The Feelings Song
One rainy afternoon, Irie and Omie were building a tall tower out of wooden blocks in the living room. It was almost as tall as Omie! Then — wobble, wobble, CRASH! The tower tumbled down, blocks rolling everywhere.
Omie's face went red. He stomped his little foot. "No! No! NO!"
Irie didn't scold him. She sat down beside him on the rug and smiled. "That was a big feeling, wasn't it?" she said. "You know what helps big feelings? A song. Let's make one up — a song about feelings."
Omie sniffed and nodded. Irie clapped her hands, one-two, one-two, and began to sing.
Happy Feels Like Sunshine
"First, the happy part!" said Irie, jumping up and twirling around the rug. "Happy feels like sunshine on your face!"
Omie giggled and twirled too, his arms out wide like a little aeroplane. The blocks were forgotten for a moment as they spun and sang:
Happy is sunshine, warm and bright,
Dancing and twirling in the light.
Clap your hands and spin around,
Happy is the silliest sound!
"See?" said Irie. "Happy is easy to sing. But feelings come in all shapes, and every one of them is okay to feel."
Sad Feels Like a Rainy Day
Then Irie sat back down and pretended to hold an ice cream cone. "Oh no," she said in a wobbly voice. "My ice cream fell on the floor!"
Omie looked worried. Irie pretended to cry — big pretend tears, with her hands over her eyes.
"Sad feels like a rainy day," she sang softly. "And that's okay too. When you're sad, you can have a hug, or a quiet minute, or a good cry. Feelings don't stay forever — like rain, they pass."
They sang together, slow and gentle:
Sad is rain on a windowpane,
It's okay to cry, it's okay to feel pain.
A hug, a blanket, a quiet song,
Soon the rain will be gone.
Omie crawled into Irie's lap and hugged her tight. "Hug," he said.
Grumpy Feels Like a Thunderstorm
Suddenly Irie stood up and stomped her feet, boom, boom, boom! "Now the grumpy part!" she said, scrunching up her face like a thundercloud. "Grumpy feels like a thunderstorm — loud and stompy and rumbly!"
Omie laughed and stomped too, boom, boom, boom, all around the rug. Then Irie held up her hand. "But even thunderstorms calm down," she said. "When you're grumpy, you can stomp it out, and then take three big slow breaths — like blowing out birthday candles."
They stomped, then they breathed — in, out, in, out — and sang:
Grumpy is thunder, stomp, stomp, stomp!
Then breathe in slow and feel the calm.
Big breath in and big breath out,
That's what calm is all about!
Scared Feels Like a Dark Hallway
Outside, the rain pattered on the window, and the house was quiet. "Now the scared part," whispered Irie. "Scared feels like walking down a dark hallway — your tummy feels wobbly and your heart goes thump-thump-thump."
Omie hid his face behind his hands. "Scared," he whispered.
"But you know what?" said Irie, taking his hand. "When you're scared, you can hold someone's hand, or turn on a light, or say it out loud — 'I'm scared!' — and the scared feeling gets smaller."
They sang in a soft, brave voice:
Scared is a hallway, dark and long,
Hold a hand and you'll feel strong.
Say it out loud, turn on the light,
Brave little hearts shine through the night.
Omie peeked out from behind his hands and smiled. "Brave!" he said.
Calm Feels Like a Cosy Blanket
At last, Irie pulled a soft blanket over both of them and they snuggled together on the rug. "And now the calm part," she said, yawning. "Calm feels like a cosy blanket — warm, soft, and quiet."
Omie yawned too. The rain tapped gently on the window. They sang the last verse slowly, like a lullaby:
Calm is a blanket, soft and warm,
After the rain and after the storm.
Feelings come and feelings go,
Now you know, now you know!
The Song Goes Round and Round
"So that's the Feelings Song," said Irie. "Happy, sad, grumpy, scared, and calm. Every feeling has a verse, and every feeling is okay."
Omie nodded sleepily. "Again?" he whispered.
So they sang it one more time — all five verses, from sunshine to blanket. And then Omie looked at the blocks scattered on the rug, smiled, and started building his tower all over again. This time, when it wobbled, he just laughed.
"Happy!" he shouted. And Irie sang along.
The End. Now it's your turn — can you sing The Feelings Song, and tell someone how you're feeling today?