by Louise Hay
Also by Louise L. Hay
BOOKS/KITS
Colors & Numbers
Empowering Women
A Garden of Thoughts: My Affirmation Journal
Gratitude: A Way of Life (Louise and Friends)
Heal Your Body
Heal Your Body A–Z
Heart Thoughts
I Can Do It®
Inner Wisdom
I Think, I Am! (with Kristina Tracy)
Letters to Louise
Life! Reflections on Your Journey
Love Your Body
Love Yourself, Heal Your Life Workbook
Meditations to Heal Your Life (also in a gift edition)
The Power Is Within You
Power Thoughts
You Can Heal Your Life (also in a gift edition)
You Can Heal Your Life Affirmation Kit
You Can Heal Your Life Companion Book
AUDIOS/CDs/DVDs
Anger Releasing
Cancer
Change and Transition
Dissolving Barriers (CD and DVD)
Feeling Fine Affirmations
Forgiveness/Loving the Inner Child
Heal Your Body (audio book)
How to Love Yourself
Life! Reflections on Your Journey (audio book)
Loving Yourself
Meditations for Personal Healing
Meditations to Heal Your Life (audio book)
Morning and Evening Meditations
101 Power Thoughts
Overcoming Fears
The Power Is Within You (audio book)
The Power of Your Spoken Word
Receiving Prosperity
Self-Esteem Affirmations (subliminal)
Self Healing
Stress-Free Affirmations (subliminal)
Totality of Possibilities
What I Believe/Deep Relaxation
You Can Heal Your Life (audio book)
You Can Heal Your Life Study Course (CD and DVD)
Your Thoughts Create Your Life
CARD DECKS
Healthy Body Cards
I CAN DO IT® Cards (a 60-card deck)
I CAN DO IT® Cards for Creativity, Forgiveness, Health,
Job Success, Wealth, Romance (each deck has 12 cards)
Power Thought Cards
Power Thought Sticky Cards
Power Thoughts for Teens
Wisdom Cards
CALENDAR
I Can Do It® Calendar
All of the above are available at your local bookstore, or may be ordered by visiting
Hay House USA: www.hayhouse.com®
Hay House Australia: www.hayhouse.com.au
Hay House UK: www.hayhouse.co.uk
Hay House South Africa: [email protected]
Hay House India: www.hayhouse.co.in
Websites: www.LouiseHay.com® and www.HealYourLife.com®
Copyright © 2005 by Louise L. Hay
Published and distributed in the United States by: Hay House, Inc.: www.hayhouse.com • Published and distributed in Australia by: Hay House Australia Pty. Ltd.: www.hayhouse.com.au • Published and distributed in the United Kingdom by: Hay House UK, Ltd.: www.hayhouse.co.uk • Published and distributed in the Republic of South Africa by: Hay House SA (Pty), Ltd.: www.hayhouse.co.za • Distributed in Canada by: Raincoast: www.raincoast.com • Published in India by: Hay House Publishers India: www.hayhouse.co.in
Editorial supervision: Jill Kramer Design: Amy Gingery
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording; nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise be copied for public or private use—other than for “fair use” as brief quotations embodied in articles and reviews without prior written permission of the publisher. The intent of the author is only to offer information of a general nature to help you in your quest for emotional and spiritual well-being. In the event you use any of the information in this book for yourself, which is your constitutional right, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.
Library of Congress Control No.: 2004111267
ISBN 13: 978-1-4019-0553-8
ISBN 10: 1-4019-0553-6
12 11 10 09 5 4 3 2
1st printing, July 2005
2nd printing, May 2009
Printed in Singapore
Contents
Introduction by Louise L. Hay
PART I: Lulu and the Ant: A Message of Love
PART II: Lulu and Willy the Duck: Learning Mirror Work
PART III: Lulu and the Dark: Conquering Fears
About Louise L. Hay
Introduction
We just received a letter from an adult woman telling us how helpful these books were to her as a child. They put her on the pathway to developing feelings of self-esteem and selfworth. Of course, that was exactly where I was coming from when I created the Lulu coloring books many years ago. The Lulu in the stories was the little girl I wanted to be as a child: long blonde hair, self-assured, confident, helpful to others, and willing to learn.
Dan Olmos, artist J. J. Smith-Moore, and musician Randall Leonard helped me create the original Lulu series—Lulu and the Ant, Lulu and Willy the Duck, and Lulu and the Dark—to empower children. I even narrated these stories on a 12-minute audiocassette when the coloring books were first published (which can be downloaded on my Website: www.louisehay.com).
Now, Hay House is reissuing these three charming little stories as one wonderful, illustrated children’s book for you and your family to enjoy. Read these stories together anytime (they’re very good when read before bedtime). I hope the messages of trust, self-confidence, and love will inspire not only your children, but you as well.
We are all children of the Universe at any age, so enjoy!
I love you,
Part I
Lulu and the Ant:
A Message of Love
Once, not long ago, in a town not much different from yours, there lived a little girl named Lulu. She had big blue eyes and curly blonde hair, which she liked to tie with a ribbon into the tiniest little ponytail on the back of her head.
She lived in a big house with two windows on each side of the front door that made it look like a happy face, with the steps leading to the porch as the smile. There were many old trees in the yard. They protected the house and gave Lulu branches to climb on and supported an old tire to swing on. There was always something fun to do in Lulu’s yard.
Many times Lulu had to play by herself. She had a baby brother whose name was Barry, and he was so small that her parents were always taking care of him. Lulu didn’t mind, really. She knew that someday Barry would be older and not need so much attention.
Right now, he was just a baby and needed to be taken care of by her parents. Besides, she enjoyed playing by herself. There were so many interesting things to discover.
On one lazy afternoon, Lulu lay in the front yard and watched the clouds drift by. She made a game of imagining that the clouds were actually a circus going by.
She could see elephants and tigers and clowns, and even a beautiful woman on a flying trapeze.
She was having the most wonderful time, when suddenly she felt something crawling on her arm. She looked down and there was an ant.
Lulu smiled and said, “Oh, it’s just a little ant.”
When the ant heard this, he became angry and crossed his tiny little arms across his chest and snapped, “Pffff! Well, you’re just a little girl!”
Lulu felt sorry for what she’d said and apologized. “I’m sorry, little ant. I didn’t mean it to sound like that. I’m sure that you’re a very importa
nt ant.”
“Oh, that’s all right,” he replied. “People always think we’re all the same. I just get a little tired of hearing it.
Whenever we go to people’s picnics or are wandering through their homes, we always hear the same thing: ‘Ants!’ People don’t realize that we’re all different, just like you are.”
Lulu liked the little ant. She leaned down closer and said, “You’re a nice little ant. Tell me some more.”
The little ant was so happy to talk with a new friend. “We’re building a city under the ground called CincinnANTi,” he told her.
“I have a big rock to move, only you’re in my way. I was gonna tickle your ear so that you might move.”
Lulu got up quickly and offered, “I can help you move the rock. I’m very strong.”
The little ant was so pleased. He quickly crawled back to where he had left his rock and said, “Here it is! Can you lift this?”
The rock was very, very small to Lulu. In fact, it was more like a large grain of sand. She carefully pinched the rock between her fingers and moved it to where he wanted it. The ant was so happy.
“You would make a wonderful ant,” he said. “Won’t you come and live with me? Why, with you working with us, we’d have our city built in no time!”
Lulu smiled at the ant. “I’m afraid I wouldn’t fit in your city. It’s so much smaller than I am. I just couldn’t be an ant.”
The little ant looked puzzled. “But why can’t you?” he asked. “In my city we have a little song that we sing all the time. It goes like this:
You can be what you want to be, you can do what you want to do, you can be what you want to be, all of life supports you.”
“That’s a funny little song,” Lulu giggled, “but what does it mean?”
“It means that we may all be different, but we each have the power within us to do wonderful things with our lives,” the little ant explained. “You can do what you want to do. There’s nothing to stop you.”
“I like to dance,” Lulu said. “I’d love to be a ballerina.”
“You can if you want,” the little ant told her.
Lulu looked down at her new friend and said sadly, “I don’t think so. My mother took me to a dance class, and the teacher said that my legs were too skinny and that I wouldn’t make a good ballerina.”
The little ant stomped his tiny foot as loud as a little ant can stomp it. “If you want to be a ballerina, you can be a ballerina!” he shouted. “Let me show you a little trick. It starts in your mind.”
Lulu sat straight up and listened carefully to what the little ant said.
“We’re going to play a game. Begin by imagining yourself in the most beautiful theater in the world.”
Lulu shut her eyes and suddenly in front of her she could see herself in the most beautiful theater she could imagine.
“Now,” the little ant continued, “see yourself dancing onstage. You’re the prettiest and most graceful ballerina there ever was. Can you see it?”
Lulu could see it. She was so excited that she almost opened her eyes, but she wanted the feeling to last forever. There she was on the stage, dancing beautifully—even if her legs were still a little skinny. Slowly, her vision faded and she opened her eyes. “I saw it!” she cried. “I was so beautiful and dancing so gracefully! Oh, thank you! I just know that I can become a wonderful ballerina if I want to!” And then she frowned.
“But I also like horses,” Lulu said. “Could I become a horseback rider in the circus?”
“Of course you can,” her tiny pal replied. “If that’s what you truly want, then you’ll find a way to get it. Just play this imagination game.”
Lulu closed her eyes and imagined herself standing atop a majestic white horse as it galloped around the ring of the circus. She felt so happy. But then she frowned again.
“But I also like to help people when they’re sick,” Lulu explained. “Do you think I could become a doctor?”
“You can do that, too, if you want to,” the little ant affirmed.
Lulu imagined herself working in a lovely doctor’s office helping people get well. She became very excited. “There really are so many things I can do, aren’t there?!” she exclaimed.
The little ant smiled a great big smile. “Of course there are. Just remember: Whenever you feel that you can’t do something, imagine yourself doing it. Your thoughts are very powerful. They can make so many good things happen for you. Sometimes it takes a little while, but it will happen if you really want it. And also, sing my little song to yourself all the time. It will help remind you that nothing is impossible.” And he sang once more:
“You can be what you want to be, you can do what you want to do, you can be what you want to be, all of life supports you.”
“Now I have to get back to work,” the little ant said.
Lulu smiled down at her new friend. “Thank you for talking to me. I really had a wonderful time. Can we talk again?”
“Of course we can,” the little ant smiled. “I’d invite you to dinner, but you wouldn’t fit in my house. Perhaps we can have a picnic. We ants love people picnics. You can bring the food.”
“That would be fun!” Lulu agreed. And with that, the little ant scurried back into the little hole in the ground to get back to work.
It had been a lovely afternoon. The warm breeze played with Lulu’s hair, then raced through the leaves in the trees. In the distance, Lulu could hear her baby brother, Barry, making the gurgly sounds that only babies know how to make.
Her mother came out to the front porch and called, “Lulu, come in now. It’s time for dinner!”
Lulu got up off the ground, dusted herself off, and happily headed toward the house while singing the song that the little ant had taught her:
“I can be what I want to be, I can do what I want to do, I can be what I want to be, all of life supports me.”
Part II
Lulu and Willy the Duck:
Learning Mirror Work
The sun was almost always shining on the big house with two windows on each side of the front door that made it look like a happy face (with the steps leading to the porch as the smile). Lulu loved to play outside in the yard, sometimes under the trees and sometimes on the tire swing, and sometimes with her little brother, Barry.
Lulu knew that there was always something fun to do, and she woke up each morning excited to find out what would happen that day.
On this morning, Lulu woke to the sounds of raindrops falling on the tree outside the window. She loved the rain, and as she got out of bed, she decided to show her little brother, Barry, the wet weather. He was very young and couldn’t get out of his crib by himself yet.
Barry laughed as Lulu picked him up and took him to the window. He still couldn’t talk very well, and when he said Lulu’s name, it sounded like, “Wuwu.”
“Wuwu, wawa!” Barry yelled, jumping up and down.
“It’s rain, Barry,” his big sister explained. “It makes the trees grow and the flowers bloom and makes everything fresh and beautiful!”
Barry laughed again.
Suddenly, Lulu heard a sound in the distance—a funny kind of sound: “Wah! Wah!” Somebody was crying. Lulu thought they might be hurt, so she lifted Barry back into his crib and went downstairs to put on her raincoat. She took her umbrella with the flowers on it and hurried out the back door to see who was crying.
As she walked across the lawn, she saw a frog sitting under a tree enjoying the rain. “Good morning, Mr. Frog,” Lulu greeted him. “It’s a beautiful morning, isn’t it?”
“Beautiful! Wet and rainy!” agreed Mr. Frog. “It would be perfect except for that crying.”
“Do you know who it is?” Lulu asked.
“No,” Mr. Frog answered, “but it’s coming from the pond. Why don’t we hop over there together.” And with that, he hopped off as Lulu followed behind him.
As they got near the pond, the cries became louder and louder: “Wah! Wah!”
Lulu listened carefully and went to a patch of tall grass. Mr. Frog jumped beside her.
They both poked their heads into the grass, and sitting inside was a little yellow duck, crying his eyes out.
“Wah! Woe is me!” wailed the little duck. Lulu put her hand on the duck’s head and softly stroked it.
“Why are you crying?” she asked.
The little fellow raised his head. “Oh, nobody likes me— nobody at all,” he sobbed.
“No one?” asked the frog. “I’d say that’s pretty serious.”
Lulu continued to pet the little duck. “Well, I like you. What’s your name?”
The duckling looked up and dried his eyes. “My name is Willy.”
“Well, my name is Lulu, and this is Mr. Frog. Maybe we can help you,” Lulu offered.
“Why do you think no one likes you?”
Willy sat up and said, “This morning I was playing ball with some of the farm animals from down the street. Gary the Goat threw the ball to me, and when I tried to catch it, I tripped over my feet and fell in the mud and lost my cap! Oh, woe is me!”
“But Willy, what’s so horrible about that?” Lulu asked. “It was an accident, and you didn’t hurt yourself, did you?”
“No,” Willy sniffled, “but then Clarice the Calf called me ‘Willy Bigfoot,’ and everybody started laughing. They wouldn’t stop, so I ran away, and now I have no more friends!”
Lulu petted Willy’s head some more. “Oh, Willy,” she exclaimed, “don’t you know that the best friend you can ever have is YOU?”