Joy in Jordan

Today was the turn of another natural wonder to bewilder the boys. Sid had recently learned about the New Seven wonders of the world, and was interested in Petra. He managed to convince Joy, and told the fairy so when she arrived in the night.
Happily, the Fairy took them to the nearby country of Jordan. Soon, they reached the Al-Siq, a long and narrow natural passage through the rocks that leads to the ancient city of Petra.
“We will need to walk through this passage. It is too narrow to fly.” explained the blue Fairy. And so the trio started walking through the winding route of Al-Siq. Before long, Joy grew very tired, and refused to walk any more. He liked flying much better.
“I’ll stay here and wait for you guys. Anyways, I am not interested in Putra.” Said he.
“Petra!” corrected Sid. The whole city is carved out of mountains, Joy. You can not miss it.” The blue fairy insisted too, and finally Joy had to agree.
Soon they saw the first glimpse of the Treasury building of Petra. The elegant rose-red building fascinated Sid and he showed no signs of fatigue. He ran towards the building and started exploring the mystical city of Petra. Joy, on the other hand, was rather unimpressed.
“It looks the same in pictures”, he complained, much to the amusement of Blue Fairy.
“May be you will be more interested in another tourist attraction of Jordan. It might also help Sid to get over his fear of water.” she suggested.
That got Joy’s attention!! “Dead Sea!” he exclaimed. “It’s a great idea!!”
And so, they flew towards the dead sea after a while. Sid, as expected, was quite unhappy with this development.
“You both know I don’t like water much.” He protested.
“The water of dead sea is special.” Blue Fairy replied. “It is so salty that anyone can easily float on it.”
“It is also the lowest dry point on the earth”, added Joy quickly, eager to show off his knowledge.
Well, so they reached the Dead Sea, and the boys did try their hand at swimming. Sid had a whale of time floating easily on the saline waters of Dead Sea. He did indeed, as planned, overcame his fears.
In a little while, they were on their way back home. “It has been, by far, the most useful trip” commented little Sid, pleased with his experiences with water. “Let’s go to a normal water body next time.”
And the boys got in an argument over the next destination even before they could reach home! The blue fairy lost her patience listening to their quarrel, and said she’ll take them to a place of her choice.
“But Norway was your choice too!!” complained the boys together.
“Did you not like it?” she asked. Obviously they did, and so they decided it really would be better that the fairy decides the next stop. Till then, they can bet on it!

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Joy in Norway

Much to Sid’s surprise, Joy wasn’t keen on planning anything for this week’s trip. He was rather quite against the idea. “This is sure unusual”, thought Sid. “Joy is always so enthusiastic about the trips!”
He understood Joy’s feelings better when the Blue Fairy visited them that night. Joy was still gloomy and grumpy, and when the Blue Fairy asked them their destination, Joy said he wasn’t interested.
“Ok”, the Blue Fairy said, with a mischievous smile. “I suppose I should go back to the fairyland then?”
“That is where I want to go.” Joy replied immediately. “I miss the wonderful sights of the FairyLand , Blue Fairy.”
“And what is it that you miss the most, my boy?” asked the Fairy.
Joy thought for a while, and said, “I know Earth has umpteen wonders too, but I liked Fairy Lands’ seven rainbow lit sky the best. Everything looked magical under that sky. Sure Earth can not match that beauty. Our sky is always in the boring shades of blue and black.”
“Let me surprise you”, said the Blue Fairy, and took the boys to Norway.
“Norway is a Scandinavian country, very close to the north pole.” She told them only this much, and decided to let them see the other wonders themselves.
They landed in front of a building apparently fully covered with ice. As they walked inside, they realized that the building is not covered, but is made up of ice itself. The walls, the floor and even the furniture were made of ice!!
The boys, now covered with the fairy’s magical shawl, could only mutter a wow!
“It is the ice hotel.” The Blue Fairy told them. “It is made anew from ice every winter, and it melts down every summer.”
Sid was amazed at this, but Joy still thought that nothing compared to the magical wonders of the FairyLand. Little did he know, that the Blue Fairy had taken upon herself to renew his interest in the endless beauty of Earth. She guided them out of the hotel, and asked them to look at the north sky.
To their surprise, they saw a sky illuminated. The sky was filled with streaks of colourful lights, much more marvelous than a hundred rainbows!! They were red and green, and seemed to paint the canvas of sky with an ethereal beauty.
“How did you do that!” gasped Joy. The unbelievable sight had to be work of Blue fairy’s magic, he was sure.
“I did nothing.” She replied. “These are called Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, and are natural. They can be seen in places around the Poles.”
Suddenly Sid realized that the sky was lit, sun was up, and this meant it was already morning!! They were late for their trip back home. “Our parents must have found out our absence. They must be so worried” he panicked, and so did Joy. Strange enough, the blue Fairy was calm.
“There’s plenty of time to reach back home” she said. “Norway is called the land of midnight sun. Here, Sun does not sets completely during the summers. Nevertheless, we must start our journey back.”Full of memories that can surpass any fairy tale, the boys returned to the familiar coziness of their homes. There, Joy declared he’ll never underestimate Earth ever again!

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Joy at the Niagara Falls

There was nothing to discuss. Everyone knew the place to go this week- the thunderous Niagara Falls. So much so, that the Blue Fairy came prepared with two magical raincoats handy!
“Why do we need raincoats? Does it rain often at the falls?” asked Sid.
“No, the raincoats are not for the rainwater, dear.” Replied the blue fairy. “The Niagara falls are massive- they are actually a set of waterfalls, and the water from these falls can drench you. This might be especially distracting while flying.”
Armed with the raincoats, the boys flew towards the Niagara Falls. Joy was most excited, because he had read about them in a book a few days ago. Now that he had a chance, he also wanted to show off his knowledge to the fairy.
“I am thrilled about seeing the Horseshoe Falls, Blue Fairy” he said.
“Horseshoe Falls!” exclaimed Sid. “I thought we were going to the Niagara Falls.” As it is, he didn’t like water much. And now Joy is taking them to yet another waterfall!
“Horseshoe falls are a part of the Niagara Falls, Sid.” The Blue Fairy saw his unhappiness, and explained. “They are not much high, but are very wide. They mark the boundary between USA and Canada. A lot of water falls down this exceptionally powerful waterfall everyday. In fact, Niagara Falls are a very important source of electricity in that area.”
“Electricity??” cried the kids. “A waterfall can give us water, but how can it give us electricity?”
“Electricity can be generated from a number of ways, children”, the fairy replied. “And fast moving water is one of those ways. The electricity thus generated is called Hydroelectricity.”
Much of the blue fairy’s sentence was drowned in a loud noise. It sounded like thunder, except that the sky was totally clear. It also sounded like fast moving traffic on a highway, but there was not much traffic in night. What was this thunderous sound??
The Fairy shouted on top of her lungs to be audible: “It is the sound of the falls. We are approaching them now.”
The boys flew right behind the blue fairy, and soon were flying over an incredibly beautiful display of nature’s power. They landed at the ground just besides the falls. The water fell in three sections- the main ‘Horseshoe Falls’, the ‘American Falls’ and the small ‘Bridal Veil Falls’.
“I’ll come back to take you guys home”, shouted the Blue fairy, so that the awestruck boys could hear her.
“No please.” Sid immediately pleaded with her. “I’ll be with you”.
Wonderful, as the scene was, Sid was scared of the water. He remembered his encounter with sharks last season while using the magical fins.
Reluctantly, Joy too agreed to leave for home early. And the kids reached back home much sooner than expected.
“Make sure you learn to swim during the summers!” said Joy to Sid. “Then we can spend more time at such lovely locations.”

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Joy at TajMahal

Joy at the Taj Mahal


“Where shall we go next?” is what Joy and Sid kept discussing the whole week. Sid wanted to go to see the Taj Mahal, but Joy was keener on the Niagara Falls. Finally, they wrote the two names on pieces of paper, folded them, and asked Ginni to pick one up. Ginni picked up the paper marked “Taj Mahal”. So they agreed to go to Taj Mahal this week, and to Niagara Falls the next.
The Blue Fairy was only too happy to oblige. “Taj Mahal is the epitome of love”, she explained.
“What love?” asked Joy, still a little grumpy, since he wanted to go to the world famous waterfalls instead of yet another building.
The blue fairy noticed his lack of enthusiasm and said, “I guess you don’t know enough about the Taj Mahal. It is no doubt a very beautiful building, marked by intricate carvings in white marble, on the banks of river Yamuna. But the marvel of Taj Mahal lies in something else.”
“Something else! What?”asked the two children in chorus.
“Taj Mahal was built as a symbol of love. The Mogul emperor of India, Shah Jahan, got it made in memory of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal.”
“Oh!!” said the children, obviously not finding much to be impressed about. Sid told Joy that it is one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and that got some of his attention.
Soon the trio reached Agra, the north Indian city where Taj Mahal is situated. Joy looked around the city, hoping to find Taj Mahal towering above the rest of the city.
“We have been visiting only tall buildings lately”, said the blue fairy, smiling. “You can’t find Taj Mahal like that.”
Sid had a better idea to locate the Taj Mahal. Knowing that it is situated on the banks of river Yamuna, he followed the river, and soon found himself flying over one of the most beautiful buildings in the world.
“Wow!!” was the only thing the kids could utter. They roamed around and about the timeless monument, and were taken in by its’ sheer beauty.
“The Blue Fairy didn’t leave us tonight?” suddenly Joy asked. “She usually comes back only to pick us up.”
That was strange indeed. There must be some reason why the fairy decided to stay back at the Taj. She was sitting silently at the base of the Taj Mahal, looking tirelessly at it. The boys stopped goofing around, and quietly tiptoed to her. Only when they were rather close to her, they noticed that the Blue Fairy was crying!!
This puzzled them. But Sid soon understood. He went up to the fairy and hugged her.
“Oh!” exclaimed the blue Fairy, wiping away her tears. “How I wish someone loved me as much..” she said softly, still looking wishfully at the majestic Taj Mahal.
While Sid sat down with the Fairy, Joy flew fast to one of the many souvenir shops nearby. He picked up a small marble replica of the Taj Mahal, and rushed back to the Fairy.
“We love you!!” he yelled, and presented the little Taj Mahal to the fairy. A lovely smile glowed on her beautiful face, as she held the kids close.
“I love you too!” she said gently. “And it is now time for you two monkeys to go back home.”
They laughed and giggled all the way home, thanking God probably for the first time for each other.

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Joy in Paris

JOY IN PARIS

This time Joy and Sid had decided to behave nicely on their special trip. They had heard a lot about Paris, and wanted to see it. But the Blue Fairy was in a bad mood last time due to their blunders, and they knew that they should keep her happy if they wanted these weekend trips to continue.
So when the Blue Fairy came in their dreams this night, they put on their best behavior.
“Blue Fairy, we want to see the Eiffel Tower. Can you please take us to Paris today? We promise not to be naughty at all.”
Blue Fairy was extremely happy to hear that. “I always wanted to see Paris.” She said. “Do you know it is the fashion capital of the world? It boasts of the world’s finest designers and dresses.”
Joy and Sid were least interested in fashion. They wanted to see the world famous Eiffel Tower.
So, the Blue Fairy and the two kids flew across the skies to Paris. Blue Fairy was so excited about Paris; she kept on talking about the wonderful dresses and fashion houses based there.
“Do you think I can get to try some dress for myself?” she wondered aloud.
“Joy, won’t we get bored if all Blue Fairy shows us is those dresses and shops? I hate shopping!!” exclaimed Sid.
“Well, we’ll ask her to drop us at the Eiffel Tower.” Joy replied, and so they did. The Blue Fairy dropped them off at the second level of the Eiffel Tower, and rushed off. She was in such a hurry, she didn’t even ask them not to be naughty!! Anyhow, the boys had made enough mistakes in the past, and knew they had to be careful from now.
Paris looked stunningly beautiful from the heights of Eiffel Tower. The iron tower: all lit up against the dark night sky, looked magnificent as well. Joy and Sid spend a lot of time climbing its stairs and running around.
Soon, it was time to go back home, but the Blue Fairy was nowhere to be seen!! They had to reach home before the crack of dawn. The friends waited for the Blue Fairy for some more time, but it became clear quickly that there has been some trouble. Blue Fairy has never been late before….
They decided that it is time to fly down the tower and start looking out for the Fairy. So the boys flew down, over the dark streets of Paris, looking for their Blue Fairy. Not long after, they saw someone shimmering quietly in a dark corner. As they approached, they found it was the Blue Fairy indeed. She sat sobbing sadly in a corner, without her wings or the magic wand!!
“I wanted to check the lovely, fashionable dresses in these boutiques”, she explained. “So I took my wings and wand off and kept them here on the pavement. Disguised as a normal girl, I went in the store and was mesmerized by all the clothes. But when I came out, I couldn’t find my wings and wand anywhere. They are lost, and I can’t fly or do any magic now.”
“We’ll find them” said Joy, and the boys started flying low on the streets looking everywhere for the fairy’s wings and wand. They found it lying in a dustbin nearby- someone obviously thought it was trash!!! When they got it back to the blue fairy, she was extremely thankful.
“I didn’t know even fairies are mad about fashion!” said Sid, as they flew back home just in the nick of time.
“Girls!” sighed Joy, wondering if they should ask the Blue Fairy to be more careful from next time on!!!

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Joy in Paris

JOY IN PARIS

This time Joy and Sid had decided to behave nicely on their special trip. They had heard a lot about Paris, and wanted to see it. But the Blue Fairy was in a bad mood last time due to their blunders, and they knew that they should keep her happy if they wanted these weekend trips to continue.
So when the Blue Fairy came in their dreams this night, they put on their best behavior.
“Blue Fairy, we want to see the Eiffel Tower. Can you please take us to Paris today? We promise not to be naughty at all.”
Blue Fairy was extremely happy to hear that. “I always wanted to see Paris.” She said. “Do you know it is the fashion capital of the world? It boasts of the world’s finest designers and dresses.”
Joy and Sid were least interested in fashion. They wanted to see the world famous Eiffel Tower.
So, the Blue Fairy and the two kids flew across the skies to Paris. Blue Fairy was so excited about Paris; she kept on talking about the wonderful dresses and fashion houses based there.
“Do you think I can get to try some dress for myself?” she wondered aloud.
“Joy, won’t we get bored if all Blue Fairy shows us is those dresses and shops? I hate shopping!!” exclaimed Sid.
“Well, we’ll ask her to drop us at the Eiffel Tower.” Joy replied, and so they did. The Blue Fairy dropped them off at the second level of the Eiffel Tower, and rushed off. She was in such a hurry, she didn’t even ask them not to be naughty!! Anyhow, the boys had made enough mistakes in the past, and knew they had to be careful from now.
Paris looked stunningly beautiful from the heights of Eiffel Tower. The iron tower: all lit up against the dark night sky, looked magnificent as well. Joy and Sid spend a lot of time climbing its stairs and running around.
Soon, it was time to go back home, but the Blue Fairy was nowhere to be seen!! They had to reach home before the crack of dawn. The friends waited for the Blue Fairy for some more time, but it became clear quickly that there has been some trouble. Blue Fairy has never been late before….
They decided that it is time to fly down the tower and start looking out for the Fairy. So the boys flew down, over the dark streets of Paris, looking for their Blue Fairy. Not long after, they saw someone shimmering quietly in a dark corner. As they approached, they found it was the Blue Fairy indeed. She sat sobbing sadly in a corner, without her wings or the magic wand!!
“I wanted to check the lovely, fashionable dresses in these boutiques”, she explained. “So I took my wings and wand off and kept them here on the pavement. Disguised as a normal girl, I went in the store and was mesmerized by all the clothes. But when I came out, I couldn’t find my wings and wand anywhere. They are lost, and I can’t fly or do any magic now.”
“We’ll find them” said Joy, and the boys started flying low on the streets looking everywhere for the fairy’s wings and wand. They found it lying in a dustbin nearby- someone obviously thought it was trash!!! When they got it back to the blue fairy, she was extremely thankful.
“I didn’t know even fairies are mad about fashion!” said Sid, as they flew back home just in the nick of time.
“Girls!” sighed Joy, wondering if they should ask the Blue Fairy to be more careful from next time on!!!

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Joy in NewYork

JOY IN NEW YORK

Joy and Sid had discussed at length about the place they would visit this weekend. Finally, they had decided to see the Statue of Liberty in New York. Soon, the friends slept, waiting for the Blue Fairy to come.
When the Blue Fairy came in Joy’s dreams that night, she wasn’t expecting a ready request. “We want to go to see the Statue of Liberty!” Joy appealed, even before she could say anything!!!
Smiling, she teased him, “I thought you said Earth isn’t as much fun as Fairy Land!”
“Oh please, Blue Fairy”, he pleaded. “I and Sid have found out numerous exciting places we’d like to go. Earth is indeed wonderful.”
The Blue fairy obliged and took Joy and Sid to New York. As they flew, the freezing cold air numbed them, and they could fly no more. The Blue Fairy noticed. “New York gets very cold in winters”, she said and gave them a light shawl. They quickly wrapped it around, and became weather-proof. The Blue Fairy left them at the Liberty Island, where the Statue of Liberty is situated.
“Wow!!” exclaimed Joy. “It is so tall!”
“46.5 m, to be exact”, said Sid. “It was a gift from the French to the American people on the centenary of their independence.”
“How old is she?” asked Joy, flying in circles around the statue.
“Well, she was erected in 1886!” told Sid.
“Hmm, she doesn’t look that old” said Joy, and started laughing. But soon, there was no more to look at. How long can two flying, restless children spend near a statue? Joy spotted a land full of skyscrapers in distance.
“What is that place? I’ve never seen so many tall buildings together!” he asked.
“It is Manhattan.” Sid was quick to reply. He was equally fascinated. “I have seen it in T.V.”
Without much deliberation, the boys flew to island county of Manhattan. They flew over the towering buildings much like the birds do, and it sure was a great view. After flying a great deal around Manhattan, they came near the tallest building.
“It is Empire State building, and is 102 floors high. It became the tallest building in Manhattan after the World Trade Center towers fell.”
“I know” snubbed Sid, who was tempted by the huge Antenna and lightning rod at the very top of the building. He flew very close to it, and his shawl got entangled in the rod.
As much as he tried to free himself, he couldn’t. Joy flew near, and tried to help, but it is difficult to work at such heights while wearing a shawl and flying. Sid tried to come out of the Shawl, but it was very cold.
“Don’t leave the shawl” cried Sid. “You’ll not be able to fly because of the cold.” The kids struggled awkwardly with the shawl for a long time, till the Blue Fairy arrived.
She was aghast at finding them in trouble (again!), and that too at a place different from where she left them. The fairy warned them to behave safely from the next trip, or else she’ll stop taking them around the world.
Sid wanted to see more of Manhattan, but the Blue Fairy was very angry. “May be I’ll ask that sometime later.” He mumbled, and flew back home with Joy like a good obedient child.

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Joy in China

JOY IN CHINA.

As always, Joy went to bed this weekend in anticipation of going to Fairy Land with the Blue Fairy. But things were going to be different again.
When Blue Fairy came to his dreams in the night, she was brimming with excitement and dancing with happiness.
“You sure look very happy, Blue Fairy!!” said Joy.
“I am, Joy! And it is all because of you.” she replied. “The Fairy King noticed what you did for so many of the Fairytale characters. He has decided to fix all the problems now.”
“That sure is good news!!” Joy said, “Let’s go and see!!” as he got up from the bed.
“I’m afraid you can’t” the Blue fairy replied. “Fairy Land is now closed for renovation. But I can take you anywhere else you wish!”
Disappointed, Joy said no place can be as much fun as Fairy Land!! The Blue Fairy laughed heartily at listening this. “Earth is more beautiful than anywhere else, Joy. There is so much to see in your own land.”
Joy knew that the Blue Fairy was right. But he didn’t want to go anywhere alone any more. So he asked if Sid could come along, and the blue fairy agreed. The two boys decided to go to the Great Wall of China.
The Blue fairy took them to Great Wall of China. “I’ll come to pick you up later” she said, and left. The kids saw some steps leading up to a huge long wall, and climbed up. They were atop the Great Wall of China, and could see it extending on both directions like an endless river.
“Wow!!” exclaimed Joy. “I wonder which house would need a wall so long?”
“No Silly”, Sid explained. “It was made to protect Chinese people from invaders”.
As soon as Sid finished his sentence, two Chinese men approached them, and started talking to them in Mandarin, the Chinese language. Joy could not understand a single word, but Sid could catch the words “Beijing’ and ‘Olympics’ from their sentences. Confused, he nodded and said Yes! The moment he said ‘yes’; the men took them to a waiting helicopter. Now, the boy had never ridden a helicopter, so the quite willingly climbed up. It was only when the helicopter started flying; they realized that they have done a grave error! They were with strangers they could not understand, going to an unknown place. How would the Blue Fairy find them??
The helicopter reached Beijing, the capital of China. It was marked with tall buildings, and crisscross flyovers. The copter landed at a huge stadium, and the two Chinese men started showing the stadium to them. Joy was so scared, he was about to cry. Sid noticed this and calmed him.
“Joy, I think we have been confused for someone else. These people are showing us the preparations underway for Olympic Games that will be held in China in 2008.”
“I don’t care” wailed Joy. “You just tell me how will we reach back home!!”
“I’ll take you” said a familiar sweet voice from behind. The boys turned back, and were ecstatic to find the Blue Fairy.
“Why did you come here with complete strangers!! I had to fly all over China to locate you two!!” she scolded them all the way to home, but Joy and Sid were just glad to be safe with her.

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Joy and Thumbelina

JOY AND THUMBELINA

It was a fine day today. Joys’ winter vacations had started, and his father had given him a magnifying glass. Everything looked much bigger under the magnifying glass, and it was fun to see them so. When the night fell, Joy slept with the glass still in his pocket.
The Blue Fairy came in his dreams as usual. They went over the crescent moon and the twinkling stars into the huge white cloud of Fairy Land. It was rather chilly today in Fairy Land, as the winters had set in there as well. Snowflakes were falling lightly, and Joy was shivering in his nightclothes. The Blue Fairy noticed, and gave him a shimmering blue shawl. Light though it was, the shawl was indeed very warm, and Joy felt snug and cozy as they traveled past the seven rainbows to the snow covered ground of Fairy Land.
Now, Joy was seeing the snow for the first time in his life, and it amused him a lot. He started playing with the snow: making snowballs, sliding down the slopes, having fun. The magical blue shawl of the Blue Fairy protected him from the cold. Soon he grew tired and lied down on the snow near a big tree. Then, he heard very quiet and faint sobs. Looking around, he could see no one. But Joy was sure that he did hear someone crying. He followed the faint sobs, and reached the foot of the tree, where a very very tiny girl, small as a thumb, was standing and crying.
Can you guess who the tiny little girl was?
It was Thumbelina!! She was so small, Joy could hardly see her! He took the magnifying glass out of his pocket and looked at the prettiest girl ever. Thumbelina was also looking curiously at Joy, but her sad, wet eyes told Joy that she has been crying for a long time.
“Don’t be scared, Thumbelina”, said Joy. “I will not harm you. Tell me why you are crying, maybe I can help you!”
“I’m not crying for myself.” replied Thumbelina. Her voice was so faint, that Joy could hardly hear her. He kneeled down and concentrated hard on each word she said. “I’ll have to marry Mr. Mole soon, and I’ll have to live underground, away from the warm sunshine and the beautiful flowers. But I am not crying for myself. I despair for the beautiful swallow that is lying cold under the ground. She is a lovely bird, and I wish I could help her somehow. But she is so weak and frail from the cold, nothing can warm her up.” And with that thought, the tiny maiden started sobbing again.
Joy realized the problem. The Fairy Land was in a cloud, and therefore, it was much colder than elsewhere. Joy asked Thumbelina where the swallow was, and Thumbelina pointed to a little hole in the ground. The sunrays from the hole indeed reached the numb bird, but were not enough. Joy dug the hole up further to reach to the bird. He had never touched a bird before, and it took all his courage to pick the swallow out of the hole. But he knew that he’s the only one who could save the swallow. The poor bird was nearly frozen to death. Thumbelina had been nursing it for a few days now, but her tiny hands were powerless in the harsh winters of Fairy Land.
Joy took his magical blue shawl off, and wrapped it around the bird. He shivered in the extreme cold, but the swallow fluttered slightly, and opened its eyes. He massaged it gently, and soon the bird was well.
That was when the Fairy came. “Let me take you to your warm home now, Joy, and the swallow will take care of Thumbelina. You were indeed kind to give your warm clothes to a needy creature.” Joy smiled, and waved goodbye to little Thumbelina, who was busy hugging the swallow.



PUZZLE:

Kids, do you remember the original Jack Thumbelina story? Try answering these questions to find out:
Where did Thumbelina come from?
What served as her bed?
Where did the swallow take her to?

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Joy and the Beanstalk

JOY AND THE BEANSTALK.

It was weekend again. Joy was very excited that he would see the Blue Fairy and the Fairy Land again. As soon as darkness fell, he asked his mother to give him dinner, so that he can go to bed.
“Why do you want to sleep so early tonight?” asked his mother, puzzled. Joy insisted, and was in the bed as soon as he could. Of course, it’s not easy to sleep when you are excited, and he had to take quite a few deep breaths before he could relax and sleep.
For sure, the Blue Fairy came in his dreams as always, smiling. “Are you ready, Joy?” she asked. “A boy just like you is waiting for you in the Fairy Land.”
Wondering who that boy could be, Joy accompanied the Blue Fairy to the magical journey, over the crescent moon and the twinkling stars into the huge white cloud of Fairy Land. As they approached the seven rainbows, Joy noticed a huge beanstalk crossing the rainbows and reaching up to the clouds. There was a boy standing on the ground, near the beanstalk. Can you guess who the boy was?
It was Jack! Joy went straight to him.
“I am going to climb this beanstalk again!” he told Joy. “Do you know that this beanstalk leads to a castle where a Giant lives!” Then he asked, “Would you want to come along?”
Interested as Joy was to see the Giants’ castle, he wanted to make sure everything was in order first. So he asked Jack, “I’d like to meet your mother.”
“Well”, replied Jack sadly, “My mother couldn’t come to this new Fairy Land cloud. When I get enough money from the Giant, I will go and get her.”
In that case, Joy thought, it is better for me to stay back and help Jack when the Giant comes chasing him. So he asked Jack to move on, and waited patiently by the beanstalk.
Soon, he saw Jack scrambling down the beanstalk carrying the magical Harp, and the Giant was chasing him behind.
“Help me!!” shouted Jack.
“Where’s the axe?” Joy shouted back, looking frantically in Jack’s cottage, so that he can cut the beanstalk.
“Axe??” Jack replied back. “I left it with my mother in the old cloud! Help me fast; otherwise the Giant would grind my bones to make his bread!”
Joy was bewildered. He looked around in hope of finding something else useful. His eyes set on an apple tree, and he remembered about the magical properties of the Fairy Land fruits. He immediately plucked an apple and ate it.
Meanwhile, the Giant was on the beanstalk, and it was swaying to and fro.
“Save me”, shouted Jack angrily, “instead of eating apples!!!”
He didn’t know Joy’s clever plan. Joy pulled at the roots of the beanstalk with all his new found strength. He used all his might, and pulled the huge beanstalk right off the soil!!! The Giant came crashing down to the ground and Jack was saved!
Jack was grateful to his new friend for saving his life. He thanked Joy again and again. The Blue Fairy also thanked Joy on their way back.
“Would Jack be able to get his mother on the new cloud now?” asked Joy, concerned about his friend.
“Yes!” smiled the Blue Fairy. “Thanks to you, a lot of troubles in our kingdom are being solved Joy. You are our hero.”
Joy smiled. It meant he can visit Fairy Land again next week.


PUZZLE:

Kids, do you remember the original Jack and the Beanstalk story? Try answering these questions to find out:

How did Jack grow the beanstalk ?
What was the name of Jack’s cow?
What did the Giant say when he smelled a human in his castle first?

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Joy and Rapunzel

Joy and RAPUNZEL


Joy’s excitement knew no limits today. Now that he knew that the Blue Fairy can take more than one person to the Fairy Land, he had decided to take his best friend, Sid along. He had already asked Sid to sleep over at his home, and to be ready for a surprise.
When the Blue Fairy came in Joy’s dreams, she met with his pre-decided request.
“Please, Blue Fairy. Sid is my best friend. Please let him come with me this time. It will be so much fun!!”
“I’m not allowed to take kids frequently to the Fairy Land you know.” The Blue Fairy replied. “But I took Ginni last time, so I suppose I can take Sid this time. But it will be just for this one trip.”
Joy agreed, and the Blue Fairy touched the friends lightly, and flew off. They flew right behind her, over the crescent moon and the twinkling stars into the huge white cloud of Fairy Land. Sid couldn’t believe his eyes, until he saw the Blue Fairy. He was extremely happy. As the seven rainbow lit sky of the Fairy Land came into sight, he stopped flying. He wanted to see the wonderful sight forever.
“Isn’t it beautiful”, said Joy. “Now let’s land here and have some fun.”
“What’s that?” asked Sid, pointing towards a huge tall tower in the distance. It seemed to have no doors or windows. As the boys flew near, they could hear someone sobbing inside. They flew right inside the tower and saw the whole floor covered with wet, thin, long black threads. A pretty girl was crying in a corner. The threads seemed to come from her head.
“Oh!!” gasped Sid with sudden realization. “These are her hair.”
Do you know who the girl with such long hair was?
It was Rapunzel!!
“Why are you crying?” asked Joy, wondering where to stand, since the whole place was full of hair.
“I washed my hair today” she said. “But I can’t tie them up myself, and it’s time for my prince to come. How would he climb up the tower?”
“We’ll help you” answered Sid. The two boys started to work on the extremely long hair of Rapunzel. It was difficult, and many times they got entangled in it themselves!! Over and over again they fell in it, tripped over it, and soon made it worse than before.
“Oh!! You boys will not be able to help me” cried Rapunzel, feeling sadder than before.
“Well, we have never braided hair before, you see. And that your hair is so long just makes it tougher.” described Joy. “If you could explain us how to do it, maybe we’ll be able to help you before the prince comes.”
Rapunzel understood their problem, and calmed down. Then she asked them to divide her hair in three equal parts. Joy held one part, and Sid another. The friends followed her instructions and soon Rapunzel’s long hair was neatly plaited.
As the Blue Fairy came to take Joy and Sid home, Rapunzel sang them a melodious thank-you song in her sweet voice. But the kids remember none of it – they were so tired of all the braiding; they slept off the moment they hit their beds!!





PUZZLE:

Kids, do you remember the original Rapunzel story? Try answering these questions to find out:

Who put Rapunzel in the tower?
How did the witch get Rapunzel?
What did the witch do when she found out about the prince?

Read More...

Joy and Hansel and Gretel

JOY WITH HANSEL AND GRETEL.

It was going to be a different weekend. Joy’s parents had to go out for an emergency, and Joy was in charge of the home and his little sister, Ginni. She clung to him all the time. Irritating as it was, Joy knew he has to be kind to his sister in absence of his parents, and he took care of her. During the night, Ginni held him tightly and slept. When Joy slept, the Blue Fairy came in his dreams to take him to the Fairy Land. Joy, however, declined to go.
“I can’t go to Fairy Land tonight, Blue fairy. I need to be with my little sister while my parents are away.”
“But we need you too, Joy.” said the blue fairy. “Some little children of Fairy Land are in trouble.”
Joy was not ready to go leaving Ginni alone. So Blue Fairy suggested that she could take both, Joy and Ginni along. That sounded like fun!! Even Ginni can see the wonderful Fairy Land. So Joy agreed.
The Blue Fairy touched Joy and Ginni lightly, and flew off. They flew right behind her, over the crescent moon and the twinkling stars into the huge white cloud of Fairy Land. The cold breeze woke Ginni up, and when she saw herself flying high, the little girl held her brother tightly, and started crying of fear.
She became happy as soon as she saw the seven rainbows, and started clapping. Joy held her as they descended into the woods. He tried to explain her about fairy land, but Ginni wouldn’t listen – she was too busy playing with the butterflies. Running after her, Joy suddenly saw an extraordinary sight: A lovely cottage made out of bread, cakes, biscuits and candies with windows made of clear sugar! As soon as Ginni saw it, she ran towards it. But Joy was quick to stop her. Now can you tell who was in trouble?
Joy knew that the candy cottage belonged to a witch, and two little children – Hansel and Gretel must be trapped inside.
“Blue Fairy, can’t you go and help Hansel and Gretel ?”
“I can’t!” said the fairy, sadly. “We fairies have to do what the fairy tale says. But there are no bones here in this new cloud, and the witch would soon find out that Hansel has grown fat, and will eat him!”
“We are not a fairy, and we’ll help them.” Said Joy, and asked Ginni to rush and get him a stick.
He stood near the sugar window; he could see Gretel crying and Hansel caged inside. The witch was about to ask him to show his finger, when Ginni bought a stick. It was merely a twig!!
“This will not work, get something thicker” he told her. So Ginni got a thick branch.
“This is too thick. The witch will eat him immediately if she think he’s so fat!”
So now Ginni got a stick that was as thin as a thin finger can be. Joy quietly opened the sugar window, and threw the stick into Hansel’s cage. Hansel could now use that to save himself from the wicked witch.
“Good Job, children!” said the blue fairy when they came back. “Now Hansel can help himself, and soon Gretel will push the wicked witch into the oven. You both have helped each other very nicely. Indeed you are a good brother and sister.”
The kids flew back home happily. When Ginni woke up next morning, she excitedly told Joy about the dream of Fairy Land. Joy could only smile….

PUZZLE:

Kids, do you remember the original Hansel & Gretel story? Try answering these questions to find out:
Who left Hansel and Gretel in the forest?
How did they return to their home the first time?
What did the children get from the witch’s home after her death?

Read More...

Joy and Cinderella

JOY AND CINDERELLA

It was a busy weekend for Joy. He had a lot of homework, a painting competition to go to, his mom had to do some shopping for Ginni, and Sid’s family was coming over for dinner. So when Joy did sleep that night, he was too tired to think about Fairy Land.
But Fairies never forget their promise, and Blue Fairy certainly does not. So she came in his dreams, though she did seem a little anxious.
“Hello Joy”, she said. “Looks like you had a busy day. Well, I have a busy time ahead too. I have to go help Cinderella today. Do you want to come with me?”
Joy sprung up as he heard the word Cinderella. He was so keen to meet the kind-hearted beauty that he forgot he was tired, and agreed immediately. The Blue Fairy touched Joy lightly, and flew off. Joy flew right behind her, over the crescent moon and the twinkling stars into the huge white cloud of Fairy Land.
When the seven rainbows shone through the misty white, Joy knew that the Fairy Land had come. He followed Blue Fairy to the top of a neat house, with a lovely garden. A girl, dressed in rags, was sobbing alone in the garden. Far off, one could hear the hustle and bustle of the Princes’ ball. Do you know who the sad, lonely girl was?
It was Cinderella! And the fairy had to help her get ready for the ball. Gently, the fairy descended from the sky, with Joy along.
“Don’t cry, child!” said the fairy. “I’ll send you to the ball. Fetch me a large pumpkin, six mice and a rat.”
Cinderella looked up with her teary eyes, and said, “I can’t get any rat. All rats have drowned after they followed the Pied piper to the river.”
“Well, get the other stuff!!” replied the blue fairy. Worried, then she turned to Joy. “How can I make a coachman for her without any rat?”
“Why don’t you turn something else into a coachman?” inquired Joy.
“I can’t!!” exclaimed the fairy. “There’s no magic to do so. But a pretty maiden can’t go to the ball without a coachman.”
Meanwhile Cinderella came back with the stuff, and the fairy changed the pumpkin into a lovely coach, mice into six handsome horses, and Cinderella’s rags into beautiful gown and jewelry, complete with glass slippers. However, there was no coachman to take the coach to the palace, and both Cinderella and the fairy were confused. Joy decided to help.
“I suppose I can be the coachman” he offered, much to the relief of the Blue fairy.
So Joy became the coachman, and took pretty Cinderella to the ball. She was to return before the clock strikes twelve, and Joy was to wait outside the palace doors for her.
As the clock struck twelve, Cinderella came running out of the palace doors. The Fairy’s magic was disappearing, and the magical coach, horses and ball dress all returned to their real state. Cinderella was back in her rags.
“Oh please!!” she pleaded to Joy, “Could you bring one of the glass slippers from the palace stairs. It belongs to the fairy, and she may be upset that I lost it.”
“The Fairy is very kind. She wouldn’t mind. And anyway, the lost slipper will turn out to be extremely useful. Trust me.” replied Joy.
The Blue Fairy came to leave Joy back to his home, and was very happy with his timely help. Joy went back home, knowing that the prince would eventually find Cinderella and they’ll live happily ever after.


PUZZLE:

Kids, do you remember the original Cinderella story? Try answering these questions to find out:

Who ill-treated Cinderella, and why?
Why was she called Cinder-ella?
How did the prince find her?

Read More...

Joy and Rumpelstiltskin

JOY AND RUMPELSTILTSKIN

The weekend was approaching, and Joy was as excited as can be. The Blue fairy had promised to take him to Fairy Land once again, and Joy couldn’t wait. As soon as he slept, the Blue Fairy came in his dreams, smiling as usual.
“I see you are all geared up to visit my land, Joy. But have you been good this week ?”
“I have been!!” exclaimed Joy, as he rattled off to describe all his good deeds to the fairy. The Blue Fairy chuckled, and said, “I know. Now let’s go.” She touched Joy lightly, and flew off. Joy flew right behind her, over the crescent moon and the twinkling stars into the huge white cloud of Fairy Land.
As they delved deep into the cloud, the seven rainbows shone through, and the lovely sight of Fairy Land came in view. Joy looked at the wonderful sight, and decided to taste at least one fruit tonight.
As they descended to land, Joy noticed a strange darkness. He realized that the castles were all unlit and dark, as if in mourning.
“Why are the castles so dark tonight, Blue Fairy?” he asked.
“Our Queen has recently given birth to a lovely child, Joy. But before the celebrations could end, a strange little man came and claimed the baby. It seems that the Queen had promised him her first child long ago. Now she has to guess the name of the stranger, or else she’ll lose the baby.”
Do you know who that strange little man was?
Joy knew. He also knew that a messenger will come to help the queen. “Don’t worry, Blue Fairy. Very soon, a messenger will come and help the Queen.”
“I’m afraid not.” replied the Fairy. “See, nobody really cared much about them until now. We thought we don’t need the messengers, and we left them on the old Fairy land. Now we know, of course, that every person is important and special in his own way. But time is running out for the Queen’s baby, and none of us can help her!!”
“I can.” exclaimed Joy. “I know the name of the strange little man. Take me to the castle.”
“No one will believe an ordinary child.” thought the blue fairy. She touched Joy lightly with her magic wand, and he was dressed immediately as a messenger. Now the fairy took him in the dark castle. The Queen sat sobbing on her chair, clutching her baby tight. The strange little man was standing right in front of her, laughing, and demanding her to fulfill her promise. As the little man tried to pull the small baby away from the queen, Joy shouted aloud: “Stop!!!”
He ran to the queen, and said “Your majesty, his name is Rumpelstiltskin.”
The Queen, bewildered and astonished, repeated what Joy said. Rumpelstiltskin cried hard and ran away, never to be seen again. The Blue Fairy quickly picked up Joy and took him back to earth, before anyone could realize that he was an ordinary boy, and not a royal messenger.
“You have done a great favor to the Fairy Land today, Joy. We have also learned how important every little thing and person is. I’ll take you to Fairy Land again next weekend.” promised the Blue Fairy.
“May be then I’ll get to taste the special fruit!!” sighed Joy, as he crawled onto his bed for the rest of the night.



PUZZLE:

Kids, do you remember the original Rumpelstiltskin story? Try answering these questions to find out:

Why did the Queen make that promise to Rumpelstiltskin ?
Whose daughter was the Queen?
What rhyme does Rumpelstiltskin sings that reveals his name to the original messenger?

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Joy and Goldilocks

JOY AND GOLDILOCKS

One week had passed since Joy made his maiden trip to the Fairy Land. It was weekend once more, and the Blue Fairy had promised to take him to a visit again. Joy had been good the whole week, and now he was so eager, he couldn’t sleep!! “How would the Blue Fairy visit my dreams if I do not sleep!” He reminded himself and shut his eyes. As soon as he slept, the Blue Fairy came in his dreams.
“Hello Joy”, she said. “Did you like my place last time?”
“Of course, Blue Fairy”, Joy said in all earnest. “I was amazed. The seven-rainbow lit sky made your earth so beautiful. And the trees in the woods were amazing. I have never seen fruits and vegetables look so tasty! You must be so proud of the Fairy Land.”
“They are tasty”, replied the Fairy. “And extremely nutritious too. In fact, this was one of the reasons why we shifted here from the old Fairy Land. But the sudden increase of nutrition has made the fairyland animals very strong and ferocious. We have also told the Fairy King about it. Maybe he’ll do something..”
“Wow!! There’s a king too!” asked Joy , amazed.
“Yes. And a whole lot of princesses. Now let’s go. We have to return back in time before your parents wake up.”
So the Blue Fairy took Joy along to the flying journey over the crescent moon and the twinkling stars into the huge white cloud of Fairy Land. When she left him, Joy decided to try some fruits for himself. But just as he was about to pluck an apple, he heard some strange grunting sounds. He hid behind a tree, and saw three massive bears strolling. It was a family- papa bear, mamma bear and baby bear. But even the baby bear was huge.
“It must be the effect of these special fruits” thought Joy, as he saw a beautiful cottage in some distance. Quietly, he stepped in. He found bowls of porridge spilt over, and a little chair broken. Can you guess who did it?
Joy realized it was the Goldilocks. “The bears are ferocious now, and they sure will be very unhappy with her when they come back. She might not be able to escape their anger. I need to help.” Reasoned Joy, as he quickly arranged the porridge bowls in place, and tried to fix the baby bear’s chair.
“Even the baby bear’s chair is too heavy for me to lift.” Joy could see the bear family approaching the cottage from the window. He must hurry. He ran upstairs, where he knew he’ll find Goldilocks sleeping. He woke her up.
The little girl with golden hair looked at him in amazement. “Is this your cottage?” she asked, innocently.
“No!” replied Joy in a haste. “It is the bears. And they’ll be mad when they see us in their house. We have to run.”
Joy opened the window, and helped Goldilocks to jump out. The bears were already in the home, and were screaming angrily. He could hear their footsteps on the stairs. Joy jumped off the window too, and the two kids ran head over heels till the cottage was out of sight!
The Blue Fairy met them in the middle of the woods. She was very happy with Joy’s bravery, and promised him another visit to the Fairy Land next week. It was late; Joy decided to taste the apple next time.




PUZZLE:

Kids, do you remember the original Goldilocks story? Try answering these questions to find out:

Why was Goldilocks called so?
What was she doing in the jungle when she saw the cottage?
Whose porridge did she eat?

Read More...

Joy in FairyLand

JOY IN FAIRY LAND

Once upon a time, there was a boy called Joy. It was his birthday today. His parents had organized a huge birthday party: full of balloons, games, gifts and cake. He was very happy. Someone else was happy too—
The Blue Fairy.
The Blue Fairy came in Joys’ dreams that night and said, “Joy. Today is your birthday, and I have a special gift for you. I’ll take you along with me to the ‘Fairy Land’; where all the fairies live. Would you like to come with me to my home?”
Joy was thrilled. The Blue Fairy touched his hand, and flew. Joy realized he can fly too, and he flew right behind the fairy effortlessly. They flew onto the black night sky, over the crescent moon and the twinkling stars. Then the blue fairy delved deep into a great big white cloud. Joy followed her, and felt soft white cotton like fog all around him. When the fog cleared, he could hardly believe his eyes. He saw the most beautiful city underneath. The trees were in all shades of green and orange, the river was flowing with glistening clean water, sparkling like diamonds. The whole landscape was dotted with castles and fairy-tale houses. The sky was shining with seven rainbows. But as Joy looked around, he noticed a pinch of sadness in the Blue Fairy’s eyes.
“It is a wonderful place, Blue Fairy. But is something wrong? ” He asked.
“Yes”, answered the Blue Fairy. “We have shifted from an old cloud to this new one recently. You will find a lot of fairy tale characters here. But some of us could not shift here, and now we are facing problems. I am sure you will be able to help us. I have to go now, but I will come to take you back home soon.”
Joy wondered how he could help. He was, after all, just a small boy. But the Fairy Land did look beautiful, and he wanted to see it. So he landed in the beautiful woods. The trees were lush green, laden with flowers of all possible colours. Even the razor sharp thorns were colorful and shiny. Far in the distance, Joy could hear someone snoring. He quietly tiptoed to the bottom of a tree, from where the sound came. He found a big wolf, snoring blissfully unaware of Joy’s presence. But Joy could also hear muffled cries of help. Soon he realized that the sounds were coming from the wolf’s stomach. Can you guess who was it??
“I am Red Riding Hood” said the voice. “Please help me.”
Joy understood the problem. Little Red Riding Hood was stuck inside the Wolf’s stomach because her father was not there in the new Fairy Land. It was up to Joy now to rescue the little girl. “How can I cut the wolf’s stomach to rescue Red riding hood?” wondered Joy. Then he thought about the razor-sharp thorns he saw on some plants on this way. He quickly ran back and plucked those thorns. Knowing well that the wolf is in deep slumber, Joy cut its stomach open fearlessly. As he expected, little Red riding hood came out. “Thank you” said the little girl gratefully, and then the two of them filled up the wolf’s stomach with huge stones and stitched it back.
It was then that the Blue Fairy came. “Great work, Joy!” She said. “You have not only rescued a little girl, but also a fairy tale!! It is almost dawn: time for you to go back home. Would you like to come to the Fair Land again ?”
Of course Joy said yes. And the Blue Fairy agreed to bring Joy to the fairyland again next weekend.


PUZZLE:

Hey kids, do you remember the original Red Riding Hood story? Try answering these questions to find out:

Why was little Red Riding Hood called so?
Who was she going to meet in the woods?
What was she carrying in her basket?

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Joy and the Magical Canvas

THE MAGICAL CANVAS

Once upon a time there was a boy named Joy. Joy noticed his parents read newspaper everyday. He asked his mother about it. “A newspaper is very important thing, Joy. It tells one about the events happening in the whole world.” His mother told him. “You should also make it a habit to go through the newspaper everyday.” Joy did accordingly. Everyday, he read the newspaper. He even started to cut the most interesting news and made a news album. His knowledge about the world around him increased. His parents were very happy. Someone else was happy too –
The Blue Fairy.
The Blue Fairy decided to reward Joy. She came in Joy’s dreams that night and said, “Joy! It is very important to be abreast of current events. I am happy to see that you are increasing your knowledge by reading newspaper daily. So I reward you with a magical Canvas. This canvas can paint any picture you ask for, so realistically that the picture will look like the real thing!! But remember, you can use it only thrice. Enjoy!!”
When Joy found the magical canvas under his pillow next morning, he was very pleased. He took it immediately to Sid’s house. On the contrary, Sid was very gloomy.
“What’s the matter?” asked Joy.
“I want to draw a picture of a dinosaur for my science project, but no one really knows how real dinosaurs looked like. All that the scientists have is their skeleton. The dinosaurs are all extinct now. How can I draw a real dinosaur if I don’t know how it looked like!!” replied Sid.
“I can help you” Joy told him, and asked the canvas to draw a picture of Tyrannosaurus-Rex, the fiercest of all dinosaurs. The picture was so real that the friends got scared for a moment!! Happily, Sid drew a similar picture for his science project. Then the friends went to Joy’s home to play with Ginni, the younger sister.
But Ginni was in no mood to play!! She was howling and wailing loudly. Mom had just scolded her for eating with dirty hands. Sid had an idea. He asked the magical canvas to paint a magnified picture of their hands. Then Ginni and they all could see the minute disease causing germs in the hands. Quickly they washed their hands with soap, and decided to do so every time they come from outside.
Even before they could eat something, the doorbell rang. When Mom opened the door, a sturdy man barged inside. He had a gun!! He was a robber. “Hand over all your money and jewelry to me” he yelled at Mom. Terrified, Mom started doing as he said.
Meanwhile, Joy asked the magical canvas to paint a picture of a treasure. Then he hung the picture over an open window of their third floor home, and covered it with a curtain.
“Thief Sir”, he said, gathering as much courage as he could, “You take whatever Mom is giving you, but please don’t take the treasure hidden behind that curtain, otherwise my Papa will get very angry!”
Greedy as he was, the foolish thief opened the curtain. He couldn’t believe what he saw. In front of him was a huge collection of gold, diamonds, rubies and emeralds. There was plenty of money too. “Wow!! I’ll be rich!” shouted the thief in glee, and jumped on to the canvas. The canvas tore on the impact, and the thief came crashing down from the third floor with a huge THUD. He had to live in hospital for many weeks, and then in the prison. The children thanked the magical canvas, which disappeared right away!


CROSSWORD:
CLUES:
ACROSS: 1. The Magical Canvas can paint any ---
4. The dinosaurs are now -----
5. Joy made a --- album from newspaper cuttings.
DOWN: 2. One should be abreast of current --- all over the world.
3. One should always wash --- on coming from outside.
ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 1. Picture 4. Extinct 5. News
DOWN: 2. Events 3. Hands

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Joy and the Magical Jug

THE MAGICAL JUG


Once upon a time, there was a boy named Joy. One day, while Joy was getting ready for school, he noticed his sister, Ginni, had left the tap running in the bathroom. Quietly he went in, and closed the tap to save water. Then he closed the tap again while brushing, to stop the wastage of water. He knew that everybody should try to save water, and he was determined to do his bit in its conservation. He was proud of being an eco-conscious citizen of the world. Someone else was proud too—
The Blue Fairy.
The Blue Fairy came in his dreams that night and said, “Dear Joy, I am very happy with you. You are a responsible boy, and you are doing your part in conserving the Earth and its’ natural resources. As a reward for you, I am giving you this magical jug. It will provide you with any liquid you ask for. The liquid will not finish as long as you keep pouring it. But remember, you can use it only thrice. Enjoy!”
Joy got up and ran straight to Sid’s house. “Let’s get some water”, he suggested. But Sid was not very happy with that idea. “Why should we ask for water?? We can simply open the tap for that. Let’s ask for something difficult to get.”
“Let’s ask for some cold drinks!!” Joy said. Both the boys were allowed only one can of cold drink per week. So they were very excited at the idea of getting unlimited cold drinks from the Jug. Sid ran and got a big bucket. “Let’s fill it up!!” he exclaimed. So they asked for a cold drink, and started pouring from the magical jug. Amazingly, the little jug was able to fill up the whole bucket. The boys were thrilled!!!
However, even before they could have their first sip, they heard Sid’s mother walking in the room. “If Mom finds out about the bucket, she’ll punish us badly”, cried Sid. Joy was scared too. In a panic, they threw the contents of whole bucket down the toilet, and flushed it even before Mom could enter the room.
“Kids!” said Mom, “Dad is taking you both out for a drive to the top of a hill in his new 4 wheel drive. Go.” She did not even notice the bucket. Sad about the loss of their cold drink, the boys went to the car. But soon they forgot all about it in the exhilaration of going uphill in a new car. On the way, they saw a terrible accident. Two cars had a head-on collision, and the passengers were trapped.
“You boys help the injured, I’ll go fetch some help” shouted Dad, and drove down to get people to help. Joy and Sid noticed fumes arising from the engine of one of the car. “That car is about to catch fire. All the trapped passengers will die. We must extinguish it!!” said Joy. Sid immediately had an idea. He asked the magical jug to give icy cold water, and with the unending supply of water, the little children were able to put off the fire. Till then, Dad came back with some men to pull the passengers out. He went down again to arrange for medical help. Till late, Dad and the two boys kept busy helping the injured. Finally when they were ready to go back home, the car refused to budge!! “The petrol!!” exclaimed Dad. “I made so many trips today; my car is now out of petrol. Now we are stuck on this hill!!”
“Don’t worry, Dad.” Said Sid, and he quietly asked the magical jug to provide petrol, and put it in the car. Dad was surprised to see the petrol in his car full again, but he was too tired to think about it. Even the boys were too tired to notice the Jug disappear!!

CROSSWORD:
CLUES:
ACROSS: 1. The Cars had a --- collision
2. The magical jug can provide any ----
3. Blue Fairy was happy because Joy saved ----
DOWN: 1. Dad took the kids up on a ---
2. The Blue Fairy came in Joy’s ----
ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 1.Head-On 2. Liquid 4, Water
DOWN: 1. Hill 3. Dream

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Joy and the Magical Fruit

THE MAGICAL FRUIT

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Joy. One day, Joy and his parents went out for dinner. When they came back, it was too late in night, and Joy was very tired and sleepy. Even though he was feeling very drowsy, he went to the bathroom, brushed his teeth and changed into his nightclothes. Then he crashed on the bed, and was asleep in a moment. Joy’s teeth were very happy with him. Someone else was happy too –
The Blue Fairy!
The Blue Fairy came in Joy’s dreams and said, “Joy! I’m very happy with you. You indeed take good care of your health and hygiene. Brushing teeth at night is an important work. So I give you this magical fruit as a reward. It is very nutritious. Whenever you’ll eat it, you’ll become very strong for a few minutes. Remember, you can eat it only three times. Enjoy.”
Joy found it tucked inside his pillow the next morning. It looked like a mix of apple, mango and orange. Joy was eager to find out exactly how strong the fruit makes him, so he quickly ate a portion. “I don’t feel any difference”, thought Joy, as he left for Sid’s home. When he pressed Sid’s doorbell, the doorbell switch broke due to Joys’ sudden strength!! Then he knocked at the door, but the huge impact of his fist made a hole in Sid’s door! Sid’s mother came out running. “How did my door and doorbell break??” She asked puzzled. Joy mumbled something and ran inside.
Then Joy told everything to Sid, and apologized for the unintentional damage to his house. “Don’t worry”, replied Sid. “My father will fix it in no time. Now let’s use this fruit for some fun!!” So the two friends went to a nearby mountain. They decided to make a secret and private cave in the mountain, where they can play in later. Joy took a bite of the fruit, and started digging the mountain with his bare hands. Surprisingly, he was easily able to carry stones larger than himself. By the time the magical strength wore off, he had created a deep cave in the mountain for them to play inside.
Unfortunately, a group of rowdy thieves were standing nearby and watching him. They came up to the boys and said, “Well done, kids! Now we shall use this cave to hide our stolen stuff. No one will be ever able to find us. As for you, you both run away now and never come back, or we will kill you!!”
Pretending to shiver with fear, Joy and Sid turned around to run. Quietly then, Sid took the last bite of the fruit, and turned back to the thieves. “This will teach you to behave nicely with little children and never underestimate them” he said, as he picked up the biggest one with only his little finger, and threw him far far away. All the other rowdies of the group ran away in fright and disappeared, just like the fruit itself!!
The kids were very happy to have their own secret place, all to themselves again!!

CROSSWORD:
CLUES:
ACROSS: 1. One should take good care of one’s --- and hygiene.
3. Joy and Sid wanted to make a ---- cave for themselves
4. Sid’s ---- can fix the broken door.
DOWN: 1. Joy accidentally made a --- in Sid’s door.
2. It is important to --- teeth at night.
ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 1. Health 3. Secret 4. Father
DOWN: 1. Hole 2. Brush

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Joy and the Magical Remote control

THE MAGICAL REMOTE CONTROL

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Joy. Joy was a well-behaved child, and often displayed good manners, both in his home and school. He also completed his homework always on time. His teacher was so impressed with him; she made him the class monitor. Someone else was impressed too –
The Blue Fairy!!
The Blue Fairy decided to reward Joy with something special. That night, she came in Joy’s dreams and said, “Joy, I am very happy that you were made the monitor of your class. I am sure you will carry this responsibility properly. I will gift you a special, magical remote control today. It can be used on anything or anybody. I hope you will use this remote responsibly. Remember, you can use this thrice.”
When Joy woke up that morning, he found the magical remote control under his pillow. It had only 3 buttons: Rewind, FastForward and Pause. Joy wondered how he could use this remote control. While getting ready for his school, he started daydreaming about all the possibilities of using it on people and different things. Only when his Mom yelled at him, he realized that he had got late for his school bus.
“Oh no! I missed my bus. I can not be late to school on my first day as a class monitor!” exclaimed Joy. “What can I do!”. Suddenly he realized that he can use the magical remote control to call the bus back. So he pressed the ‘Rewind’ button for the bus, and the bus came reeling back to the bus stop. The bus driver was thoroughly confused, but Joy was able to board the bus and reach the school in time.
During the lunch break, Joy discovered that he had left his lunch box at home due to his lax and sluggish behavior in the morning. Soon Joy started feeling very hungry. “I better make sure to be attentive all the time from now on, specially in mornings.”, he thought. “I’m feeling so hungry now, I can’t wait till the school time is over.” And so, he pressed the FastForward Button to rapidly pass through all the periods, till the school time was finished. He was grateful to reach home quickly, and for all the food that Mom had cooked. Even the vegetables looked so tempting, he ate them all quickly. Mom was pleased with him for eating well.When the evening fell, Joy went to Sid’s house to show him the remote control. He also told Sid how he had to use two out of three chances because of his carelessness in the morning.
“Now we have only one chance left. We must use it to have some fun!” said Sid, as they went down to play with the other friends. While they were playing down, someone noticed a small baby crawling precariously near the main road. Before people around could react, the little baby crawled onto the road, right in middle of heavy traffic. “We must use the remote” shouted Sid, as he snatched the remote control from Joy and pressed the Pause button for Traffic. In a moment, all the cars and trucks and other vehicles on the road came to a standstill. The mother was able to pick the baby up to safety. When Sid pressed the same button again, the traffic started moving as usual.
“Isn’t it great that all the drivers were able to stop their vehicles in time” everybody said. Only two kids knew that they had made the best use of their gift.
CROSSWORD:
CLUES:
ACROSS: 2. Joy was made --- of his class
3. There was a lot of – on road where the baby crawled onto.
5. Joy forgot his – box at home.
DOWN:1. Joy’s gift was a remote ---
4. Sid wanted to use the remote control to have some ----
ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 2. Monitor 3. Traffic 5. Lunch
DOWN: 1. Control 4. Fun

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Joy and the Magical Chocolate

THE MAGICAL CHOCOLATE

Once upon a time there was a boy named Joy. One day, Joy went to Dubai with his family to meet his relatives. He had lot of fun playing with his cousins. Generally he stayed back at home with his cousins when his mother went out shopping, but one time mom insisted that he should come too. Reluctantly, Joy accompanied his mother to the mall. While his mom shopped, he roamed around, looking about. Suddenly he saw an unattended baby stroller moving towards the escalator! Joy rushed towards the escalator, and stopped the stroller from falling down! The baby was still sleeping, blissfully unaware of what happened. The baby’ mother, who was busy looking in a shop window saw this, and came running. “You have saved my baby. I will be ever thankful to you.” She said, and got him a big box of chocolates. Joy was very proud of himself. Someone else was proud too—
The Blue Fairy!
The Blue Fairy came in Joy’s dreams that night, and said, “Joy, you were very alert today in the mall. I’ll reward you with a chocolate too. You can not eat it, but when you open its wrapper, this chocolate will turn any non-living thing it touches into real chocolate. But remember, you can only use it thrice. Bye!”
Joy was very excited about the magical chocolate, but he did not open it until they came back in Oman. As soon as they reached home, Joy ran to Sid’s house.
“Wow! You’ve got a chocolate for me from Dubai. Thanks Joy!” Sid said when he saw the chocolate.
“No!! I got it from the Blue Fairy!! It’s magical” Joy replied, and told Sid all about it.
“Let’s use it” they said together, and eagerly opened the wrapper. Inside was a thick bar of brown, tempting chocolate. They touched a pencil to the chocolate. Immediately, the pencil turned into a pencil shaped chocolate. The children divided it among themselves, and enjoyed the most delicious chocolate they had ever eaten!!
“Now let’s turn something bigger into chocolate, so that we can eat it for a long time” said Sid. Table, chair, wardrobes were out of question, as mom would notice their absence. “What can we turn into chocolate, and eat?” the kids wondered.
The children went out to the playground and noticed an old, out of use bicycle. Nobody used it anymore. They decided to turn the cycle into chocolate. As they touched their magical chocolate to the old, rusted cycle, it turned into chocolate!! The kids attacked it, eating away the bell and the brakes, the wheels and the handle of the cycle. Soon their stomachs were full, but the cycle was so tasty, they kept eating it until it was finished. By the time they returned to their homes, their stomachs were aching badly. Both Sid and Joy fell sick, and were taken to a doctor.
“You both are in a bad shape! What did you eat last night?” asked the doctor.
Sheepishly, the kids replied that they had eaten a lot of chocolate. The doctor gave them a lot of medicines, and asked them not to eat any junk food – chocolate, chips, candies or soft drinks for a whole month!!!!
“But we still have one chance left to use the magical chocolate!” whispered Joy to Sid.
“I know what to do” answered Sid mischievously, as he turned the chairs kept in the clinics’ waiting area into chocolate.
“For making all the sick children who’ll come here happy!” he explained as the magical chocolate vanished.
CROSSWORD:
CLUES:

ACROSS: 1. Delicious
4. The doctor asked Joy and Sid to not eat --- Food for 1 month
5. Joy lived in – country.
DOWN:
2. Joy and Sid fell --- because of eating too much chocolates.
3. Joy went to visit ---

ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 1. Tasty 4. Junk 5.Oman
DOWN: 2. Sick 3.Dubai

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Joy and the Magical Eye

JOY and the Magical Eye.


Once upon a time there was a boy named Joy. One day, Joy’s teacher told the class about the holy month of Ramadan. Joy listened attentively as the teacher told them about the importance of Ramadan. It is the month during which the sacred Quran was revealed Muslims all over the world observe fasts during the month of Ramadan.
Joy was very happy to learn about the significance of Ramadan. Someone else was happy too—
The Blue Fairy!
The Blue Fairy came in Joy’s dream that night and said, “Joy, I am happy with the attention you paid to the special class today. So I’ll reward you with this magical eye. You’ll be able to see ‘inside’ people’s minds. You’ll be able to see the thoughts of a waking person, and the dreams of a sleeping person. You can only use it thrice. Enjoy!”
Joy decided to use the magical eye to see his best friend, Sid’s dreams. He knew that Sid sleeps at 8:00 p.m. So Joy went to Sid’s house again after eight pm. As expected, Sid was fast asleep in his room. Joy used the magical eye, and was able to see Sid’s dreams!! Sid was dreaming that he and Joy are having lots of fun playing football and eating a walnut cake.
“Mom, can you please bake some walnut cake for me and Sid tomorrow?” asked Joy as soon as he returned home. Mom agreed, and the next day Joy took his friend out for football and cake. Sid was amazed. “You know Joy, it feels as if a dream has come true” he said. Joy smiled and told Sid all about the magical eye.
Now Sid wanted to use the eye as well. He saw Robby coming from a distance. Sid put the magical eye on, and he instantly knew what Robby was thinking. Robby was thinking about them only. “I have a sharp needle in my pocket. Let me use it to puncture Joy and Sid’s football. That would be fun!!” Robby thought. Then he came to the boys. “Can I have a look at your football” he asked.
“No!!” replied Sid. “Or else you’ll puncture it with the sharp needle that you have”. Robby was astonished that his plan was public knowledge. Scared, he ran back to his home.
Joy and Sid had so much fun playing; they lost the track of time. “It’s late. We must return home” cried Sid as he saw the darkness.
“Mom must be mad at me for being so late” thought Joy. “I better find out what she’s thinking first.” So Joy put the magical eye for the third and the last time, and saw his mother’s thoughts.
“I wonder where Joy is!! It’s too late. I hope he is safe. Maybe I should go and look for him. Whatever, I’ll be very angry when he does come and starts making excuses for his delay. He better be honest with me.” Joy’s mother was thinking.
When Joy reached home, his mother demanded angrily, “Why are you so late??”
Joy knew better than to make excuses. “Sorry Mom, I was so busy playing, I lost the track of time.” He confessed.
Mom was very happy to hear the truth from Joy. “I’m happy you owned up, and did not make any excuses.” Joy was grateful to the Blue Fairy and her magical gifts.
CROSSWORD:
CLUES:
ACROSS: 2. The Holy month of fasting is called ---
5. Joy was rewarded with a magical --
DOWN: 1. Sid dreamt of a --- cake
3. Magical Eye can show you – of a sleeping person
4. Robby was carrying a sharp --- in his pocket.

ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 2. Ramadan 5. Eye
DOWN: 1. Walnut 3.Dreams 4. Needle

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Joy and the Magical Dress

JOY AND THE MAGICAL DRESS

Once upon a time, there lived a boy named Joy. It was summers then, and Joy went to the beach with his father one idle friday evening. Joy collected a lot of sea shells from the beach. When he came back home, he painted them all in different colours, and made a beautiful design using them. His parents were very impressed with his art and creativity. Someone else was impressed too –
The Blue Fairy.
The Blue Fairy came in his dreams that night and said, “Joy, I am impressed with your creativity. So I give you this magical dress as a reward. When you wear this, you will become invisible. No one will be able to see you until you take it off. But remember, you can only wear it thrice. Enjoy.”
Joy was ecstatic when he show the transparent dress tucked neatly beneath his pillow. “Let me have some fun with Sid”, he decided. So he wore the dress and went to Sid’s house. Surely that no one could see him, because everyone he met on the way ignored him. Then he tapped at Sid’s shoulders. Sid looked all around, but could see nobody. Then Joy started to play with his ball. Sid could see only the ball, bouncing and jumping all on its own. This scared Sid and he started running around, screaming. Joy could not stop his laughs at this hilarious scene. As he laughed loudly, Sid recognized his friend’s voice. “Oh! It’s you, Joy!” he exclaimed, angrily. “I guess you must have got some magical gift from the Blue Fairy. But instead of sharing it, you are scaring me. Well, I won’t be your friend anymore.”
Sid was mad at Joy for scaring him so much, and he went downstairs to play with other kids. Joy took off his dress, laughing still. It was a wonderful gift, and he was very happy to have it. “I’m not going to share it with Sid”, he thought, and ran downstairs to use it again.
Sid and the other boys were playing football. Joy wore the dress and became invisible. He went into the game and caught the ball. Then he threw it to the other side. Again and again he stopped, threw and moved the football. The boys were bewildered. Then during the game, a strong built boy banged against Joy. “I wonder what I hit!!” He thought, as he was not able to see anyone there. But Joy was actually hit rather badly. His head was bleeding. He sat down, crying for help. No one could see him though, and they all went back home wondering where the cries were coming from. Sid understood, and he was determined to help his friend, even though he couldn’t be seen. Sid found Joy out by following his sound, and he helped Joy to take the dress off. Then he called his mother for help. Joy was humbled.
“I’m sorry for being selfish” said Joy. “Even though I was so mean to you, you helped me. A friend in need is a friend indeed. You are really my good friend, Sid. You can use this magical dress now.” And he gave the magical dress to Sid.
Sid wore the dress, and had lots of fun. Invisibly, he played with Joy. He made an amusing puppet show with his toys. He ate fruits from the trees; he ate candies from the candy jar. He did a few mischievous things too, but he made sure no one was troubled or hurt. Then he got tired of being invisible- and took the dress off. The dress disappeared, but the two friends were happy to get their friendship back- stronger then ever.
CROSSWORD:
CLUES:
ACROSS: 3. A—in need is a friend indeed.
5. Joy’s – started bleeding when a boy barged into him while playing football,
DOWN: 1. Joy’s reward today was a magical ---
2. Joy went to – with his father.
4. He went with his father one – Friday evening.

ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 3. friend 5. Head
DOWN: 1 Dress 2. Beach 4. Idle

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Joy and the Magical Binoculars

THE MAGICAL BINOCULARS


Once upon a time, there was a boy named Joy. One day Joy went to a huge shopping mall with his family. The mall was bustling with activity. There were attractive displays all over. At one counter, a man was giving away free balloons to kids. Joy stopped for the balloon, but his parents had already moved on. “I can’t wait any longer for the balloon” Joy realized. “I might get lost in the crowd”. He left the balloon queue and rushed towards his parents. His mother was anxiously looking for him, and was very happy to see him. Someone else was happy too—
The Blue Fairy!
The Blue Fairy came in his dreams and said, “Joy, you showed amazing foresight today. You overcame a strong temptation to do what was right. As a reward, I give you these magical binoculars. You can use it to look through opaque things. You can also look at a particular place, or for a particular thing! Remember, you can use it only for three times. Enjoy!”
As always, Joy rushed to his friend Sid’s house when he found his reward kept under the pillow. The friends wanted to try it right away.
“Show us what’s happening behind the walls of my house”, said Sid, and peeped into the binoculars. Adjacent to his home was Robby’s home. They could see Robby’s mother doing his school homework, while Robby was watching television!! “Now we have something to tease Robby about!” smiled the kids.
“Let’s see what’s happening in my home” suggested Joy. When they peeped into the binoculars, they saw his mother sitting on a chair. Suddenly, Joy noticed tears in her eyes. His mother was crying! Alarmed, Joy ran to his home to see what was wrong. He pushed open the door, and cried, “Mom, what happened? Why are you crying?”
Mom was too sad to wonder how Joy knew that she was crying. She had lost her wedding ring! “I can’t find it anywhere!” sobbed Mom. “It was a beautiful diamond ring encrusted with red rubies, blue sapphires, and green emeralds.”
“I will find it for you Mom. Relax.” Joy looked into the binoculars and asked it to show his mother’s ring. The binoculars showed the ring kept in a pot kept on the kitchen shelf. But when Joy saw the pot, it was full of freshly made dough.
Joy started searching in the dough itself, and sure enough, the ring was in there! Mom was surprised when Joy showed her where he found the ring from.
“It must have slipped off my finger while I was kneading the flour” cried Mother, happy and relaxed. “You are my best helper!” Joy was so happy to see his mother smiling again, he didn’t even notice the magical binoculars disappear.
CROSSWORD:
CLUES:

ACROSS: 1. Joy wanted to get a --- from the Mall.
3. Green coloured precious stones are called --
DOWN: 2. Opposite of transparent
4. Joy went to a crowded – with his family.
5. The Blue Fairy comes only in Joy’s ---.

ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 1.Balloon 3. Emerald
DOWN: 2. Opaque 4.Mall 5.Dream.

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Joy and the Magical Drink

THE MAGICAL DRINK


Once upon a time, there was a boy named Joy. One day as he was colouring in his colouring book, his heard his little sister Ginni crying. “I can’t reach my crayons” she wailed. The crayons were kept in a shelf beyond her reach. Joy understood her problem. “Don’t worry, Ginni. I’ll get them for you. I’m taller than you”, he explained and got the crayons down for her. Ginni was very proud of her big, tall brother. Someone else was proud too--
The Blue Fairy!
The Fairy came in Joy’s dreams that night, and said, “Joy, you are a considerate boy. I’ll reward you with this magical drink. It will change your size according to your wish for five minutes. But remember, you can use it only thrice. Enjoy!”
When Joy found the magical drink under his pillow the next morning, he wanted to use it straight away. He longed to grow up just like his father. He ran out to the park, and took a sip from the bottle. Immediately the bottle shrank and became half the size. Joy noticed that even people had shrunk. It was then that he understood that it was actually he who had grown up to an adult size. Some children were playing ball in the distance. Excited about his size, Joy went to play with them. “I’ll kick the ball faster than them” he thought. But the kids ignored him, assuming him to be a grownup man. “Sorry uncle”, said one of them when the ball hit Joy by mistake. Joy realized, with sadness, that he can not play ball with his friends in his new size. He sat under a tree, waiting for the five minutes of his new size to pass. As he shrunk to his normal size, he was contend and happy. “Who wants to grow up?” Joy smiled.
When Joy told Sid about the drink, he wanted to try becoming really small. “Like an ant” he explained. As soon as Sid took a sip, he became as small as an ant. He could not see Joy any longer. All he could see were his shoes, as big as a table. “How dirty!” Sid noticed. His own room was very difficult to recognize, with bed looking like a fortress and pencils like rockets!! The toy car lying on the floor looked real, and tempting. Suddenly he felt something huge moving. It was Joy who was trying to look for his friend. As Joy sat down to look closely on the floor, Sid felt as if a mountain was crumbling. “Don’t crush me!!” he screamed and hid inside the bed. He quietly waited till five minutes passed by, and then came out of the bed. “Being small is scary!!” He declared. “There are so many dangers around!!”
“I’m sure being huge will be fun!!” thought Joy. So he went out and drank the last sip, and wished to be a giant!!
Joy started to increase in size. He became as high as a ten storey building!! His feet were bigger than most cars. People around started running and screaming in terror! Everybody hid inside their houses and called the police for help. As for Joy, he was scared to move even an inch- He might crush someone by mistake. He saw the police and army coming in from far. The fighter planes were called for. Obviously, they had come to battle and kill the Giant. He was in danger! There was nothing he could do to hide or run.
Luckily, the five minutes came to pass just before the fighter planes and helicopters came to the scene. Joy shrunk back to his own self. Nobody saw that happen, because everyone was hiding inside their houses. They thought that the Giant disappeared, which was okay with Joy. He was content with his own body, for now!!
CROSSWORD:

CLUES:
ACROSS: 1. Ginni was crying for ---
4. The drinks’ magic will last for --- minutes
5. The reward for being considerate was a magical ---
DOWN: 1. “Don’t – me” sid cried when he was as small as an ant.
2. The drink can change your ----
3. Third time Joy wished to be as huge as a ---

ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 1. CRAYONS 4. FIVE 5, DRINK
DOWN: 1. CRUSH 2. SIZE 3. GIANT

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Joy and the Magical Flower

THE MAGICAL FLOWER



Once upon a time there lived a boy named Joy. One day Joy went for a picnic to Naseem Gardens. He and his friends had a lot of fun there, playing and running all around the vast gardens. Some boys started breaking some low branches from the trees. This angered Joy immensely. Joy told them that plucking flowers or breaking branches is a bad habit- not only it destroys the beauty of the place, but it hurts the tree too. After all, the tree is a living thing just like us!! The kids understood and stopped. Joy was very proud of himself.
Someone else was proud too –
The Blue Fairy.
The Blue Fairy came in Joy’s dreams the next night and said, “Joy, you take care of your environment. It’s a very good habit. As a reward, I give you this magical flower. Whoever smells this flower would immediately grow very fond of you, though only for five minutes. Remember, you can use it only thrice. Bye!”
Joy was thrilled to get the magical flower under his pillow in the morning. As he boarded the bus to school, he saw Sid.
“Do you like me, Sid?” Joy asked him.
“Of course”, replied Sid, as a matter of fact. “You are my best friend.”
“Then I should not use my flower on you.”, muttered Joy. There Joy noticed Robby, the mean class bully. He asked Robby to smell the flower.
“What a silly looking flower- Just like you. I’m sure it smells silly too.”, said Robby as he smelled the flower. Suddenly his curt tone changed to a loving one, and he said, “Joy, you are the best boy in the whole school. Your flower smells wonderful. From now on, I’ll always help you.” Joy smiled. He knew that Blue fairy’s magic was working.
When Joy reached his class, he realised he had forgotten to do his homework. Now the teacher would surely scold him. Joy left the flower on teacher’s table. As the teacher came in, she noticed the flower. She smelled it, and quietly put it in her purse. It was then that Joy approached the teacher and told her about the undone homework. The teacher replied affectionately, “It is okay Joy. You are my favorite student. I’m sure you’ll do the homework properly next time.”
Happy that the magical flower had worked its magic, Joy asked the teacher for the flower back. The teacher gave it to him happily.
Joy wondered where to use his magical gift next. That evening his father took him out to visit a zoo. They saw a lot of animals, including a huge elephant. Elephants are the biggest land animal. They are quite intelligent, and have amazing memory. It is said that they never forget anybody. Joy offered the flower to the elephant. Just as the animal smelled it, it picked Joy up with its tusk and put him on its back. Then it gave Joy a wonderful ride around the zoo. Even as the flower vanished, Joy was very happy indeed, knowing that the elephant would never forget him and his friendship.


CROSSWORD:

CLUES:

ACROSS: 1. The effect of the flower will last for --- minutes.
3. We can go to a --- to see different animals.
4. The second time Joy used his flower on his -----
DOWN: 1. Joy’s reward was a magical ----
2. Joy went for a picnic to --- gardens.

ANSWERS:

ACROSS: 1. Five 3. Zoo 4. teacher
DOWN: 1. Flower 2. Naseem

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Joy and the Magical Phone

THE MAGICAL PHONE


Once upon a time there was a boy named Joy. Joy had high fever one day, and his mother took him to a doctor. The doctor prescribed some medicines and asked Joy to take them regularly. Joy took plenty of rest and took the medicines on time. He ate nutritious food that his mother made, and was healthy again! His mother was very proud of him. Someone else was proud too—
The Blue Fairy.
The Blue Fairy came in Joy’s dreams and said, “Joy, you were very nice during your illness. So I’ll reward you with a magical telephone. With this phone, you can call up anybody, anywhere. But remember, you can use it only thrice. Bye”
Joy woke up to find the magical phone besides his table. He immediately called up his best friend, Sid with it. “I’ve got this amazing new magic phone with which I can call anyone!!” Joy excitedly told Sid.
“Then why are you wasting a chance by calling me? You could have called me even by a normal phone!!” Sid asked. Joy realized that he had indeed thrown away one turn to use the magic. The friends decided to be more careful about whom to call in the next two chances.
“Let’s call someone who lives in a very far away land.” Joy suggested.
“I know!!” exclaimed Sid. “Eskimos live in extreme cold climate near Alaska.
It is full of snow and ice all the year long, even their houses, called Igloos, are made of ice. It is very difficult for people like us to reach there or talk to them. So let’s call up an Eskimo and talk to him!”
So the children called up an Eskimo. No doubt the Eskimo was extremely surprised to get their phone call, but he was very happy too. It had been ages since he had spoken to someone from the rest of the world, and they spoke for hours. At last, the Eskimo asked, “Tell me children, how did you choose to call me and no one else?”
“We chose you because you are the farthest human we know of!” told the kids truthfully.
“Well, that’s not entirely true”, said the Eskimo. “Astronauts living in the space station are definitely much further away than I am!! May be you should call them next. It must be really lonely up there.”
So the kids called up the international space station. Astronauts of different nationalities go to ISS to do many scientific experiments in space, and stay there for long periods of time. An astronaut picked up their phone. He was very happy to get a direct call from earth. He told them how earth looks like from the space. He also told them more about their mission, satellites and rockets.
Sid was most excited. “Can you tell me how can I become an astronaut?” He asked.
“An astronaut needs to be intelligent and strong. So you study, eat and play well. Visit a planetarium or watch the night sky with a telescope. I have to go now to complete my experiment, but you guys can call me again” said the nice astronaut.
However, the kids could never call him again, because the magic phone disappeared. But they thought of him every time they saw the night sky glittering with stars and planets!
CROSSWORD:
CLUES:
ACROSS:
3. International space station is sometimes called --- (abbr)
6. Eskimos live in houses called ----
DOWN:
1. Joy’s best friend
2. People who live in very cold climate near Alaska.
4. The astronaut asked children to study, eat and --- well.
5. The Kids and the Eskimo talked for ----
ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 3. ISS 6. Igloo
DOWN: 1. Sid 2. Eskimo 4. Play 5. Hours

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Joy and the Magical Soap

THE MAGICAL SOAP

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Joy. One day a little boy, Ali came with his mother to his home. Ali started fighting with Ginni over a toy. Joy quickly saved Ginni from him, and stood in between both the children so that they could not harm each other. Then he called for his mother. When mom came, she helped the little kids play nicely together. She was very happy with Joy’s timely actions. Someone else was happy too—
The Blue Fairy.
The Blue Fairy came in his dreams that night, and said, “Joy, I have decided to reward you being so caring. So I’ll give you this magical soap. This soap can clean anything, and you can use it thrice. Bye”
When Joy woke up, he found a glowing blue colored soap under his pillow. “What will I do with a soap?” Joy thought, and went to his best friend – Sids’ house. When he reached Sid’s houe, he could hear Sid crying loudly.
“I wonder what the matter is?” Joy thought.
Soon he found out that Ali had been to his home too, and he had scribbled all over Sid’s school copy and tore off a few pages. Sid was very upset because School copies are supposed to be maintained neatly. Now his teacher would surely scold him….
“Don’t worry Sid, I’ll mend your copy”, said Joy. Then he used his magical soap on the copy. Immediately, the copy was good as new, with all the dirty scribbling gone and the torn pages fixed too!!
“Wow, thanks man!!” gushed Sid, when Joy showed him the copy and the magical soap. The mischievous duo decided to play a trick on Joy’s mother.
They started scribbling and doodling all over the room. They drew and painted on the walls and the floor. Then Sid went and complained to Joy’s mother, “Auntie, see Joy has scribbled on the walls.”
When Mom saw the room, she was absolutely furious!! But as she started scolding Joy, Sid quickly used the soap on the room, and the room turned into a totally clean room- spick and span. “I must be day-dreaming!!” Mom thought and went back to her chores confused.
Before long, Joy had a chance to use the soap again. His family went to the Qurum beach that Friday, and the beach was littered here and there with empty chips packets and soda cans etc. His father explained, “Some people do not realize that public properties belong to all of us, and we should take care of them as we take care of our home!! Beaches, Parks and Roads are all places we should strive to keep neat and tidy. We must make sure we leave a place cleaner than before.”
As they were leaving the beach, Joy decided to use his magic soap for the third and the last time, to clean the beach perfectly. He hoped that future visitors to the beach would love a clean beach, and try to keep it so.
CROSSWORD:
CLUES:
ACROSS:
2. Joy’s reward was a magical---
5. The Soap was of a glowing --- colour.
6. The kids decided to play a ---- on Joy’s mom.
DOWN:
1. Ali scribbled on Sid’s school ---
3. We must keep --- places clean too.
4. The soap could --- anything.


ANSWERS:
ACROSS: 2. Soap 5. Blue 6. Trick
DOWN: 1. Copy 3. Public 4. Clean

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Joy and the Magical Paper

THE MAGICAL PAPER


Once upon a time, there was boy named Joy. One day, Joy and his best friend Sid were playing in Joy’s house. Joy’s dad had got him a new Origami book. They used it to learn how to cut and fold papers to make different shapes. They made lots of airplanes and boats!! When they were done, the kids picked up all the bits and pieces of paper lying around and put them in dustbin. Their parents were very happy. Someone else was happy too—
The Blue Fairy!!
The Blue Fairy came in Joy’s dreams that night and said, “Joy, You and Sid were very good today, learning new things and cleaning up. As a reward, I give you this magical paper. When you use origami and make something from this paper, it will turn real. Enjoy!!”
Joy woke up to find three magical papers under his pillow. Excited, he ran off to Sid’s house to show him the magical gift. Immediately the boys folded the first paper to make an aeroplane. Magically, it turned into a real aeroplane!! Joy and Sid sat on it, and took a trip around the world. They saw all the seven continents. They saw deserts and rainforests, snow capped mountains and vast plains. When they came back home, both the friends were so tired, they fell fast asleep!!
Next morning, they decided to use the second paper to make a boat. They went to the beach, and cut the paper in a square. Then Sid folded it into a nice boat, and it became real right away!! The boys pushed the boat into the ocean and went for a ride. They went to see the dolphins, and saw about twenty dolphins jumping around. They started playing with the friendly dolphins. Suddenly, Joy noticed a huge whale coming towards them. “Let’s sail back to the shore Sid”, Joy cried, “The whale is biggest animal on the earth. We can be in danger.” So the boys sailed back to shore in time, and were safe.
Back at home, they didn’t know what to do with the third magical paper. So they went to Joy’s father. “Dad, can you make something from this paper?” asked Joy. Joy’s father folded the paper in very complicated and difficult ways to make a lovely crane. To his astonishment, the paper bird turned into a real bird!! It flew across the room, sat on the fan, and then swooped down to sit on Joys shoulders. It played with all of them for a while, singing the most beautiful song they ever heard. And after a while it flew away through an open window. Sid was very sad and disappointed that his pet bird had flown away, but Joy wasn’t sad. He knew that the magical bird must have flown back to the Blue Fairy!!
CROSSWORD:

CLUES:
Across: 1. Sid was sad at the loss of his --- bird
3. The art of cutting and folding paper into shapes
4. Joy’s Father made a paper -----

Down: 1. Origami uses --- to make different shapes
2. The biggest animal on earth

ANSWERS:
Across: 1. Pet 3. Origami 4. Crane
Down: 1. paper 2. Whale

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Joy and the Magical Pencil

THE MAGICAL PENCIL


Once upon a time, there was a boy named Joy. One day a girl, Riya came to his home to play with him. Joy was very nice to her. They played games and made paintings together. At the end of the day, when she went back, Joy had earned himself a new friend and lots of praises from Mom. He was so very proud of himself. Someone else was proud too….
The Blue Fairy!!
The Blue Fairy saw what a nice host Joy had been and decided to reward him by giving him a magical pencil! “This pencil creates real drawings.” explained Blue Fairy. “Whatever you draw will become real. But remember, all my gifts can be used only three times. Have Fun!”
When Joy woke up after his nap, he quickly searched under his pillow and found a glowing magical pencil. Joy took it directly to his best friend, Sid’s home.
After a lot of thinking, they decided to draw the Eiffel tower. They took a photograph of the real Eiffel Tower of Paris, and start copying it carefully. When they were done, the paper started to shake. Soon, in place of the paper, stood the Eiffel tower, with real gates and lights and staircases and all – but the exact size of their drawing!
“It’s not real” shouted Joy, disappointed. “It’s just a toy. It’s so small.”
“It’s real Joy”, explained Sid. “All its parts are real and working. But it is the exact size of our drawing. If we make a big drawing, the real thing will also be equally big.”
The next day in school, the science teacher asked all children to collect three types of insects. Joy went to the toilet, locked the door, and secretly drew a caterpillar, a cockroach and a mosquito on a paper with his magical pencil. The insects became real, and Joy took them to the science teacher.
The teacher was very impressed. When she asked Joy where he got the insects from, he truthfully replied that he got them from the toilet. “Eeeks!!” shrieked the teacher; “We need to get some pest control done in the toilets!!”
That weekend, Joy and Sid’s families went for a picnic on the beach. Suddenly, Sid noticed some fishermen fishing with a big net. When the fishermen left for lunch, the children started to fool around with the huge fishing net and the boat. Unexpectedly, Sid got entangled inside the net. The more he struggled to come out of it, the more intertwined it became. “Help me” shouted Sid as the net started to slide off the shore into the waters. Joy gasped. He tried to pull the net out, but it was too heavy.
“I need a quick solution” Joy thought. He remembered about the magic pencil in his pocket. Joy started to draw as fast as he could. “What are you doing? Help me!!” cried Sid, as the net continued to slide towards the deep waters and the water reached his neck. As Joy completed, the drawing changed into a real sharp scissors. He used it to cut the net and rescue his best friend just in time.
“Let’s run away before the fishermen come back and catch us with their torn net” said Joy. And the friends ran back to the safety of their parents while the magical pencil disappeared.
CROSSWORD:

CLUES:
Across:1. Joy’s reward this time was a magical ------
4. The Pencil created ---- drawings
5. Sid got stuck in the fishermens’ ---
Down:
1. Eiffel Tower is situated in -----
2. The teacher asked students to collect three -------
3. The Fairy is of ---- color.
ANSWERS:
Across:1. Pencil 4.Real 5. Net
Down: 1.Paris 2. Insects 3.Blue

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