Pacha's Pajamas: A Story Written by Nature
By Aaron Ableman and Daveed Benjamin
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About this ebook
Pacha’s imagination is bigger than the Andes Mountains, homeland of her ancestors. In her dreams, the plants and animals on her PJs come alive—and she journeys with them to learn more about herself.
Then after a stress-induced asthma attack, her magical pajamas carry her into an epic dream where she encounters a handful of critters lamenting the state of their home. Disguised as a little gorilla, Pacha joins in, and together they decide to organize a Nature Festival that brings all species together. Full of musical plants and dancing animals, the PACHA JAMMA festival is a worldwide call to action to save the planet from destruction.
But Mr. Tick seems to be scheming to disrupt the festival. With the help of her plant and animal friends, Pacha races against time to decipher a cryptic puzzle that outlines Mr. Tick’s dastardly plans. But just as she is on the verge of victory, a massive hurricane threatens them all . . .
This exciting tale with a message of empowerment and environmental responsibility, including lots of fun science facts and a bonus augmented-reality animation feature, is “a critical tool in giving children a sense of themselves, the power of their dreams and the natural world around them” (Mos Def/Yasiin Bey, actor and recording artist).
Aaron Ableman
An award-winning artist and educator, Aaron Ableman is what happens when Charlie Chaplin meets Dr. Seuss. Aaron is an inspired leader in the emerging self-literacy movement and his life has been heralded in publications such as the LA Times, CNN, NY Times, MTV, Climate Reality Project, Origin Magazine, and the SF Examiner. Aaron is a CoFounder of BALANCE Edutainment & Imagination Heals, and the originator of the Pacha’s Pajamas brand. He is also a beatboxer, singer/rapper, soccer player and loves making crafts, especially dreamcatchers.
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Pacha's Pajamas - Aaron Ableman
PROLOGUE
It was one of those days. Warm and balmy. The perfect day for a nap if only it wasn’t a school day.
Pacha sat under the only tree in her school playground, reading a book about a strange animal called a platypus. The egg-laying, duck-billed, beaver-tailed, otter-footed mammal was unlike anything Pacha had ever imagined.
She wanted to learn everything she could about platypuses before lunch was over. Next period, Pacha had to give a report on this crazy creature. She was nervous about talking in front of the whole class. But figured if she really knew her stuff, she’d get through it.
Yet Pacha was having a hard time focusing. The heat rising off the concrete made her eyes droopy and her thoughts mushy.
She drifted into a daydream about meeting a platypus at the edge of a river.
The platypus told her that no matter who you are, you must use what you got
to bring your dreams to life. He said his dream was to keep the rivers cool…he didn’t want his family to be fried platypi! And he also taught her the Duck Dance!
The bell rang. Pacha woke up and hurried back to her classroom. The ice caps are melting,
she told the class. And the rivers and oceans are heating up, which is making life hard for platypuses and other animals.
Her classmates looked puzzled. Pacha decided to try something else. Um…have you ever thought about what it would be like to live in a world without ice cream?!
That doesn’t make any sense,
her classmate Aaron said, and everyone laughed.
Pacha was embarrassed, yet something inside her had awakened, a force of nature beyond words.
CHAPTER 1
LITTLE GIRL, BIG DREAMS
Pacha was a little girl with big dreams. Her dreams were bigger than the biggest elephant at the zoo. Her dreams were bigger than the Andes Mountains, the homeland of her parents and ancestors. She dreamed of lost secrets and upside-down rainbows. She dreamed of dancing in front of huge crowds. But her biggest dream was for everyone to come together.
Sadly, real life wasn’t so dreamy. Maybe it was the hazy weather lately that made it hard to breathe. Maybe it was the plastic bag that looked like it was dancing in the wind. That AND she had to perform the Earth Day musical tomorrow!
Sometimes life seemed easier when she hid in her room, frozen in time like a frog under a winter lake.
When Pacha and her father got home from school, she started wheezing and coughing, and her toes scrunched up in pain.
I can’t breathe! I…feel like…Ms. Wheezer blew a hurricane down my throat!
Ms. Wheezer was a name that she had given her breathing problem, trying to make it sound as silly as she could so it wouldn’t scare her. But that didn’t work this time; this felt like the worst attack ever.
With blue lips, she huffed and puffed. Her father calmed her by cuddling her in his arms, encouraging her to let the attack pass like clouds in the sky. She took a deep draw on the inhaler her father handed her and finally found her breath. As if right on time, her mother entered the front door.
Pacha’s mother set the groceries on the floor. "Amor, did you have another attack?"
Pacha fell into her mother’s arms and cried: Why does this happen to me?!
"Ai mi vida, I know this is so hard for you, her mother responded calmly,
but let’s remember that struggling only makes it worse. If you see life like a dream, even nightmares can’t take you off track!"
But Pacha was still sobbing. Can you ask Ms. Wheezer to get a new job? I’m sick of being sick!
Well,
I wish I could make Ms. Wheezer go away for good…but I do have something that could help you feel better…something for you to wear like a hero’s cape, especially on nights like tonight."
With that, Pacha’s mother brought out a colorful pair of pajamas, which looked like they were glowing. They were covered with dancing animals and singing plants. These are magical pajamas!
her mother said. "When I was your age, my mother made me pajamas woven from baby alpaca fleece—a fabric of royalty and medicine people. She told me that every stitch was a prayer, giving thanks to Pachamama."
"¡Ai, Mamá! They’re as soft as a chinchilla’s belly!" Pacha exclaimed as she giggled for the first time all day. Hugging her mother and feeling a tingle in her heart, Pacha closed her eyes. She imagined the PJs were a special friend or a magic carpet carrying her to distant lands. Perhaps this pair of jammies could be her new dreamcatcher?
That evening, as Pacha put on her new PJs, she had a funny feeling that her life was changing. What’s more, she had lots of questions for her father.
Does the sky breathe?
she wondered. Does it choke on all the smoke and storms in the air these days? And before people, did animals make the rules?
Pacha paused as her eyes rested on an old gorilla mask on the shelf near her bed. She had worn it for the Halloween performance last year. She had forgotten her lines, but there was no worrying about that now. Putting it on, she danced like a goofy gorilla, exclaiming, Can I be a dancing girl-illa in these pajamas?
as if all her problems had gone away. Her father laughed. "So many questions, mi angelita. Maybe if you jump in bed faster than a little jaguar, you will find the answers in your dream."
Pacha stuffed the gorilla mask into her pajama pocket, snuggled into bed, and drifted away.
CHAPTER 2
TROUBLE IN THE WATERS
It all began when a whale shouted to a hummingbird—something that doesn’t happen in just any dream.
Help! Help! I’m drowning!
yelled the whale.
The crimson-chested hummingbird stopped midair and hovered above the splashing beneath her. Pacha was hiding behind a tree near the shore, shocked by what she was seeing. When the whale cried again, Pacha felt a choke in her own throat! I wish I could help that whale but I can barely breathe myself,
she thought.
FUN FACT
Are hummingbirds magical?
Hummingbirds can dive at 60 miles per hour—that’s as fast as a car driving on the highway! Because of their speed, they are known as messengers and time stoppers. To keep up their energy, hummingbirds need to eat every 15 to 20 minutes. They feed off hundreds of flowers per day, drinking their nectar and pollinating the next flower they visit (helping the flowering plants to produce seeds). Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backward, forward, up, down and sideways, and even hover in the air! They teach us to let the past go and appreciate the magic of the present moment. Legends say the hummingbird is a messenger between worlds, spreading joy, healing, and sweetness during times of great change. In many cultures, hummingbird feathers are prized for their magical powers.
Something is stuck in my blowhole!
the whale gasped.
Pacha wheezed into the soft folds of her PJs. She wanted to help the whale but felt woozy and helpless.
FUN FACT
What are whale songs?
Whales use sound and calling to communicate. The whale belly is a special place for hearing and feeling the music of the oceans. The largest whales can send a call, or song, around the entire planet’s oceans and speak directly to another whale on the other side of the world! Smaller toothed whales also use sound and calling to see.
This is called echolocation. The sounds bounce off other objects or animals to tell the whale the shape, distance, and texture of its surroundings. In many cultures,