GOOD-NIGHT STORIES.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 78, 2 April 1928, Page 11

GOOD-NIGHT STORIES.

What Became of an Unhappy Little Star. (Written by BLANCHE SILVER for PETER X»AN.) Up in the dark blue sky, amongst thousands of bright stars, there once lived a tiny little star. Try as hard as she would, she just couldn't cast out the bright raya that her brothers and sisters did each night. Her ray was so very tiny that it could hardly be seen. This made Tiny Star very unhappy and discontented with her home in the sky, and she begged Mother Cloud to let het go down into the weadowa to live.

"But where will you * stay ?" questioned Mother Cloud. "The Meadow isn't made for stars, my dear. It's made for flowers."

Tiny Star didn't care. She was very unhappy trying to outshine her brothers and sisters, and she wanted to go away where she wouldn't have to see their bright ray». "If I couldn't see them, then I wouldn't know how tiny my light is," she cried-

Old North Wind heard her, and when he found out why she was weeping he laughed to himself as he whisked her from her soft, fleecy cloud bed and carried her down into the meadows. At first Tiny Star was terribly excited. She didn't' know which way to turn. She seemed diinimer than ever among so many gayly-coloured flowers. The birds stopped to stare at her. When she sat down to rest it was a lovely Apple Tree Lady who spoke softly to lier and asked why'she had wandered so far from her home.

"My light is so very dim it can't be seen amongst so many bright lights," sighed Tiny Star. "So I just ran away. But where shall I go? I'm so sleepy and tired," and she began to sob and cry as only a tiny star can cry. "There, there, my dear," soothed Mrs. Apple Tree, "don't you worry. Just crawl into one ,of those pretty soft blossoms and take a good nap and maybe yon will feel beetter when you wake up," and she bent one of her branches filled with lovely, fragrant blossoms down so close to Tiny Star that she brushed her right into the very centre of one of the £pple .blossoms, Now, Mrs, Apple Tree didn't know until it was too late that the blossom that caught up Tiny Star was ready to fall, and the next morning, when Tiny Star tried to get out she was held fast in a fragrant prison. "I don't care," she laughed softly. "No one will ever notice me, anyway, so J might just as well stay here." She nestled down in the heart of the apple blossom, and went sound asleep. Mrs. Apple Tree couldn't find her anywhere, and at first was terribly worried, hut when the summer days began to drift into fall, and her branches were covered with bright red shiny Mrs. Aftyle Tree had almost forgoptten 6be had ever seen Tiny Star, Then one day a dear little girl came to visit the apple tree, and the. grayhaired man picked the loveliest bright red apple he could find, and, cutting it; in two with his knife, handed it to the little girl, "Oh, grandaddy, grandaddy," cried the little girl, excitedly, holding out the apple. "Look, here i» the tiny star right here in this very apple. My, how I have missed her tiny light Up among the other

stars. And here, she has been hiding in this great big red apple, waiting for me to come and set her free." The old man wasn't the only one who pent over to gaze at the apple, for Mrs. Apple Tree herself was eager. Sure enough, there in-the very heart of the brjght red apple nestled Tiny Star; Tiny Star never said a word, but she warmed with delight. She had at last made someone happy, and, as tiny as her ray had been up among the clouds, the little girl had missed her.