✦An original Curiosi bedtime story
Hush, Little Baby
Mira discovers that a small, familiar sound can be a lovely gift.
A story to read together
Hush, Little Baby
Take your time. Let the story unfold.
Mira stood in the doorway with a wooden train in one hand and a silver paper star in the other. Her baby sister, Anu, was awake in Papa’s arms. Beyond the window, rain whispered against the leaves. “I brought her something beautiful,” Mira said. She held up the star. It turned in the lamplight, but Anu watched Papa’s face.
A gift with a rattle
Mira tried the train next. Its wheels clattered over the floorboards. Anu startled, and Mira stopped at once. “That gift is rather noisy,” she whispered. Papa smiled and drew his chair closer. “You can stay beside us,” he said. Mira set the train on the rug. She wondered what she could give a sister who was too little to build tracks or hang up paper stars.
The evening orchestra
For a moment, nobody spoke. Rain tapped the window ledge: tip, tip, tip. A leaf brushed the glass. Somewhere downstairs, a spoon touched a cup with one small chink. “The house is making a tiny orchestra,” Mira said. Papa listened with her. Then he hummed a few low notes. They rose and fell, as gently as the curtain moving beside the window.
Mira’s own tune
Mira joined in with a soft hum. She did not know a song for a baby, so she invented a little tune. She pictured the paper star turning, the train waiting on its rug, and the wet leaves shining outside. When she forgot her tune halfway through, she started again. Papa hummed along. Anu’s eyes rested on Mira, and her small fingers opened slowly.
Something to give again
At last Anu grew drowsy. Mira tucked the paper star into her own pocket and left the train beside the chair. “I can give her that tune tomorrow, too,” she whispered. “You can,” said Papa. “And perhaps she will know your voice a little better.” Mira leaned against his shoulder. Outside, the rain kept its quiet rhythm. Inside, the two familiar voices hummed together once more.
The end
After the final page
There is no single right answer. Invite young readers to notice, wonder and imagine.
Why does Mira stop rolling the train?
Which small sounds do Mira and Papa notice?
What kind gift could you give without buying anything?
Make something: Make an evening sound map. Draw a window, a room, and a doorway, then add a small picture for each gentle sound you notice. You can invent your own quiet tune to accompany it.
