Henry was six years old and had a big box of wooden blocks. That afternoon, he wanted to build the tallest tower in the world. His stuffed dragon, Sparky, watched him from the rug.
Henry placed one block, then another, then another, very carefully. The tower was as high as his nose when, all of a sudden, it wobbled. Crash! All the blocks tumbled across the floor.
Henry built it again, and again it fell down. The third time, something started to bubble inside his tummy. It felt like a tiny volcano that kept getting bigger and bigger.
Henry squeezed his fists, his cheeks turned red, and he shouted: “These silly towers never work!”
Dad put down the book he was reading and sat beside him on the rug. “Uh-oh, I think there's a volcano in there,” he said calmly. Henry nodded without looking up. His eyes were full of tears.
“Do you know what dragons do when they get angry?” Dad asked. “Breathe fire?” Henry sniffled. “Not the wise ones. They do dragon breathing.”
Dad closed his eyes and pretended to smell a flower, very slowly. Then he blew out gently, gently, like a dragon puffing a little smoke. Henry hugged Sparky and tried it too: he smelled the flower and puffed the smoke.
Once. Twice. Three times.
Little by little, the volcano in his tummy grew quiet. “How about Sparky helps you figure out why it falls?” Dad suggested. Henry sat Sparky on the couch and studied the blocks like a detective.
“I know! The bottom is too narrow,” he said suddenly. This time he put four big blocks at the bottom, snug together. On top went the medium ones and, at the very top, the smallest.
The tower grew and grew, taller than his nose, taller than his head.
Then Sparky slid off the couch and brushed it with his tail. The tower shook… and came crashing down. Henry felt the volcano peek out, but this time he smelled the flower and puffed the smoke.
And instead of shouting, he burst out laughing with Dad. “Tomorrow we'll build a castle with a huge base,” he said with a yawn.
That night, Henry fell asleep hugging Sparky, breathing slowly, like a wise dragon. Goodnight, Henry…
