Once upon a time there was a girl named Ava, and Ava did not want to move.

Not to a new town, not to a new school, and definitely, not to the quiet little house on the hillside that her parents just bought.

How am I supposed to find any friends and ride my bike anywhere?

It's too far from everything, she said, but her parents promised her it would feel like home in time.

The new house on the hillside rolled down into a wide green valley.

There were tall trees and green grass and dandelions that danced in the wind.

Even though Ava didn't want to live so far away from everything, it was still beautiful.

One afternoon, while her parents were still unpacking boxes, Ava wandered down the hillside

to explore.

She hadn't meant to walk that far, but the summer breeze was warm and the wildflower smelled

so good.

And then her eye caught sight of something that looks like a secret just waiting to

be discovered. Down in the woods, she could see a small winding river that was shimmering in

the late afternoon sun, and all alongside it were wildflowers and pink blossomed cherry trees.

The trees looked perfect, almost like someone had planted them there on purpose a long time ago.

And there was a fallen down tree that stretched from one end of the river to the other,

like a bridge between two different worlds.

Ava couldn't believe it.

It looked more perfect than any calendar or postcard picture she had ever seen.

So she slowly walked over to the fallen down tree and got up and started walking on it like it was a balance beam as she made her way to

the other side of the river. And then she sat by the river's edge and pulled out her sketchbook,

the one she carried everywhere. And with a soft pencil and a steady hand, she began to draw.

...