Once upon a time, in a bright and sunny dance studio, lived a little girl named Elena. Elena loved to dance more than anything in the world. She loved to leap. She loved to jump.
But most of all, she loved to spin. Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Elena wanted her dance to be absolutely perfect. Her friend Tomás played the drums for her. Boom! Tap!
Boom! Tomás was kind and funny. He always had a smile on his face. One day, a big show was coming up.
Elena practiced very hard. Spin, spin, spin! She spun around and around until the room looked like a swirl of colors. It was time for a yummy snack break.
Tomás sat down with a big red apple. Crunch, crunch, crunch. He held out a cookie to Elena. It was a round, chocolate cookie.
Do you like cookies? Elena looked at the cookie. She wanted to eat it. But she shook her head.
No, no, no. I want to be perfect, she said. If I eat a cookie, I might not spin as fast. I will not eat.
I will only dance. Tomás looked sad. But Elena, your tummy needs food to be strong, he said. Elena did not listen.
She went back to the middle of the room. One, two, three, spin! She tried to spin faster than before. But her tummy felt empty.
Her legs felt wobbly. Wobble, wobble, wobble. Her head felt dizzy. Suddenly, Elena stopped.
She sat down on the floor with a bump. Thump! She felt very tired. She felt very sad.
Tomás ran over to her. Are you okay? he asked gently. Elena looked up at Tomás.
Her eyes filled with tears. She knew she had to tell the truth. No, said Elena. I am not okay.
I am starving. I wanted to be perfect so I did not eat my snack. Now I am too weak to dance. Tomás nodded his head.
He understood. It is okay to tell the truth, he said. You do not have to be perfect to be a wonderful dancer. You just have to be happy and strong.
Tomás broke the cookie in half. Here, he said. Let us share. Elena took the cookie.
It tasted so good. Yum, yum, yum. She ate her apple too. Crunch, crunch.
Her tummy felt happy. Her legs felt strong again. Can you guess what happened next?
Elena stood up. She felt like magic. She spun around the room. Zoom!
She was not perfect. She stumbled a little bit. But she was laughing. She was having fun.
Tomás played his drum. Boom! Tap! Boom!
They danced together all afternoon. Elena learned that food gives you energy to play. She learned that being honest makes you feel better. And she learned that dancing is best when you do it with a friend.