"Beauty isn't about having a pretty face. It's about having a pretty mind, a pretty heart, and a pretty soul".

Preview audio:

storyj.mp/abdbgpr7m5x3

It was a beautiful afternoon when Lily’s mother came to tell her that her friend was here and wanted to play with her.

Lily was so excited! She told her friend she would be right there!

Lily loved to play with her friends. It was almost the end of the summer, so Lily was soaking it up as much as she could...

Even though Lily was outgoing, she was pretty nervous to start the 5th grade.

“None of my friends are in my class."

“What if they don’t like me?”

Her mother always told her to be herself.

"You are a beautiful girl inside and out," Lily's mom said.

The day finally came and Lily waved goodbye to her mom. She put her brave face on and walked through the doors.

Lily's mom couldn't wait to hear about how Lily's day went, but once she picked Lily up from school, she knew something was wrong...

Lily waited until they got home to burst into tears. She was relieved the day was over.

"What happened?" asked Lily's mom.

"Kids made fun of me because of what I'm wearing and none of the girls sat by me at lunch. Ms. Green told us to grab a partner for science, and no one wanted to be my partner. It seems like everyone hates me there...do I have to go back?" Lily asked.

Later that night, Lily's mom did whatever she could to comfort Lily and hopefully cheer her up.

"The first day is always hard, but tomorrow will be a better day I promise," said Lily's mom

The next morning, Lily's mom noticed it was taking Lily longer than usual to get ready for school. Lily was always the type of girl that would want to spend any extra time playing rather than picking out an outfit.