This episode marks the end of Season 1 of A Carefully Built Pretend. Thank you so much for listening and supporting my work, I look forward to bringing you more original stories when we pick up with Season 2 in a few months.

Today we’ll be reading a story called Elliot Under Glass. 

Have you ever looked deeply into a snow globe and wished with all your might that you could go inside? Maybe it’s a snow globe with a dashing unicorn, flowers laced in its flowing mane and tail. Or perhaps it’s a holiday snow globe with a jolly Santa surrounded by his elves and a mountain of toys. Or maybe it’s one of those snow globes that someone brought back from a trip, with the Empire State Building or the Eiffel Tower inside. You give it a shake and watch the glittery snow swirl around and fall gently toward the bottom, dreaming you could be taken away to the magical space inside the snow globe.

Now what if I told you that sometimes... well, at least one time... there was someone inside the snow globe wishing they could get out?! You don’t believe me, do you? Well, let me tell you the story of Elliot Under Glass...

A Carefully Built Pretend podcast is written and produced by Melissa Oliveri - http://www.melissaoliveri.com

Support Melissa on Patreon - http://www.patreon.com/melissaoliveri

Melissa on Instagram: @the.mop.pod

Melissa on Twitter: @melissaoliveri

All music by Cannelle - http://www.cannellemusic.com

Music and Stories brought to you by Things with Wings Productions and Phaeton Starling Publishing.

FULL TRANSCRIPT:

Pssst! Over here!

Take my hand, I’ll take you to a Pretend Land!

Are you ready?

1 -2 -3, Wheeeeeeeeee!

Welcome to A Carefully Built Pretend. My name is Melissa, and I’m so glad you’re here!

Today we’ll be reading a story called Elliot Under Glass. 

Have you ever looked deeply into a snow globe and wished with all your might that you could go inside? Maybe it’s a snow globe with a dashing unicorn, flowers laced in its flowing mane and tail. Or perhaps it’s a holiday snow globe with a jolly Santa surrounded by his elves and a mountain of toys. Or maybe it’s one of those snow globes that someone brought back from a trip, with the Empire State Building or the Eiffel Tower inside. You give it a shake and watch the glittery snow swirl around and fall gently toward the bottom, dreaming you could be taken away to the magical space inside the snow globe.

Now what if I told you that sometimes... well, at least one time... there was someone inside the snow globe wishing they could get out?! You don’t believe me, do you? Well, let me tell you the story of Elliot Under Glass...

Are you ready? Here we go!

No one is quite sure how Elliot got inside the snow globe. Some say he was put in there when a mystical creature cast a spell on him, others say he grew from a seed or grain of sand, others think maybe he hatched out of an egg. Whatever the case, Elliot had never known a day outside of the snow globe. He wasn’t completely alone in there, he had a doll, a toy train, a plate of cookies, and a glass of lemonade. But the one thing he didn’t have, was a real friend.

Tony loved Christmas. Every year he would spend the weeks leading up to the holidays pouring over the Sears toy catalogue, circling all his favourite things. That Christmas, Tony got a new sled, a Batman colouring book, a chutes and ladders board game, and his very own hair comb. “There’s one more gift under the tree, Tony,” his grandpa had said, “I think it’s for you!”

Tony had scurried to the tree and gently lifted the small, rather heavy box. There was no tag on it. “Who is it from?” he asked. He looked around at the grownups in the room, but none of them seemed to know. Tony shrugged and tore off the paper. Underneath was a plain brown cardboard box. Tony carefully pried it open and lifted the object out. “It’s a snow globe!” he shouted, giving it a shake then holding it up to the light to peer inside.

“Dad is this your doing?” Tony’s dad asked Tony’s Grandpa. Tony’s grandpa shook his head no and shrugged his shoulders. “Well son, I guess we’ll just chalk this one up to Santa!” he said, smiling.

“I love it!” said Tony, running up to his room to find the perfect spot for his gift. The snow globe found a home on top of his dresser next to the bed. Every night before bed he would lay down and hold it up above his head, peering at the boy inside as the glittery snowflakes fell around him. The boy inside was sitting cross-legged on the floor, a doll, toy train, plate of cookies, and glass of lemonade by his side. I wonder what your name is...thought Tony one day. 

“It’s Elliot!” shouted the boy. Tony was so shocked he almost dropped the snow globe on the floor. He had seen a film at the movie theatre last year with his dad where the toys could talk, and move. But... that wasn’t real... was it?

“Hello Elliot, I’m Tony,” he spoke into the glass at the top of the snow globe. He leaned back and looked down. The boy in the snow globe, Elliot, was waving at him. “It is real!” he whispered in disbelief. Tony leaned in to take a closer look. “Elliot, you’re so lucky! You get to eat cookies, and drink lemonade, and play all day!”

Elliot shook his head, sending a mass of glittery snowflakes swirling around him. “No!” he shouted, barely audible through the glass. The truth was, Elliott dreamed of the world outside the snow globe. He dreamed of the cozy bed with the cowboy comforter, or of running barefoot outside and feeling the blades of grass poke between his toes, or splashing in a backyard pool, or a bathtub filled with bubbles up to his chin! In the beginning he loved cookies and lemonade... but now he wanted to try new things! Pizza, popcorn, chocolate-dipped strawberries!

“What do you mean, no?” asked Tony, unable to understand why anyone would want to turn down an endless supply of cookies. In the snow globe he wouldn’t have to go to school, he wouldn’t have to take a bath or brush his teeth every night, or listen to his sister boss him around. He wouldn’t have to wear the uncomfortable button up shirts his mom made him wear on special occasions, and he wouldn’t have to sit through any of Aunt Janet’s boring holiday parties. The more he thought about it, the more life inside the snow globe sounded great!

“It’s not as wonderful as you think,” said Elliot, as if reading his mind. “Cookies and lemonade are fun for a while, but I only have two toys to play with, and I don’t have a bed, I have to sleep on the floor. This glittery snow gets stuck in my hair and in my clothes. I never get to hug anyone, or make new friends, or travel and explore new places. 

Tony sat and thought about it for a long time. Maybe Elliot was right, life outside the snow globe wasn’t so bad. He had been on that trip to Mount Rushmore with his classmates last year, and he sure did have a comfy bed with puffy pillows and sheets that had cowboys on horseback racing across them. He got to go to birthday parties, and play on the softball team, play tricks on his dad for April Fool’s day, compete in the spelling bee, go trick or treating for Halloween... he got to do a lot of fun things when he really stopped to think about it.

“Okay Elliot, how do we get you out?” he asked. He squinted at the boy in the snow globe and saw him shrug. 

“I really don’t know,” replied Elliot, I’ve always been in here, I don’t know how to get out.

“What if we try wishing really hard?” suggested Tony. The two of them squeezed their eyes shut tightly and silently wished with all their might. After a few minutes they opened their eyes and looked around, but Elliot was still under the glass of the snow globe.

“Maybe we need to cast a spell, or break a curse, like what a witch or wizard would do!” suggested Tony. He packed the snow globe in his backpack and rode his bike to the library to do some research. He found a Freedom Spell in the book the librarian had brought him. He copied it down in his very best handwriting and biked home. Tony and Elliot repeated the spell word for word, three times, just in case. But still, Elliot was stuck under the glass, glittery snow in his hair.

“Maybe we need to take the snow globe apart and let you out that way!” suggested Tony. At this Elliot looked a little worried, but gave a small, nervous nod. Tony raced downstairs to his mom’s tool kit and grabbed a screwdriver. He turned the snow globe over and tried to figure out which screws held which pieces together. After a few tries he finally flipped the snow globe right-side-up and peered down at Elliot with a glum look on his face. “I’m sorry Elliot, I don’t think it’s doable, the glass is glued to the bottom part, so the water won’t come out.” Elliot looked sad, but mostly he looked dizzy and nauseous from being upside down for so long.

Tony and Elliot eventually gave up on freeing Elliot from the snow globe and just enjoyed their new friendship. Tony would tell Elliot stories about his adventures in the outside world, and Elliot would tell Tony tall tales he’d made up while sitting within the confines of the snow globe. 

One day, Tony’s mom told him to clean his room, reminding him that his grandmother was coming to visit. Tony’s grandma would go on and on about how messy and irresponsible he was if he didn’t clean his room before she arrived. Tony made his bed and put his clothes and toys away. He hurriedly passed the vacuum back and forth on his rug, then fluffed his pillows and watered his cactus, Bruce, named after Batman’s alter ego Bruce Wayne. “Grandma’s here!” shouted his mom, sending Tony into a flurry. He hadn’t dusted yet! He grabbed the duster from the hall closet and clumsily ran it across his desk, the shelves where he lined up his toy cars and figurines, and finally scrambled to his dresser. He turned his head to look toward the door when he heard his grandmother’s voice downstairs, and suddenly heard a loud CRASH at his feet!

Tony’s heart sank. He knew what the crash was before looking down at the puddle and broken glass. He heard his mother’s footsteps rushing up the stairs. “Tony are you okay?! What was that noise?!” She panted from the doorway.

Tony was too heartbroken to reply right away. He took a few deep breaths before answering. “My snow globe fell off the dresser. It’s broken,” he told her. 

“Oh honey, I’m sorry, I know how much you loved that snow globe. We’ll find you a new one,” she said, putting a comforting arm around him. “Why don’t you come downstairs and ask Grandma to make you a hot chocolate while I clean up,” she said, guiding him toward the door.

Tony was about halfway done with his hot chocolate when a terrible thought occurred to him. What would happen to Elliott now that the snow globe was smashed?! He left his mug on the counter and raced upstairs. “Mom! Mom!” he shouted, taking the stairs two at a time. “Mom, wait! You can’t throw it away!” he cried. 

“Oh, honey it’s too late, that broken glass was dangerous. It was lucky timing, just after I put the bag in the trash the garbage truck came to take it away.”

Tony sank to the floor, riddled with guilt. What would become of Elliot then, trapped inside a plastic bag on a garbage truck?

“Don’t worry buddy, like I said, we’ll find you a new snow globe,” said his mother in a comforting tone.

“But that snow globe had Elliot inside!” cried Tony, unable to stop the tears from falling down his face. His mother’s brow furrowed for a moment, like she was wondering who Elliot was, but she didn’t make a fuss, and just held Tony in her arms until he’d cried out all his tears, then helped him get into bed for a nap.

As time went on Tony moved on from the tragic end to the snow globe, but he never forgot about Elliot. Years and years went by. Tony grew up and moved away, went to college, and got a job that took him overseas. He was walking down a street in a small English town one day, when he crossed paths with a man who looked familiar. He stopped and looked at the man. The man stopped and looked at him. They squinted at one another. Finally, the man smiled and said “It’s so nice to see you here on the outside, Tony. You were right, it is a big, beautiful world!” Then he winked at Tony and walked away. Tony stayed very still for a moment, trying to sort out his thoughts. Then something on the ground caught his eye. He bent down to take a closer look. There was a trail of something on the sidewalk, shining in the rare English sun. Tony reached down to touch it and some of it stuck to his finger. He took a closer look and smiled. Glittery snowflakes. 

“Elliot!” he shouted, spinning around, but the man was already gone. Tony continued his walk home, the grin never leaving his face. As he passed the local gift shop, he noticed the window display featured a snow globe with a family of puppies and two smiling children. 

“Honey, I’m home!” he shouted to his wife as he walked through the door. “I have a surprise for you!” His wife walked in from the backyard excitedly, her curiosity piqued. He handed her a brown carboard box wrapped in bright yellow paper with an orange bow. She hurriedly unwrapped it and looked at him quizzically as the glittery snow swirled around the puppies and children.

“I’m going to tell you a story. I know it will seem hard to believe, but I promise you, every word is true. You see when I was a boy, I got a snow globe for Christmas...”

From across the street, a man watches through their window. He slips a cookie out of his coat pocket and takes a small bite. He smiles as he watches the woman unwrap the gift, then lifts off his hat, and shakes a few flakes of glittery snow out of his hair before placing it back on his head and continuing on toward his next adventure.

Thank you for being here my friend, it’s so nice to spend a little bit of time with you!

I hope you enjoyed this story, and remember the old saying, the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence! That just means it’s good to take a look at what we have and remember to be grateful for it, other’s lives, or toys, aren’t always as perfect and easy as they may seem from the outside.

Until next time, keep imagining, dreaming, pretending, and living your very own amazing life, and I’ll be back very soon.

 This podcast features original music by Cannelle and is brought to you by Things with Wings productions and Phaeton Starling Publishing. I’m Melissa Oliveri. Thank you for listening.

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/thoughts-right-now/donations