Evelyn, with her bright eyes and a giggle that could make bubbles dance, loved the ocean! She was three years old and a super duper diver! Her pet fish, Jacob, was 54 years old (that's really old for a fish!) and loved to hear all about Evelyn's underwater adventures.
One sunny day, Evelyn's mom said, "Evelyn, let's go to the park! It's important to be respectful of our parks and keep them clean and fun for everyone!"
Evelyn grabbed her sunhat. "Respectful park? Do they have dinosaurs?" she asked. Evelyn loved dinosaurs!
"Well, I'm not sure about dinosaurs," her mom chuckled. "But I know they have swings!"
At the park, kids were playing, birds were singing, and the sun was making the slides nice and warm. Evelyn saw a big sign that said "Welcome to Respectful Park!" It had a picture of a happy sun holding hands with a tree and a smiling flower.
Evelyn giggled. "Look, Mommy! The sun is being respectful!"
"That's right," her mom said. "Being respectful means being kind to everyone and everything around us. It means taking care of our park, just like the sun is taking care of the flower!"
Evelyn saw a little boy about to throw his juice box on the ground. "Wait!" Evelyn shouted. "We need to be respectful! Let's put it in the trash can."
The boy looked surprised, then he smiled. "Okay!" he said. Together, they put the juice box in the trash.
Suddenly, Evelyn heard a loud CRUNCH! Behind a big oak tree, she saw something AMAZING! It was a dinosaur, but not a scary one. This dinosaur was bright purple with orange spots and had a big, goofy grin on its face!
"Wow!" Evelyn whispered. "A real dinosaur!"
The dinosaur saw Evelyn and waved a giant claw. "Hello there! I'm Chompy! I love eating...leaves!" he said, munching on a big green leaf.
"You're not going to eat me?" Evelyn asked, a little nervously.
Chompy laughed, and it sounded like a hundred acorns tumbling down a hill. "No way! Eating people is not respectful! I only eat leaves and I always ask the trees politely before taking a bite."
Evelyn spent the rest of the afternoon playing with Chompy. They slid down the slide (Chompy had to be careful not to break it!) and they swung on the swings (Chompy's tail kept hitting the other kids, but he always said "Excuse me!").
Evelyn even introduced Chompy to Jacob (who thought the whole thing was very exciting for a fish).
As the sun started to set, it was time to go home.
"Bye, Chompy!" Evelyn waved. "Thanks for being so respectful!"
Chompy winked. "Remember, always be kind and take care of our world!"
On the way home, Evelyn told her mom all about the respectful dinosaur. She knew that even though she didn't see Chompy every day, she could still be respectful, just like him, by being kind to her friends, her family, and her world.
And if you listen closely the next time you're at the park, you might just hear a CRUNCH and a giggle. It might be Evelyn and Chompy, the respectful dinosaur, playing hide and seek amongst the trees.
