Once upon a time, there was a big, beautiful park. The sun was shining bright and the sky was blue. It was a special time of year. It was Autumn.
In the middle of the park stood a very tall, strong tree. This tree was home to many leaves. But three leaves were the very best of friends. Their names were Maple, Oak, and Birch.
Maple was shaped like a star. She was very bright. She was the color of a shiny red apple. Oak was round and strong.
He was the color of a big orange pumpkin. Birch was small and pointy. He was the color of a yellow lemon. Every morning, the three friends would wave hello.
'Good morning, Maple! 'said Oak. 'Good morning, Oak! 'said Birch.
'Good morning, Birch! 'said Maple. They loved their branch. It was high up in the sky.
They could see everything. They saw children playing on the swings. They saw dogs running in the grass. They saw birds flying in the air.
Then, one day, the air felt a little bit cold. Brrr! The wind began to blow. Whoosh!
The tree branches started to shake. 'Hold on tight! 'shouted Oak. The three leaves held onto their branch with their little stems.
They held on tight, tight, tight. 'Why is the wind shaking us? 'asked Birch. He felt a little scared.
'Do not worry,'said Maple gently. 'The wind just wants to dance. 'Just then, a big gust of wind came.
Swish, swoosh, swirl! The leaves felt their bodies changing. They looked at each other. They were not green anymore.
They were bright red, orange, and yellow. 'Look at us! 'said Oak. 'We are glowing like the sun!
'The wind came back. It tickled their stems. It whispered to them. 'It is time to let go,'said the wind softly.
'Let go? 'cried Birch. 'But I love my branch! ''It is okay,'said Maple.
'We will go together. We will dance together. 'The wind blew harder. Whoosh!
One, two, three! The three friends let go of the branch. Can you guess what happened next?
They did not fall down. They flew up! They were dancing in the air. 'Wheee!
'shouted Maple. 'Look at me spin! 'said Oak. They twirled around and around.
Round and round, up and down. They were flying like birds. They zoomed over the park bench. They zoomed over the doghouse.
They saw the whole park below them. It looked like a patchwork quilt of colors. Then, slowly, slowly, they began to float down.
They drifted left. They drifted right. Finally, they landed on the soft ground. Plop, plop, plop.
They landed on a bed of soft moss. It was so cozy. 'That was fun! 'said Birch.
He was not scared anymore. He was happy. 'I want to do it again! 'said Oak.
Just then, a little squirrel came by. Rustle, rustle, rustle. The squirrel jumped over the leaves. The leaves giggled.
'We are part of the ground now,'said Maple. 'We will keep the tree roots warm all winter. 'The sun began to go down. The sky turned purple and dark blue.
The three friends were very tired from their big dance. 'Goodnight, Maple,'whispered Oak. 'Goodnight, Oak,'whispered Birch. 'Goodnight, Birch,'whispered Maple.
They closed their eyes. They were safe and warm. They dreamed about dancing in the wind again. And they knew that when spring came, new green leaves would wake up to say hello.