30:32
Speaker 1: your cat again, Tarlia. Tarlia smiled sheepishly and shrugged her
00:30:38
Speaker 1: shoulders as she reached for a black pencil to start
00:30:42
Speaker 1: her sketching. Maybe, she replied, Magnus, did you know that
00:30:49
Speaker 1: there are giants living all around us? There are giants
00:30:53
Speaker 1: in the sky, in the water, in the trees, and
00:30:56
Speaker 1: even in the mountains. Magnet rolled his eyes and said,
00:31:02
Speaker 1: I think you're getting a bit caught up in all
00:31:05
Speaker 1: those fairy tales you read Tarlia, giants aren't real. Tarlia
00:31:12
Speaker 1: started drawing, and Magnus retreated to his own bedroom, knowing
00:31:18
Speaker 1: that he wouldn't get a rise out of his little sister.
00:31:21
Speaker 1: To day. Tarlia was far too swept up in her
00:31:26
Speaker 1: art to pay attention to her older brother's teasing. While
00:31:32
Speaker 1: Tarlia drew, Bella jumped up to her usual cozy spot
00:31:37
Speaker 1: on the window sill and curled up comfortably to rest.
00:31:43
Speaker 1: Bella's fairy body expanded and retracted as she breathed, heavily,
00:31:50
Speaker 1: drifting off into a pleasant slumber. Just as Bella was
00:31:57
Speaker 1: on the brink of sleep, she purred to Tarlia, don't
00:32:04
Speaker 1: forget to draw me with the giants. Just don't you
00:32:10
Speaker 1: dare color my fur in pink. Tarlia giggled and made
00:32:17
Speaker 1: a mental note she knew how much Bella disliked unrealistic drawings.
00:32:25
Speaker 1: Tarlia sketched away and colored in for a while, trying
00:32:30
Speaker 1: as hard as she could to recall what each of
00:32:34
Speaker 1: the hidden giants had looked like. She remembered how a
00:32:39
Speaker 1: crooked tree branch pointed out perfectly like a nose on
00:32:44
Speaker 1: the tree giants, and how the mountain giants' faces appeared
00:32:50
Speaker 1: all squished up and smushy despite their rock hard exterior.
00:32:57
Speaker 1: She recalled how the cloud giants gracefully floated and parted
00:33:02
Speaker 1: to blow the wind through their mouths, and how the
00:33:07
Speaker 1: river giant bubbled and rippled as it spoke. Just as
00:33:13
Speaker 1: Tarlia was finishing her last picture, her eyes grew heavy.
00:33:19
Speaker 1: She was exhausted after such an exciting day. Lying on
00:33:26
Speaker 1: her stomach, she laid her head down on the bedroom
00:33:30
Speaker 1: floor and closed her eyes. Surrounded by her pictures, Tarlia
00:33:39
Speaker 1: gave in and accepted a relaxing snooze on the carpet.
00:33:48
Speaker 1: While she slept, she dreamt that she was a giant too,
00:33:54
Speaker 1: overlooking the tops of the houses like a bird, and
00:33:59
Speaker 1: right at her feet, calling up to her, was her
00:34:03
Speaker 1: teeny tiny talking cat, Bella. She scooped Bella up off
00:34:11
Speaker 1: the ground and carried her in her giant palm as
00:34:15
Speaker 1: she walked across town and back out into the open
00:34:19
Speaker 1: hills to enjoy nature and speak once more to the
00:34:25
Speaker 1: friendly hidden giants keep to the wa