Finley was a little blue fish who lived in a big, bubbly coral reef. He loved his life! He loved swimming in the same little loop, eating the same green algae, and playing hide-and-seek with his best friend, Coral. But Finley *really* didn’t like new things. Not one bit.
One day, a school of rainbow fish swam into the reef. They were swirling and twirling, doing flips and zooming past! Finley hid behind Coral. “Too much!” he squeaked. “Too bright! Too fast! Too…new!” Coral giggled. “They’re just having fun, Finley. Why don’t you try swimming with them?”
Finley shook his head. “No way! I like my loop. It’s safe.” But the rainbow fish, noticing Finley hiding, swam closer. A friendly orange fish with sparkly scales smiled. “Hi! I’m Ripple. Want to try a bubble race?” Finley’s fins trembled. A bubble race? He’d never raced anything before!
“I…I don’t know,” Finley stammered. Ripple didn’t push. “It’s okay if you don’t. We’re also having a seaweed-decorating contest and a game of ‘find the shiny pebble.’ Lots of choices!” Finley peeked out from behind Coral. Seaweed decorating sounded…less scary. He liked arranging things.
He cautiously swam over to the seaweed-decorating contest. The rainbow fish were attaching tiny shells and glowing plankton to long strands of seaweed. A purple fish named Lumi offered Finley a tiny, pearly shell. “Here, you can add this!” Finley carefully stuck the shell onto a piece of seaweed. It looked…pretty! He added another, and another, until his seaweed strand sparkled.
He was so focused, he didn’t notice he was laughing! He was having fun! He even tried the bubble race, though he didn’t win. He didn’t mind. It was exciting to zoom and swirl with the other fish. He discovered he wasn’t very fast, but he was a very good bubble-blower!
As the sun began to set, casting a warm glow over the reef, Finley realized something amazing. New things weren’t scary at all. They were…fun! He thanked Ripple and Lumi for inviting him to play. Coral swam up and bumped Finley playfully with her nose.
“See? I told you!” she said. Finley smiled. “You were right. Trying new things is wonderful.” He swam a loop, but this time, he added a little swirl, a little zoom, and a little sparkle, just like the rainbow fish. He knew he’d still love his loop, but now he knew there was a whole ocean of adventures waiting for him, and he was ready to explore them.
That night, as Finley drifted off to sleep, he dreamed of rainbow bubbles, sparkly seaweed, and all the new friends he’d made. He knew that even though it took a little courage, trying new things could lead to the most wonderful surprises.