The Girl and the Rainbow Cat

Lila enjoys bright afternoons in Grandma May's garden, wearing her yellow polka-dot dress, red sneakers and blue star clips in her curly dark hair. Behind the tallest sunflower she finds a plump, fluffy cream-colored cat with large amber eyes and a red ribbon collar holding a tiny silver bell. When Lila giggles, the cat's fur turns into shimmering rainbow stripes, and Lila realizes that her feelings make the cat glow. She names the cat Rainbow, and the two spend the afternoon chasing butterflies and rolling in the grass while colors dance across the cat's back.

When a cloud covers the sun, a heavy sadness without a clear name settles in Lila's chest, and Rainbow's rainbow fades to soft cream. Grandma May gently suggests that Lila paint what she feels. With paper, brushes and bright pots of paint, Lila gives her sadness a shape in blue and grey, then adds purple and yellow, talking with Rainbow about a lost toy, a loud noise and a friend who moved away. This gentle tale by Ebru Mina TOMURCUK follows one afternoon of big emotions and can be read on Onlinemasal Com.Tr.