Once upon a time, in a school that sparkled like sunshine, there was a boy named River. River was a big kid, almost a teenager, but he had a secret. Can you guess what his secret was? River had a brain that went Zoom!
Zoom! Zoom! All day long. It was like a car engine that would not stop.
Vroom vroom! When River tried to sit still, his legs went Wiggle wiggle. When he tried to listen, his ears heard everything. The clock went Tick tock.
The birds went Tweet tweet. The pencil went Tap tap. It was very noisy inside River’s head. Whoosh!
One morning, River went to class. His teacher was Ms. Kwon. Ms.
Kwon was very kind. She had a smile like a warm cookie. She wore glasses that looked like happy circles. She clapped her hands.
Clap clap! 'Good morning, class! 'said Ms. Kwon.
'Today we are going to draw pictures. 'Everyone sat down. It was very quiet. Shhhhh.
But River could not be quiet. His brain was too busy. Zoom! He felt a wiggle in his toes.
Tap tap tap went his foot on the floor. Then his fingers started to dance. Clickity clack went his pencil. The boy next to him looked at River.
The girl in front looked at River. River felt his face get hot. Blush! He felt a big, heavy feeling in his tummy.
It felt like a rock. Do you know what that feeling was? It was shame. River wanted to be good.
He wanted to sit still. But the Zoom-Zooms in his brain would not stop. Jump! Bounce!
Zoom! Suddenly, River stood up. He could not take it anymore. He had to run.
Whoosh! He ran out of the classroom. He ran down the hall. He ran to the garden outside.
The door went Bang! River sat on a bench. He hid his face in his hands. 'I am bad,'River whispered to himself.
'I am just a bad kid. 'He cried a little bit. Sob sob sob. But then, he heard a soft sound.
Crunch crunch. It was footsteps on the grass. It was Ms. Kwon.
She did not look mad. She looked sad. She sat next to River.
'River,'she said softly. 'Are you okay? 'River shook his head. No no.
'I cannot sit still,'River said. 'My brain is too loud. It goes Zoom! Zoom!
And I ruin everything. 'Ms. Kwon nodded her head. She looked at River with kind eyes.
'River,'she said. 'Do you know that some people wear glasses? ''Yes,'said River. 'They help eyes see better.
''That is right,'said Ms. Kwon. 'But some people have things you cannot see. They have invisible backpacks.
'River looked up. 'Invisible? 'he asked. 'Yes,'said Ms.
Kwon. 'You have an invisible backpack. Inside your backpack, there are a hundred bouncy balls. Boing!
Boing! Boing! They are always jumping around. That is why your brain goes Zoom!
Zoom! It is the bouncy balls. 'River thought about this. He imagined little bouncy balls in a backpack.
It made him feel a little lighter. 'Is it bad? 'River asked. 'Do I have a bad backpack?
'Ms. Kwon shook her head. No no. 'It is not bad,'she said.
'It is just different. It makes you creative. It makes you fun. But sometimes, the backpack is heavy.
Sometimes, you need help to carry it. 'River took a deep breath. Woosh. 'But no one can see it,'River said.
'They think I am just being bad. ''That is why you need courage,'said Ms. Kwon. 'Courage is being scared but doing the right thing anyway.
Do you know what the right thing is? 'River thought hard. Think think think. 'To run away?
'he asked. 'No,'said Ms. Kwon. 'Courage is asking for help.
It is telling me,'My backpack is too heavy today. 'Can you do that? Can you be brave? 'River looked at Ms.
Kwon. He looked at the flowers. The flowers went Sway sway in the wind. He took a big breath.
'I can try,'said River. 'My backpack is heavy today, Ms. Kwon. 'Ms.
Kwon smiled a big, bright smile. 'Thank you for telling me, River. That was very brave. 'She reached into her pocket.
She pulled out a small squishy toy. It was a blue ball. Squish squash. 'When the Zoom-Zooms get too loud, you can squeeze this,'she said.
'It helps the bouncy balls settle down. 'River took the ball. He squeezed it. Squish.
It felt nice. It felt cool. 'Are you ready to go back inside? 'Ms.
Kwon asked. River stood up. He felt a little bit scared. But he also felt strong.
'Yes,'said River. They walked back to the classroom. Step step step. When they went inside, everyone looked.
River felt the blush come back to his cheeks. But Ms. Kwon stood next to him.
She put her hand on his shoulder. 'River has something to share,'Ms. Kwon told the class. River held up the blue squishy ball.
'I have a busy brain,'River said. His voice shook a little bit. 'It goes Zoom! Zoom!
Sometimes I need to wiggle. Sometimes I need this ball to help me listen. 'The class was quiet for a second. Then, a girl raised her hand.
'I have that too! 'she said. 'My legs wiggle all the time! 'Then a boy raised his hand.
'I get loud when I am excited,'he said. Everyone smiled. They did not think River was bad. They just understood him.
River felt the heavy rock in his tummy go away. Poof! It was gone. He sat down at his desk.
He put the squishy ball in his hand. He squeezed it. Squish. He started to draw.
His brain still went Zoom! Zoom! But now, he knew how to drive the car. Vroom vroom!
He used the Zooms to make a beautiful picture. It had bright colors and swirls. It was the best picture ever. Ms.
Kwon came over to look. 'Wow,'she said. 'Your brain is magical, River. 'River smiled.
He was happy. He was brave. He learned that being different is okay. And that asking for help is the bravest thing you can do.
The end.