There once was a beautiful cottage which stood by a big lake, in complete solitude. It was different from the others. Each of its walls was painted in a completely unusual colour. The cottage had colourful flowers painted around its door, ladybugs painted around its windows, passing horses painted on its walls and trees seemingly in bloom on its roof. All the pictures looked as if they were alive. The whole cottage was like a fairy tale. But who lived in such a beautiful house? The painter Luciana lived there.
She was taller, had short hair, honest blue eyes and hands always covered with paint. Not only could she paint beautifully, but she was also extraordinary in something else. She told stories with her pictures. Every morning, she would pull up easels outside her house and put canvases on them. She got her paints ready and when she started to paint, things started to happen. The brushes began to fly through the air and the colors began to mix. Birds flew around Luciana and sang beautiful melodies to her. The painter just danced to the rhythm, moving her hands away from the paints, and pictures began to form on the canvases. From each of them a story could be seen. Some showed children playing, some showed horses running through a meadow, and another showed trees in bloom with squirrels in the canopy. It was simply beautiful. Luciana loved painting.
All the animals in the forest were coming to watch her paint. But they were sorry that no one else could see her paintings. They knew that if other people saw them, it would make them very happy. So one day in the forest there was an animal meeting. They all agreed that they would get the pictures from their beloved Luciana out into the world. But how? They made up a plan.
One morning, when the painter got out her easels, canvases and paints and started painting, she couldn’t help but wonder. The birds that flew around her and sang to her rhythm suddenly took the painted pictures in their beaks and carried them away. The squirrels quickly jumped onto the easels and took down the remaining paintings. They handed them to the deer and they ran as fast as they could into town. Luciana just stood there, spinning around and calling: “Wait, what are you doing, why are you doing this?”
Then she sat down on a chair in front of the cottage. She looked around and was sad that she didn’t have her pictures. At that moment she felt a gentle breeze. She looked where it was coming from and saw an owl coming towards her, the wisest animal in the forest. The owl sat on her shoulder and gently stroked her with its wing. Luciana thought for a while and then asked: “You are wise. You know why the animals did it?” “Hoo, hoo.” The owl replied. “I know the animals are good. I don’t have to worry, do I?” Luciana continued to ask. “Hoo, hoo.” The owl replied.
So the painter was patient. She waited to see what would happen. In the meantime, the animals spread the paintings around town. Everyone began to admire them. All the people were delighted to see such beautiful pictures. They wanted to know who was painting so beautifully. So the animals took them to Luciana. When the painter saw the animals approaching her house and so many people following them, she couldn’t believe her eyes. They all started shaking her hand, congratulating and thanking her
Since then, Luciana no longer paints just for herself and the animals. People from all over the area come to see her paintings. She paints their stories, their moods and their hopes. And she’s getting better at it. Because she paints with love.
