Every morning, Swapna woke up early, dressed nicely, and went to her pooja room. She loved decorating the pictures of gods with fresh flower garlands. It made her feel happy and peaceful. But one day, something strange started happening. The garlands began disappearing! She would put them on the gods, but when she turned around, they were gone. At first, Swapna thought she was imagining things. “Maybe I forgot to put the garland there?” she said to herself. But when it kept happening, she decided to investigate. Determined to find out, Swapna decided to hide behind the door after placing the garlands. She watched closely. Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind the largest god’s frame and grabbed the garland! As Swapna stood frozen in disbelief, the hand, with its colorful bangles and dotted brown henna, slowly pulled back, and a face emerged from the god’s frame. At first, Swapna thought it was one of the goddesses she prayed to, stepping out of the photo. Swapna stammered, stepping back. “W-who are you?” “I’m the goddess of fire” the face replied and lit a camphor and disappeared back into frame As Swapna stood frozen in shock, watching the Goddess disappear back into the frame, a loud voice suddenly cut through the air. “SWAPNA!” “GETUP! How long are you going to sleep?” Swapna’s eyes shot open, and she found herself lying in her bed, her mother standing over her with hands on her hips. “What are you dreaming about, huh? Lying here like a queen while there’s work to do! Get up and help me” Swapna blinked, confused. “Wait… what? Where’s the goddess?” Her mother frowned. “Goddess? What are you talking about?” Swapna rubbed her eyes and sat up, realizing she was in her bed. The goddess, the vanishing garlands, the sparkly bangles—it had all been a dream. Her mom continued scolding as she stormed out of the room. Swapna sighed and got up, shaking her head. “Too much imagination,” she said to herself. But as she walked across the pooja room, she paused. One of the garlands was missing and the camphor was lit. For a brief moment, Swapna thought she heard the jingle of bangles in the air, just as the TV in the background blasted, “Pushpa naa flower illa?? … FIRE!” Smile and Let Smile, Gowtham