There was once a kangaroo in the Zoo who had decided he was ill.
He wasn’t ill, not even slightly. But he had been spoiled since he was very small, and somewhere along the way he had discovered that being ill made everyone pay him a great deal of attention — which was really all he wanted.
The Keeper was completely taken in. He puzzled over the kangaroo’s symptoms, which were baffling: perfectly good appetite, sound sleep every night, a heart the Zoo doctor declared one of the strongest he’d ever examined. And yet there the kangaroo sat, playing with his tail for hours and shaking with dramatic sobs whenever he felt the moment required it.
The truth was, the kangaroo had always gotten everything he wanted as a kit. Nothing had ever been a real treat. So he had made fussing into a hobby.
Now, little Fairy Silver Wings had heard about the kangaroo’s mysterious illness, and she had a very good idea of what was actually wrong. She flew quietly around the Zoo, whispering in ears.
One afternoon, when all the animals were promised a special treat — a game of ball, the finest kind of afternoon entertainment — the Fairy whispered to everyone: leave the kangaroo behind.
The howling that erupted from the kangaroo’s enclosure was something the Zoo had never heard before. He didn’t want to be ill if it meant missing a party! He was perfectly well! He was fine!
When the animals finally came back for him, they were rather cool about it. The kangaroo burned with shame.
But he never made a fuss again. The fear of being left out had cured him entirely, and Fairy Silver Wings was very pleased indeed.
