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Alex and the Spirited Bounce

Alex was six years old and had a red ball, his favorite toy. He bounced it high and low, here and there, all around the living room where the sun shone brightly through the windows.

One sunny afternoon, Alex's red ball bounced a bit too high. Up, up, up it went, and then - CRASH! - it hit a vase on the shelf. The vase wobbled and wiggled, then fell to the ground with a loud thud and broke into pieces.

"Oh no!" Alex gasped, his eyes round with worry.

He stood there, looking at the pieces of the vase scattered on the floor. His heart beat fast like the wings of a hummingbird. He knew his mom liked that vase a lot. It had flowers and patterns that danced around in a lovely swirl.

Alex's mom heard the noise and came quickly.

"What happened here, Alex?" she asked, her voice calm but surprised.

Alex took a deep breath. "I was playing with my red ball, and it hit the vase. I didn't mean to break it," he explained, his voice barely louder than a whisper.

His mom knelt down beside him. "Thank you for telling me the truth, Alex," she said kindly. "Vases can be replaced, but honesty is precious, like a rare gem."

Together, they picked up the pieces of the broken vase. His mom put them in a box to be careful of the sharp edges.

"Mom, I'm really sorry about the vase," Alex said, feeling the weight of what he had done.

"I know you are," she replied, rubbing his back. "Let's think about where we can play with your ball so this doesn't happen again."

Alex thought hard. "Maybe I should play with my ball outside or in the playroom where there's more space," he suggested.

"That sounds like a great idea," his mom agreed with a gentle smile.

They took the box outside and emptied the broken pieces into the recycling bin. Alex looked at his red ball and decided right then, he would be more careful.

For the rest of the afternoon, Alex played with his ball in the playroom, where his laughter mixed with the bounce of the ball against the padded floor.

And even though the vase was broken, Alex learned something that day about playing in the right places, and his mom was proud of him for his honesty and for thinking about what to do next time. They had a snack together — crunchy carrot sticks and sweet, ripe strawberries — and everything felt a little bit better.