The Painting

Welcome to another of my stories. This story is about a boy called Harvey who enjoys drawing and building things. He has designed an amusement park for the mice at the bottom of his garden. But as he takes his painting to show his brother, Roland, Harvey trips over a rug …. and something strange happens.

Thank you for all your kind messages and continued support. I truly appreciate everyone.

Transcript

Hello,

My name is Jacqueline and I'm a very proud grandma.

I write stories for my grandchildren and I'm very happy to share them with you too.

So make yourself comfortable,

Settle back because my next story is about to begin.

The painting.

The dining table was covered with pieces of paper,

Each filled with different sketches.

Amongst the papers were pencils of all different colours and small pots of paints you could paint a rainbow with.

And at the centre of it all was Harvey.

Harvey liked to draw and paint,

But most of all he loved to construct things using his Lego and the many other different building sets he owned.

His toy box was overflowing with toys he could build things with and every day he enjoyed creating something new.

His dad had bought him a tour bag to put his tools and all the smaller items needed to join the pieces together.

It was just like his dad's tour bag,

But not quite as big.

Harvey wanted to be an architect when he grew up and already at five years old he was showing great potential with his designs.

Today Harvey was working on a new project and the dining table was proof of how seriously he took his ideas.

He was putting the finishing touches to a painting when his mum came over.

What are you creating this time sweetheart?

She asked.

It's an amusement park for mice,

Harvey replied.

I'm going to build the rides and then leave them outside over by the trees at the bottom of the garden for the mice to enjoy.

There are lots of different rides in your painting,

His mum said,

Looking with amazement at all the detail her son had put into his picture.

You've even drawn the tools you will use to build each ride,

But what do you need the magnifying glass for?

It's in case I have trouble joining the tiny fiddly pieces together,

Harvey explained.

The magnifying glass makes the tiny holes appear bigger so I can see them better.

But I've never had to use it before but I always like to have it in my tour bag.

It's best to be prepared,

Don't you think?

Yes,

Agreed mum,

Looking at the painting again.

I think you've thought of everything,

She said,

Ruffling Harvey's hair.

And I'm sure your brother will help you if you need him to at any time.

Roland,

Harvey's older brother,

Really enjoyed seeing Harvey's completed creations and always liked to help him build them.

There,

I'm finished,

Said Harvey,

Placing his paintbrush down and holding the finished picture up.

That's wonderful,

Said mum.

I'm excited to see it built and I'm sure the mice will enjoy it.

Now,

I'm just about to make lunch.

Can you clear the table and then go upstairs and tell Roland we'll be eating soon?

I think he's in his bedroom reading.

Yes,

Mum,

Said Harvey,

And I'll show him my painting and see if he can help me build it.

As he cleared the table,

Harvey thought about his amusement park.

He often wondered what it would be like to play on the different things he constructed.

A few weeks ago he had designed and built a village,

Complete with shops,

A car wash and repair garage.

Whenever he completed any of his buildings,

He would daydream about being small enough to play in them.

With the dining table cleared,

Harvey picked up his painting and went upstairs to find his brother.

Opening the bedroom door,

Harvey saw Roland asleep on his bed with an opened book next to him.

Harvey went to wake him,

But tripped on the rug just inside the door.

As he fell towards the bed,

He suddenly felt a strange,

Dizzy feeling within him.

The room started spinning,

But not as quickly as you would expect.

Instead,

It spun in slow motion.

Then Harvey's vision went a little blurry.

He dropped his painting onto the ground as he scrunched his eyes up tight and reached out his hands,

Expecting to fall immediately onto the bed.

But he seemed to be falling for a while,

Until,

All of a sudden,

He landed with a bump upon something hard.

Harvey rubbed his eyes and when he opened them he found his vision was back to normal.

He looked around and saw that he was no longer in Roland's bedroom,

But lying on some grass.

He sat up and realised he had fallen into the middle of his painting.

But although the flowers and trees were as he had painted them,

The amusement park wasn't.

The rides hadn't been built yet.

In the areas the rides should have been were the piles of materials needed to build each of them,

But not one piece had been put together.

Harvey could tell the materials were his toys,

But now they were bigger than he was.

Harvey noticed he was sitting near his tool bag,

Which also was no longer small.

Now it was a tool bag the same size as his dad's,

And inside were all the tools he needed to build the rides.

Harvey stood up carefully and was glad he no longer felt dizzy.

He checked himself for bumps and bruises,

But seemed to be fine,

Except for some dust on his clothes,

Which he brushed off with his hands.

He walked over to one of the piles and realised that the materials were to build the ferris wheel.

He went to another pile,

And could tell that these materials were for the roller-coaster ride.

Finally he heard a noise coming from behind a bush.

Two little mice came out and stood in front of Harvey,

Seemingly not scared of him at all.

I say little mice,

Because in the real world they would have been,

But in this moment they were the same size as Harvey.

Hello,

Said one of the mice to Harvey.

We have been expecting you.

Hello,

Said Harvey,

A little surprised that he could understand the mouse.

I'm Sophie,

And this is Chip,

Said the mouse.

You're Harvey,

Aren't you?

Yes,

Replied Harvey,

But how do you know that?

Your name is on the entrance to the construction site,

Look!

And Sophie pointed to a big sign which read,

Amusement Park,

Designed and constructed by Harvey.

Harvey smiled as he remembered that he always added his name to his paintings.

He often dreamed about having his name up on a big sign,

And seeing this now made him feel good inside.

Yes,

That's me,

Replied Harvey,

Turning his attention back to the mice.

We are very excited to have this amusement park here,

Said Chip.

Have you got someone to help you build it?

Harvey looked around.

At home he mostly managed to build his designs by himself,

But that was when they were toy pieces.

He realised that pieces around him were far larger than he was used to dealing with.

He wished his brother was here.

Roland always helped out if Harvey needed a hand with anything.

Then as if his wish had been granted,

Roland magically appeared beside him.

Need some help?

Roland asked,

Smiling at his brother.

I sure do,

Replied Harvey,

Really pleased to see him.

We are building an amusement park for Sophie and Chip here,

He said,

Introducing the mice.

Sounds fun,

Said Roland,

After saying hello.

Well,

Let's get started,

Or we'll be here all day.

We can help too if you need us,

Said Sophie.

Yes,

Agreed Chip.

We've got nothing else to do,

And we can always get our friends to help out too.

Great,

Said Harvey.

The more helpers the better.

Let's get going.

Okay,

Said Chip,

And he let out a big whistle.

Within seconds,

About twenty mice came running over,

All willing to help.

At first,

Harvey was a little worried that this many mice would get in each other's way,

But,

As if she could read his mind,

Sophie called all the mice together and said,

Harvey is in charge,

And will tell each of you what he needs to be done.

If you listen to him and follow his orders,

This park will be finished in no time.

Got it?

Yes,

We got it!

The mice all shouted together,

And they turned to look at Harvey and waited for their orders.

Although the construction pieces were much bigger than Harvey was used to using,

They were surprisingly light and easy to manoeuvre.

He decided to start with the ferris wheel and instructed the mice on what he needed them to do.

Pretty soon they had built the large frame onto which they placed the seats.

This is amazing,

Said Sophie.

I can't wait to take a ride on it!

With the final piece of the ferris wheel put into place,

Harvey said to Sophie,

We need to test it out.

Would you and Chip like to be the first to ride upon it?

Oh yes,

Please!

They both shouted together and wasted no time climbing upon a seat.

Harvey set the ferris wheel in motion and around the wheel went.

The mice giggled with glee and enjoyed every second while their friends watched and clapped.

Soon the wheel stopped spinning and the mice climbed off.

That was so much fun,

Said Sophie.

What are we going to build next?

Harvey looked around at the various piles which needed to be constructed.

There was a roller-coaster ride,

A water slide,

A carousel,

A spinning teacup ride and bumper cars.

He decided to organise the mice into groups and then sent each group to a ride which they would be building.

Before they got started Harvey said,

Don't begin building until Roland and I have been around to each group and explained your construction,

He said.

Then,

Once you know what to do,

You can get to work.

If at any time you are unsure of something,

Call us over and we'll help you.

Understand?

Yes,

Boss!

Peaked the mice loudly.

Harvey turned to Sophie and Chip and said,

You two are in charge of making sure everyone has plenty to drink.

We have to stay hydrated in order to stay focused and work well.

Plus,

You can try to help wherever needed.

Got it!

Said Sophie and Chip,

Feeling quite important to be given these special roles.

Let's get to work then!

Shouted Harvey to everyone and amid a lot of squeaks,

Activity began.

The mice worked really hard as they banged and screwed pieces into place and it wasn't too long before the ride started to take shape.

Sophie and Chip made sure everyone had plenty to drink and even carried round some lumps of cheese to give them all extra energy.

Harvey and Roland helped too and was pleasantly surprised how enthusiastic the mice were and how quickly they worked together in their groups.

The rides were built in record time and the amusement park looked just as Harvey had first dreamt about it in his mind.

Well done,

Everyone,

Said Harvey.

I am extremely proud of you all.

This amusement park is now open.

Go and enjoy the rides.

And with a flurry of squeaking excitement,

The mice raced off,

Each wanting to be the first on each ride.

Thank you so much for creating this for us,

Sophie said to Harvey and his brother.

I've always dreamt of going on a roller coaster ride and now I can,

She said happily.

I've always dreamt of going on a waterslide,

Said Chip,

And that's where I'm going right now.

And he ran off joyfully.

Dreams do come true if you wish hard enough,

Said Harvey to Roland as Sophie ran after Chip.

I think this is one of your best designs ever,

Roland said,

And they are just the right size for us to ride on too.

Come on,

I'm going on the teacup ride first.

Harvey was about to follow him when he noticed a mouse wandering around,

Seemingly lost.

The mouse kept walking into things and wasn't really getting anywhere.

Harvey went over to him and asked,

Are you okay?

The mouse was startled for a moment and then said,

Yes.

Well,

No,

Not really.

I want to go on the rides,

But I can't see very well.

My friends helped me earlier on and gave me simple little jobs to do,

But now they've run off to enjoy the rides and I feel a little lost as I can't see clearly where to go.

My eyesight gets worse as the day goes on and I keep walking into things.

I've always dreamt of being able to see better,

But I've been like this since I was born and was told things will only get worse until I probably won't see anything at all.

The mouse looked very sad and Harvey wished there was something he could do to help.

He thought for a moment and then asked,

What's your name?

My name's Ollie,

The little mouse replied.

Well,

Ollie,

Said Harvey,

You have been kind enough to help me build my amusement park,

So now it's my turn to do something for you.

Wait here a moment.

I won't be long.

And he went off to find his tool bag.

In the bag,

He searched amongst the tools until he found his magnifying glass.

He rummaged again in the bag and found some wire left over from when he had built the car wash in his village a few weeks ago.

Using some of his tools,

He managed to cut two small round circles out of the magnifying glass.

Then with a piece of sandpaper,

He rubbed the edges of the glass circles until they were smooth to the touch.

Then he cleverly wrapped the wire around the glass pieces until he had created a pair of glasses.

Happy with his creation,

Harvey hurried back to where Ollie was waiting for him.

Ollie was sitting on the grass quite happily humming a tune to himself and didn't seem to notice Harvey had returned.

Harvey gently tapped Ollie on his shoulder so as not to startle him too much.

I'm back,

He said.

Sorry I took so long,

But I've made these for you.

And he placed the pair of glasses onto Ollie's paw.

The mouse looked surprised as he squinted at the glasses and then realised what they were.

He hadn't expected anything like this.

He tried to hook the glasses over his ears,

But they didn't seem to fit.

Here,

Let me help,

Said Harvey,

And he wiggled the wires until the glasses fitted perfectly around Ollie's ears and sat snugly upon his nose.

Ollie looked around,

But didn't say anything.

Then tiny tears fell from his eyes.

Are you okay?

Asked Harvey,

Concerned that he had upset the mouse.

I can see,

Whispered Ollie.

I can see perfectly,

He cried louder.

I can see all the pretty flowers and the trees.

And I can see the rides,

And they look amazing and so colourful.

Harvey smiled and felt so happy for the little fellow.

I'm so pleased the glasses help you,

He said.

They are more than helping me,

Replied Ollie.

They have opened up a new world for me.

I had resigned myself to never being able to see things clearly,

But now life feels so much different already.

Thank you,

He cried,

Throwing himself into Harvey's arms.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

We have helped each other today,

Said Harvey,

Hugging Ollie tightly.

At that moment,

Roland came over.

I wondered where you had got to,

He said to Harvey.

Is everything okay?

Ollie showed Roland his new glasses.

Wow!

Exclaimed Roland.

That's another amazing creation,

Harvey.

You really are a genius with what you can make.

I don't know how you do it.

Well,

I believe if I can think it,

Then there must be a way to create it,

Replied Harvey.

After all,

Everything in the world began as a thought in someone's mind.

Yes,

You're right,

Said Roland,

Agreeing with him.

Can I go on a ride now?

Asked Ollie,

Who didn't want to waste a second of his life now that he could see clearly.

Yes,

Have a ride on them all,

Said Harvey,

Laughing as the excited mouse ran off to join his friends.

All the mice were having fun,

And Harvey and Roland enjoyed the rides themselves.

While they were waiting for their turn to go on the roller-coaster,

Roland sat down.

I'm exhausted,

He said,

Yawning as he fell back onto the soft grass.

Wake me when it's our turn to ride.

And he drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

Harvey smiled.

He had had such an exciting day,

And seeing the mice having fun was a wonderful experience.

For the first time since being here,

He started to wonder how this had all happened.

He remembered wondering what it would be like to ride on his creations.

He often thought this,

No matter what he built.

And he did believe that if you wanted to do something enough,

In some way it can come true.

As the roller-coaster ride began to slow down,

Harvey bent down to wake Roland up.

But as he did so,

He suddenly felt that same strange feeling within him.

He began to feel dizzy,

Then his vision went a little blurry,

And then he fell to the ground on top of Roland.

Time stood still for a few seconds.

Harvey took a deep breath before slowly opening his eyes.

Everything still seemed a little blurry,

And he couldn't quite make out where he was.

He closed his eyes tightly,

Just as he felt a thump on his arm.

He opened his eyes again and this time found himself looking straight into Roland's eyes.

What are you doing lying on top of me?

Asked Roland,

Trying to move Harvey away from him.

I was having a really fun dream until you woke me up,

He said,

A little annoyed.

I was waiting to go on a roller-coaster ride that you and I had built with the help of a group of mice.

Puzzled,

Harvey sat up and looked around.

He was no longer at the amusement park,

But back in Roland's bedroom with his painting in his hand.

Roland sat up and looked over at Harvey's painting.

That's exactly the amusement park we built in my dream,

He said.

How weird that I should dream about it!

Harvey didn't know what to say.

It had all seemed so real at the time,

But maybe he had dreamt it too.

At that moment their mum called up the stairs.

Harvey,

Roland,

Lunch is ready.

Wash your hands and then come down please.

Harvey went towards the bedroom door and noticed the rug flipped up where he had tripped over it earlier.

Well,

That part hadn't been a dream,

He thought.

He really had tripped on the rug.

Come on,

Slow coach,

Said Roland,

Pushing past Harvey.

I'm starving.

And he rushed into the bathroom to wash his hands.

Harvey looked at his painting.

Whatever had happened earlier,

He had enjoyed it.

While he waited for Roland,

Something caught his eye outside the bedroom window.

Over by the trees at the bottom of the garden sat a mouse.

He was a little far away,

But to Harvey it looked as if the mouse was wearing a pair of glasses.

They looked at each other for a moment and then the mouse ran into the bushes behind the trees.

The bathroom is free,

Harvey,

Shouted Roland before rushing downstairs.

Harvey smiled to himself.

The dream must have been real,

He decided.

But should he tell Roland?

No,

He thought.

He probably wouldn't believe him anyway.

Harvey's tummy rumbled,

Bringing him back to the moment,

And he went into the bathroom to wash his hands.

Sitting at the dining table,

Mum asked,

Are you going to make that amusement park you designed and painted,

Harvey?

Yes,

If Roland will help me,

Harvey said,

Looking over at his brother.

Yes,

I'll help,

Replied Roland as he took a big bite of his hot dog.

If your rides are as good as in my dream,

Harvey,

The mice will love riding on them.

Harvey smiled as he squeezed a good dollop of tomato ketchup all over his hot dog.

He thought to himself,

Everything really does start with a dream.

Even tomato ketchup began as a dream to someone who then decided to find a way to make it real.

Yes,

Dreams do have a funny way of coming true.

Harvey bit into his hot dog.

Thankful,

He had such a good imagination and wondered what he could think to design next.

I hope you've enjoyed listening to my story.

Before you go,

I'd like to ask you a question.

What have you dreamt about doing and then successfully accomplished it?

Thanks again for listening and come back soon to hear another story from Grandma.

Bye for now.

Reviews

When will a new story be out???

Love your story's 🥰❤

When is the next story and when? I think ive listened to all of them!

Having my best friend Addisyn come to visit!! It happened not at all long ago!! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaattttttttttttttttttttttttt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I’ve never dreamed to build anything and make it but i might in the future

When I was three I really really really wanted to go to school I know I’m 9 and I love school

This was an amazing meditation and I love how Olly and Harvey have a win win situation, also I dreamt about making a bunch of different paper airplanes at school with my friend and then did that.

I also think it would be cool if you did another rocket the cat meditation. 😺

Its funny you asked my dream come true because i just had a truly nice day and that’s a dream come true thx

Hi 👋 hi 👋 thanks 😊 thank you for checking with my folks

I dream of falling😂 I liked this meditation

Thanks! Maybe add some music at the end for some relaxation 🤔😁♥️

Nothing I just have crazy dreams lol

Yes yes yes
I’m so happy you used chip
thank you so much
Also one of my dreams was to met my favourite sports player and I am going to tomorrow ☺️😁