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Maya is a little mermaid. Maya has bright red hair. Maya has a pale face. Maya has a green tail. Maya lives in the sea. The sea is very blue. Maya lives near the reef. The reef has pink coral. The reef has yellow fish. Maya likes the pretty reef.
But Maya has a problem. Maya is a slow swimmer. Maya moves her green tail. She moves it very slowly. Her friends are very fast. The blue fish are fast. The orange crabs are fast. “Wait for me!” Maya says. Maya feels a little sad. She wants to be fast. She wants to be brave.
One day, Maya swims far. She sees a big ship. The ship is very old. The ship is very brown. It is a sunken ship. Maya hears a loud cry. “Help! Help!” says a voice. Maya looks inside the ship. She sees a little whale. The whale is bright blue. The whale is very small. The whale is stuck. A big piece of wood is on his tail.
Maya is very scared now. The ship is very dark. The ship is very big. Maya is a small mermaid. “I am scared,” Maya says. But the whale is sad. The whale starts to cry. Maya looks at the whale. Maya wants to be brave. “I can help you,” Maya says.
Maya swims to the ship. She swims very, very slowly. She reaches the big wood. She pushes the brown wood. She pushes with her hands. She pushes with her tail. Maya is very strong. The wood moves a little. Maya pushes one more time. The wood falls away.
“I am free!” says the whale. The little whale is happy. The little whale swims circles. Maya is very happy too. She is not scared now. She is a brave mermaid. Maya and the whale play. They swim to the reef. They swim past the coral. They swim past the fish. Maya is still very slow. But the whale stays close. They are very good friends. Maya smiles a big smile. She loves the blue sea. She loves her green tail. She is a brave girl.
Courage is helping others even when you are afraid.
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