Puffy's Big Heart

High, high up in the big blue sky lived a little cloud named Puffy. Puffy wasn't like the other clouds. While his friends, Cloudbert and Nimbus, could rumble and tumble and make a big, refreshing rain shower, Puffy just… floated. He tried his very hardest to squeeze out even a tiny sprinkle, but nothing happened. He just stayed soft and fluffy, like a cotton ball.

"Oh dear," sighed Puffy one sunny morning. "I wish I could help the thirsty flowers and trees down below!" He watched Cloudbert send down a magnificent downpour that made all the leaves shimmer.

"Don't worry, Puffy," rumbled Nimbus kindly. "Everyone has their own special way of helping." But Puffy still felt a little bit sad.

One afternoon, as the sun began to dip low, painting the sky in colours of orange and pink, Puffy saw something new. Down in a little garden, a tiny little sprout was wilting. Its leaves were droopy, and it looked very, very thirsty. Puffy felt a pang in his soft, fluffy heart.

"Oh, that poor little sprout!" he whispered. He tried again to make rain. He puffed and he pushed, but still, no drops came out. He sighed a little cloud sigh, and as he did, a tiny, almost invisible tear of cloud-mist floated down. It wasn't rain, not really, but it was all Puffy could manage.

The tiny tear of mist landed right on the little sprout. It was so small, Puffy thought it wouldn't make a difference. But then, he saw something amazing. The little sprout seemed to perk up just a tiny bit. It wasn't a big splash of water, but it was *something*.

Puffy decided he would keep trying. All through the evening, as the stars began to twinkle, Puffy floated gently over the little sprout. Each time he sighed, a tiny bit of mist, like a soft, invisible whisper of water, drifted down. He didn't make a big shower, but he made many, many tiny, gentle mists.

When the sun rose the next morning, Puffy looked down. And what do you think he saw? The little sprout was standing tall! Its leaves were green and happy. It wasn't big and bushy yet, but it was no longer wilting. It had a little sparkle to it, as if it had had a very good drink.

Puffy gasped, a happy little cloud gasp. "I helped!" he exclaimed. "My little mists helped!"

Cloudbert and Nimbus floated over. "You did, Puffy!" said Cloudbert, his voice a gentle rumble. "You gave that little sprout exactly what it needed – gentle care, all through the night."

Nimbus added, "Sometimes, Puffy, the smallest acts of kindness make the biggest difference. Your big heart helped that sprout grow."

Puffy felt warm and fuzzy, not just from the sun, but from happiness. He might not be able to make a big rainstorm, but he could share his gentle mist, and that was just as important. He knew that being kind, even in a small way, was the best feeling of all. And as he drifted off to sleep, high in the sky, he dreamed of all the other little plants he could help with his big, kind heart.