Hannah and the Tiny Lost Sparkle

In a house that smelled like warm toast and sunshine, lived a girl named Hannah. Her bedroom was a wonderland of rainbows she’d drawn herself and soft, cuddly unicorns. Her very best friend was Sparklehoof, a little unicorn with a glittery horn. Every morning, Hannah would carefully brush his rainbow mane and tell him stories about a magical land where rivers flowed with lemonade.

One afternoon, while Hannah was building a castle of cushions, Mum came into the room. Her smile was a little wobbly, and she looked worried. "Oh, Hannah," she said softly, "I've lost one of my special sparkly earrings. The one from Grandma." The earring was tiny, like a captured dewdrop, and could be anywhere. The whole house suddenly felt a bit less sunny.

“I’ll help you, Mum! I’m a super helper!” Hannah declared. She puffed out her chest and started her search. First, she looked in all the big places: under the squishy couch, behind the tall bookshelf, and even inside Dad's big gardening boot! But the tiny earring was nowhere to be found. A little sigh escaped her lips. “It’s just too small,” she mumbled, feeling her helpful-superpowers begin to fizzle.

Hannah sat on the shaggy rug, feeling glum. She looked at Sparklehoof and remembered how she had to think like a tiny unicorn to find his lost toy carrot once. “That’s it!” she whispered. “I need to think like a tiny, sparkly thing!” She got down on her tummy, her nose almost touching the rug. The world looked like a big, fluffy forest. And then, near the leg of the coffee table, she saw it… shimmer, shimmer, sparkle! A tiny dot of light was winking at her.

“I found it!” she yelled, carefully picking up the earring. She raced to her mum, whose face lit up like the brightest rainbow Hannah had ever drawn. That night, tucked into bed, Hannah hugged Sparklehoof tight. She knew that even the biggest problems could be solved if you just tried looking at them in a new way, and that being helpful was the most wonderful magic in the whole wide world.