0:00 A tiny echo was born from the sound of a single water droplet landing on a wide, green leaf.0:08 It was a sound as quiet as the ferns we found in Miko's secret forest, Admin.0:16 The little echo woke up, blinked, and listened.0:20 All around, the valley was humming with sounds.0:25 A big, booming waterfall crashed down over smooth grey rocks.0:31 A gentle breeze whispered through the tall pine trees.0:36 The little echo wanted to have a voice of its own.0:41 So it tried to copy the waterfall.0:44 It took a deep breath and shouted...0:48 but only a tiny, whispery sound came out.0:52 Nothing like the waterfall's BIG roar.0:55 The echo felt very small.0:58 Next, it tried to copy the wind.1:01 It listened to the soft shhhhh of the pine needles.1:06 It tried to make the same sound...1:09 but its voice was too clear, too clean.1:13 It wasn't a rustle at all.1:15 The little echo drooped.1:18 It didn't have a big voice.1:20 It didn't have a soft voice.1:23 What kind of echo was it?1:25 It drifted sadly through the twilight, a little puff of sound with no purpose.1:33 As it passed a great old oak tree, a deep, round sound floated down.1:40 "Hooooo." The echo looked up.1:42 A large owl with feathers like patterned moss blinked its big, yellow eyes.1:50 "Hoooo," the owl said again, its voice warm and kind.1:55 The echo tried to copy it.1:57 "Hoooo," it whispered back.2:00 The sound was close...2:02 but not quite right.2:04 The owl tilted its head.2:06 "You are trying to be me," it hooted softly.2:11 "But you are not an owl.2:13 You are an echo.2:14 That is something very, very special." The echo didn't understand.2:21 "What's special about just repeating things?" it asked in its small voice.2:28 "Ah," said the owl.2:30 "But you don't just repeat.2:33 You CARRY.2:33 You hold a sound and help it travel.2:37 You give it a little more time in the world before it fades away." The owl then did something surprising.2:47 It didn't hoot.2:49 It clicked its beak, a sharp little tock.2:53 "Don't copy me," it said.2:55 "Just listen." The little echo listened.2:59 The tock sound bounced from the owl's branch.3:03 The echo caught it.3:05 Instead of trying to change it or make it bigger, the echo just held it gently.3:13 It carried the little tock across the clearing, over a patch of sleeping daisies, and let it go softly near the edge of the stream.3:25 The sound lingered for just a moment, perfect and clear, before disappearing into the quiet of the night.3:36 The little echo felt a happy little hum inside.3:40 It wasn't supposed to BE the waterfall or the wind.3:45 It was supposed to be a friend to ALL the sounds.3:50 It was a keeper of sounds.3:52 It floated back to the owl.3:55 "Thank you," it whispered.3:57 The owl just blinked its big, knowing eyes.4:02 From then on, the echo loved its job.4:05 It would catch the happy chirp of a cricket and carry it to the sleepy bear in its cave.4:14 It would catch the last note of a bird's evening song and let it float up to the moon.4:22 It wasn't a copy anymore.4:24 It was a gentle guardian of all the valley's music, making sure every little sound was heard.4:33 And now, Admin, as the world gets quiet around you, you can listen.4:40 Maybe, just maybe, you'll hear a tiny echo carrying a sweet sound to you, tucking it gently into your dreams.
