Camille’s Mermaid Tale

• Oodles of Fun
• Come On In, Camille!
• Something Fishy
• Half In, Half Out
• Tales and Tails
• For Parents

Oodles of Fun

It was the first day of summer break, after their school let out. All the WellieWishers were so excited to be done with school, and the first place they wanted to go was to Willa’s Aunt Miranda’s garden. Kendall points out summer days are very long, so they can be in the garden all day long, too.

Ashlyn points out there’s oodles and oodles of fun things to do in the garden, if they use their noodles. Camille laughs, and grabs a ball while she sings a little made-up song to “Yankee Doodle”:

  In the summer
  In our garden
  If we use our noodles
  We’ll think up great things to do
  And we’ll have fun—just oodles!

Kendall gets out a notebook, and says they should make a list of things they can do. Ashlyn suggests doing an outdoor picnic on a rainy day. They can wear swimsuits and eat food that is okay to eat slightly damp. Camille says they can wade in mud puddles. Emerson, who loves performing and being on stage, suggests doing an acrobat show. She can do cartwheels, flips, and splits. Camille adds on, saying she can pretend to be a sea lion, and she balances the ball on her nose while clapping her arms together.

Willa says they can sleep under the stars some night and count fireflies. And they can tell each other stories about fairies, magic, and talking animals. Kendall suggests they can build a boat and pretend to be explorers or sailors. They can decorate the boat with polka dots, rainbows, and doodles. Then Camille has an idea, and sings, once again to the tune of “Yankee Doodle”:

  Acrobats and rainy picnics,
  Boats with lots of doodles,
  Starry skies and fireflies:
  We really used our noodles!

Come On In, Camille!

The next morning, the WellieWishers meet in the garden. Kendall takes out her notebook and asks the girls which idea they should do first. Ashlyn looks up at the bright and sunny sky and mentions they’ll have to wait for a rainy day to do the picnic. Camille pipes up and says that she hopes she’ll be there when it rains, because she wants to do the picnic.

Willa, who senses Camille feels a little sad, asks Camille what she means. Camille explains that her mother signed her and her sister up for ballet each morning, so she’ll only be able to come to the garden in the afternoons. Kendall and Ashlyn exclaim they’ll miss her in the mornings, and save the most fun for the afternoons. Emerson is excited by the idea of ballet. She’s sure Camille will love it. But Camille isn’t quite sure.

Then Aunt Miranda brings out ice pops for all the girls. They laugh and chuckle as they lick their ice pops, but Camille still doesn’t feel very happy. Ashlyn asks her if she still feels sad about missing the mornings. Camille nods. She explains she misses her grandmother, too.

Before Camille’s family moved there last fall, they lived near the ocean, and Camille’s grandmother would spend the whole summer with them. They’d go to the beach every day.

Willa says she’s never seen the ocean, and asks what it’s like. Camille describes how it goes on forever and ever, and it changes color based on the weather outside. The air smells salty and fishy, and the sand is hot and the water is cold and bubbly. Sometimes they see turtles, crabs, or seagulls. And maybe even a dolphin or whale jumping farther out in the water.

All the girls are quiet, imagining what the ocean must look like. Camille continues. She and her sister used to pretend they were mermaids. They’d swim through the water as if their legs were a tail. They’d make up mermaid stories to tell their Grandma, where they were mermaids who lived in an underwater garden full of beautiful shells and wavery sea plants. They’d be friends with seahorse and dolphins, and they’d all swim together and come to surface to watch people and boats.

Emerson smiles. “Camille, I bet you wish you were a mermaid.” Camille nods her head in agreement. Emerson makes up a little song to “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”:

  Come on in, Camille,
  Swim along with me!
  Make a wish,
  Half girl, half fish,
  Splashing in the sea.

One summer, Camille’s grandmother even made her a mermaid tail costume, but she outgrew it before she moved. Anyway, her sister says they’re too old to be playing mermaids. Emerson and Kendall respond that she must be wrong… you’re never too old to be a mermaid.

Camille knows her friends are trying to cheer her up. But it doesn’t work well—she knows mermaids can’t live on dry land, and the ocean can’t fit in Aunt Miranda’s garden.

Later, after Camille leaves for the day, Ashlyn suggests they try something to make Camille feel better. Then, Willa has an amazing plan.

Something Fishy

The next morning, when Aunt Miranda goes to the shed to get a wheelbarrow, she finds Kendall, Emerson, Ashlyn, and Willa working hard. Kendall is all wet, Ashlyn is covered in paint, and Emerson is covered in paper scraps. Willa holds her finger to her lips and says what they’re doing is a secret.

The girls know Camille feels so sad about missing morning garden time, so they’re making a surprise for her to cheer her up. Willa explains they’re making an underwater garden because Camille loves to pretend she’s a mermaid. Because they can’t go to the ocean, they’re bringing the ocean to the garden!

Ashlyn admits it’s tougher than they thought it’d be, but it’s worth it! They just hope they can keep it a secret until it’s ready. Aunt Miranda winks and promises to keep the secret.

But the next afternoon, Camille comes to the garden after ballet. The girls are all messy and aren’t ready to reveal their surprise, so Kendall rushes out to distract Camille. Although Camille questions why Kendall is all wet, she makes up a little lie, and changes discussion topic to what Camille learned in ballet class.

Camille explains they learned the plié today. She demonstrates it for Kendall, and Kendall tries to copy it. They’re both laughing when the other girls come up to them, running and out of breath. When Camille asks them what they did that morning, Willa and Ashlyn dodge the question.

Kendall takes out her notebook and waves it around. “Let’s do one of our plans!” Camille suggests using the old tin tub in the shed to make a boat, and she starts walking down the path. All at once, the other girls shout “No!” and block her path. Camille is puzzled. Then Kendall suggests planning the acrobat show today. Camille’s surprised by the sudden change of direction, but consents.

The girls all rush to the stage, where Emerson stands up immediately. Emerson suggests doing the tricks and flips she mentioned the other day. Willa says she’s got an idea for a solo act. She can do pliés and sing up a new song she made. To “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” she sings:

  Down, up, down and up,
  Bend your knees and squat,
  Something, something,
  Something, something,
  Doing some pliés.

Emerson gushes that it’s a great song, and the others politely clap. Camille is confused as to why Willa’s song doesn’t rhyme and doesn’t have finished lyrics. And Emerson isn’t correcting or suggesting finished lyrics. And, just last fall, Willa was adamant she didn’t want to do solos on stage. So why the change of heart now? Why aren’t her friends behaving like her friends?

Half In, Half Out

The next day, Willa is frustrated. She hates keeping the secret of the surprise from Camille. Ashlyn agrees that the secret is probably hurting their friendship with Camille, since they hurt her feelings yesterday when they kept things from her. Kendall says the garden is almost finished, so she’ll find out soon. Camille must know something fishy is going on. Emerson says that they’ve kept the secret thus far… they need to see this out.

And the girls are right. That afternoon, when Camille arrives at the garden, instead of going straight to her friends, she sits on a big rock. She feels glum and confused by her friends’ behavior. They ignored her questions and suggestions the day before. They must be hiding something from her.

Aunt Miranda sees Camille sitting there, and comes over. Camille explains she hasn’t been there as much because of her ballet classes. She likes ballet classes, but hates missing her friends at the garden. Maybe it’s better if she didn’t come to the garden at all. It’s hard being half in and half out. She says she feels left out, as if she doesn’t know what they’re doing. And she misses her grandmother, and she misses being at the ocean. She feels as if no matter where she is, she’s not where she wants to be.

Aunt Miranda gives her a big hug, and says she knows how Camille feels. Aunt Miranda likes to travel, but whenever she does, she misses her big garden. So, she’ll close her eyes and try to imagine what it looks like. She says that always makes her feel better.

That evening, Camille tries Aunt Miranda’s advice. She closes her eyes, and takes a deep breath. Suddenly, she can imagine the ocean so vividly in her mind. She feels like she can even smell it. Not wanting to lose the memory, she starts to draw a picture. And when it’s done, she writes down one of the mermaid stories she used to tell her grandmother.

After doing all of that, she feels like a heavy weight has been lifted from her heart. So, she continues, drawing more pictures, and writing down even more stories. She writes so many stories that the pages begin to form a book!

Tales and Tails

A few days later, Camille comes into the garden, and she’s very surprised. Sitting inside one of her wellington boots is a bottle with a note rolled up in it. It says “Come to the old shed.” What a mysterious note! Camille runs to the garden shed.

“Surprise!” shouts all of the WellieWishers. Camille looks around. There’s sand on the floor, the bin filled with bubbly water, and hanging decorations shaped like fish, an octopus, and sea stars. The walls are painted to look like waves and sea kelp, dancing in the currents.

“This is beautiful,” breathes Camille. Kendall explains it’s an underwater sea garden, inspired from the story Camille told them last week. Willa elaborates that they loved her story so much, they had to make it come true for her.

Camille kneels on the sand and dips her hand in the tub. Hot sand, and cold water, just like the real beach. She holds a shell up to her ear, and smiles when she hears the sound of the waves inside of it. The girls hand over some other items they collected, such as a seahorse stuffed animal, sunglasses, an hourglass, and a treasure chest.

Camille realizes that this is the secret the girls have been hiding this whole time. They’ve been putting this all together. She’s very grateful. Then, Camille opens the treasure chest.

Inside, she finds a brown package. Emerson is bursting with excitement, and urges Camille to open it. When she does, she pulls out a brand new mermaid tail and a crown. The girls help Camille put it on, and she twirls around in a few circles. It’s a perfect fit.

Kendall pulls out a note from the package. It reads:

  Dear Camille,
  Your friend Aunt Miranda called me. She told me that you missed her mermaid tail, so I made you a new one. I hope you are never too big to imagine you’re a mermaid.
  Love and kisses, Granny

In that moment, Camille can’t say anything. She’s overwhelmed with gratitude and joy. She’s thankful and so very happy that her description of the ocean is what made all of this happen. Then she has an idea.

Camille pulls out her mermaid stories. She explains how she wrote down some of her mermaid tales. “While Granny was making a mermaid tail, I was making mermaid tales.” The girls open the book up, and crowd close together to see all the drawings and read the book. “The mermaid and the dolphins swam at night.” “The mermaid and the seahorses had a seaweed picnic.” “The mermaid swam next to a boat. The boat had rainbows, polka dots, and doodles on it.” “Splish, splash in the sea. Hello friendly whale! Come along and swim with me in my mermaid’s tale.”

The other girls adore the book. Camille hugs her grandmother’s note to her chest, and then feels so happy and peaceful again, as if her grandmother and her friends are all together beside the beautiful sea.

For Parents

Discusses the power of storytelling, and explains that children are natural storytellers. Stories can help children remember good times, and process through bad times, too. Topics include:

• When your child is missing someone, work with them to tell a story where they interacted together
• If your daughter has trouble remembering something, make a story to remind her about the thing she needs to remember
• If your daughter has a wish that can’t be fulfilled easily, help her imagine it coming true
• Turn your child’s stories into a book to be shared; this can be done at home on a budget, or by using a photo website or print shop
• Making a photo or drawing collage, if it’s easier to tell stories using pictures