How to be patient
Bogdan sat on the carpet under the Christmas tree and looked at the presents. One. Two. Three. Five presents. In rich red and gold wrappers. With bows.
“Mom, can I go now?” he shouted into the kitchen.
"Bohdan, I said after lunch. Another hour and thirty.".
«"An hour and thirty," Bogdan groaned in his mind. "That's an eternity.".
He licked his lips. He looked at the biggest gift — a huge one, wrapped in red paper with gold snowflakes. What could it be? A car? A construction set? A huge dinosaur?!
— Mom! Well, ma-a-am! At least one. A little one!
"Oh, my God," Mom came out of the kitchen with a towel in her hands. "Don't be nervous. Otherwise, I'll ask Saint Nicholas to take everything back.".
Bohdan gasped softly. And fell silent. Because mom will definitely be able to do that. She knows Mykola, he used to come home, she definitely knows him.
The boy lay down on the carpet and looked at the ceiling. The time was one hour thirty. How could he live with this?
Suddenly, something rustled from the Christmas tree. Bogdan raised his head. On one of the lower branches sat... a squirrel? Small, red-haired, in a pink scarf. She was holding an acorn in her paws.
"Hello," the squirrel said quietly. "You seem to be really, really hungry.".
Bogdan sat down. His eyes were big, big.
"Are you... are you... are you the squirrel from the Christmas tree?"
"Solomiyka," the squirrel introduced herself. "And you, little one, are probably Bogdan.".
At that moment, a second rustle sounded on the branch above. And a large, warm owl landed on the high branch of the Christmas tree. With light brown feathers, a cream chest, and small round glasses on its beak.
"I'm Sofiyka," she said gently. "I see you can't wait, can you?"
Bogdan nodded like a cunning duck.
"I really want presents! And I have to wait an hour and thirty!"
The straw shrank.
"I know, I know. I used to be so impatient for winter. Acorns are tastier in the fall. I ran, dug through leaves, stamped my feet—nothing helped. Summer went on and on.".
"And how did you wait?"
— Wise. Sofiyka, tell Bohdanchyk how I did it.
Sophie smiled.
— Bogdan, I want to tell you about patience. It's a little magic word. Do you want to listen?
Bogdan nodded quickly.
🦉 Lesson from Sofiyka
1. Breathe slowly
When you wait really, really long — your chest feels like it's boiling. Then take three slow, deep breaths. Inhale — hold — exhale. Again. Again. It will get easier. Seriously — it works.
2. Find a job
Time passes faster when you don't look at the clock. If you're waiting, read. Draw. Sing. Help your mother. In five minutes, you won't even notice how the hour has passed.
3. Waiting is delicious
Imagine: you would receive all the gifts at once. Once and that's it. And so - you wait, dream, imagine... and the joy is greater than the gift itself. Waiting is part of the holiday.
"Oh, I know," Solomiyka said energetically. "When I was a child, I wanted to have lunch." three times a day. And my mother said — twice. And I cried. Loudly. For two hours.
"And what happened?"
"And then I realized. If I had eaten three times, I might be chubby. And so I am the fastest squirrel in the forest. Thanks to my mother's patience. Ha!
Bogdan chuckled softly.
4. Large - grows for a long time
A big tree grows from a small acorn for twenty years. A small happiness is a moment. A big happiness must be waited for. Like a Christmas tree. Like Saint Nicholas.
5. A tantrum won't speed things up.
No matter how much you cry and stamp your foot, the clock won't move. You still have to wait. It's better to wait cheerfully - then it's easier to wait.
Bohdan yawned. He looked at the clock on the wall. It turned out that forty-five minutes had passed. And he didn't even notice! Because he was listening. And dreaming. And eating the dry cookies that his mother had brought.
“Oh…” he said in surprise. “Almost!”
"You see," Solomiyka winked. "When there's something to do, time flies.".
"And when I open the presents," Bohdan promised, "I'll definitely show you. What did they give you as a gift - an acorn?"
"And I'm a little straw squirrel, I don't need anything else," she laughed.
In the kitchen, mom clanged pots and pans.
"Bogda-ah-ah! Go have lunch!"
The boy jumped up. Because lunch meant that soon... soon it would be possible!
Sofiyka believes in you. And Solomiyka too. 🦉🐿️