Welcome to another story from Steph and the Sleepytime Crew,
Where magical animals go on big-hearted adventures and bedtime becomes the best part of the day.
I'm Steph and tonight we're heading to Rainbow Valley to meet the extraordinarily exceptional Oona,
The unicorn.
She's funny,
She's sparkly,
And she has a very unique gift.
She farts glitter,
And guess what,
They smell like candy.
But not everyone finds that funny,
And Oona starts to wonder,
What if I'm too much?
So let's get comfy.
Wiggle your toes,
Flop your arms down like they're sleepy spaghetti,
Take a long breath in,
And a slow one out.
Are you ready?
Let's go.
Oona Sparklewhiff wasn't your average unicorn,
Oh no.
Sure,
She had the usual rainbow shimmer mane,
And a twinkly horn,
And hooves that made the softest click clop on all the rainbow-coloured clouds,
But what made Oona truly unique?
Her mane changed colour based on how she was feeling,
And the best part,
She farted glitter!
And not just any glitter,
Oh no,
It came out in candy scented clouds,
Sometimes bubble gum,
Sometimes jelly beans,
Sometimes fairy floss,
And one time,
Mango milkshake marshmallow,
But let's not talk about that day,
That was chaos.
She couldn't help it when she got excited,
When she belly laughed,
When she tried to hold it in during hide and seek,
Well,
Let's just say Oona was always the first one found.
But she didn't mind,
Oona loved being silly,
She laughed big,
She loved hard,
And she never apologised for her sparkle.
But not everyone thought her magic was so magical.
At Sparkle School for Exceptional Unicorns,
The other students were more,
Let's say,
Refined.
They polished their horns daily,
They trotted in perfect formation,
They did not find scented glitter farts funny at all.
Oona,
You're so revolting,
Sniffed Prunella the Pink Unicorn,
Who only ever smelled like roses and harsh judgement.
Honestly,
Sighed Sir Twinklesworth,
You'll never make the gala team with that wind problem.
Oona tried to laugh it off,
But something heavy settled in her chest.
What if they're right?
What if I am too much?
That night,
Oona lay awake under her jellybean-printed doona,
Her mane dull and flat.
Her tummy was tied up in knots.
Her sparkle had fizzled.
Her sparkle had flopped.
And she hadn't glitter farted all day,
Not even once.
In that moment she made a decision.
No more silly loud laughing with her whole body.
No more unexpected glitter and candy scent toots.
And no more being the weird one.
From now on,
She promised herself she would be serious,
Graceful,
And most importantly,
Normal,
Just like all the other unicorns at Sparkle School for Exceptional Unicorns.
Oona tried hard.
Oh,
She tried so hard.
She brushed her mane 120 times.
She trotted silently.
She even memorised the unicorn school motto,
Grace,
Glitter,
And greatness,
Always.
She held in her farts so tightly she squeaked when she walked.
She studied Prunella's perfect poses.
She copied Sir Twinkleworth's elegant prants.
She stopped laughing.
She stopped playing.
She stopped being Oona.
And guess what?
It worked.
Well,
Kinda.
Her teachers nodded.
The other unicorns said polite things like,
You're very composed today,
Oona.
And you're finally blending in and being one of us.
But Oona felt flat.
She felt colourless.
She felt boring.
Her colours had all but faded to grey.
Her laugh had disappeared completely.
Even her tail lost its swish when she walked.
And worst of all,
Her magic had stopped working.
No sparkle.
No candy scent.
No joy and happiness whatsoever.
She didn't feel like a unicorn at all.
She didn't feel like herself at all either.
Then the big night they had all been waiting for came.
It was the Glitter Gala.
Every unicorn performed in the Grand Sky Arena with music and magic and as many sparkles as possible.
Oona lined up for her turn backstage.
Her tummy churned.
The butterflies were doing cartwheels in there.
She hadn't laughed all week.
She felt like a half-deflated balloon in a sequin jacket.
It was her turn.
She trotted onto the stage and she began her routine.
One twirl.
Two trots.
One horn salute.
But then she tripped right in front of everyone.
And before she could stop,
A glitter bomb exploded from her butt.
Bubble gum.
Confetti.
Rainbow fog.
It whooshed and swooshed across the sky like a sparkly shooting star.
The arena went dead silent.
Oona froze.
Her cheeks burnt the brightest red with embarrassment.
She wished the stage would open up and swallow her right now.
Anything to be able to just disappear.
This was it.
It was the end.
And then giggles.
Then more giggles.
Then a full-blown,
Rolling,
Thunderous wave of laughter and applause from the audience.
Even Prunella was doubled over laughing.
Sir Twinklesworth was crying.
Actual tears of laughter.
The headmistress fanned herself and wheezed.
I have never in all my years seen anything so magical,
She said.
Oona blinked.
What?
Wait.
They liked it?
Later that night,
Oona curled up under the moonberry tree with her favourite teddy.
For the first time in days,
She felt happy and warm and a little bit sleepy.
She looked at the stars and thought quietly to herself.
I tried so hard to fit in.
I tried so hard to be someone I'm not.
And it may be tired and flat and not very sparkly at all.
She wiggled her hooves and a tiny puff of glitter floated out of her butt with a gentle pop.
It smelled like honey toast,
She smiled.
Being me,
Glitter and giggles and everything in between,
That's when I feel the most at my best.
That's when I feel like me.
That's when I feel like I'm meant to be me.
And now,
Little one,
As you lie in your bed,
Let Oona remind you of something very,
Very important.
You don't have to hide the parts of you that are different or weird.
You don't have to try so hard to be like anyone else.
You're already wonderful just as you are.
You might be loud and crazy sometimes.
Or you might be quiet.
You might do things your own way and in your own time.
There's nothing wrong with that.
That's being you.
And just like Oona,
The more you let yourself shine with all of your sparkle and all of your silliness and all of your softness and all of your strength,
The more your magic grows and grows and grows.
So let's take a deep breath in.
And a longer breath out.
Let your body rest.
Let your heart feel safe and seen and heard and loved.
You're not too much.
And you're not not enough.
You're just right.
Just the way you are.
Just like Oona.
Goodnight,
My loves and sweet dreams.
And I'll see you next time.
