The Puddle Who Wanted to Be an Ocean
by Namu Marupudi
A small puddle named Splash lived in a crack on Maple Street.
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About this story
After the rain, a small puddle named Splash forms in a crack on the sidewalk at the edge of Maple Street — no bigger than a dinner plate, shallow and round and shimmering. Every morning the wind carries her stories of the ocean: ships that sail for weeks, whales, coral reefs, pirate ships. 'I'm just a puddle,' Splash sighs. 'I'm not big or blue or important at all.' Then Theo comes stomping down the sidewalk looking for puddles to jump in — but instead of jumping, he crouches down to look. He sees clouds moving in her, real clouds. Then he lies flat on his tummy, eyes level with her surface, and shows Splash what she's been holding all along: the reflection of the entire sky, perfectly still — something the ocean, big and wavy, could never do. And when a whole family of tadpoles takes shelter in her gentle water, Splash learns she's not too small at all — she's just right. A quiet, glowing story about being little and mattering.
- Puddle — a small pool of rainwater on the ground
- Shallow — not deep at all
- Reflection — the picture you see looking back from still water
- Mirror — to hold a perfect picture of something, like the sky
- Gravel — tiny stones, like the ones at Splash's bottom
- Tadpole — a baby frog, swimming and wiggling
- Gentle — soft and calm, safe for little things
- Matter — to be important, exactly as you are
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