The Sphinx Who Couldn't Swim

Barnaby was not your ordinary cat. First, his fur was the color of a ripe **orange** that had been warming in the sun. Second, he loved **swimming**—which is something most cats absolutely will not do.

Every morning, Barnaby would paddle across the crystal pond behind his house, chasing dragonflies and making little splashes that sounded like happy laughter. The other cats thought he was strange. "Cats don't swim," they would say, shaking their dry paws.

But Barnaby didn't care. He felt alive in the water, free as a fish.

One hot afternoon, while Barnaby was practicing his butterfly stroke, something extraordinary appeared on the pond's mossy bank. It was a **sphinx**—but not like the ones in storybooks with grand wings and stern faces. This sphinx was small, no bigger than a teapot, with sandy-gold fur and tiny paws.

The little sphinx looked at the water and shivered.

"Hello," said Barnaby, swimming closer. "I'm Barnaby. What's your name?"

"I'm Cleo," whispered the sphinx. "And I have a problem."

Barnaby climbed out and shook droplets from his orange fur. "What kind of problem?"

"I'm a sphinx," Cleo said sadly. "I'm supposed to know everything. But I don't know how to swim, and all my friends are having a pool party on the other side of the pond. I'm going to be the only one missing."

Barnaby's whiskers twitched with an idea. "I could teach you!"

"Really?" Cleo's eyes widened.

"Really!" Barnaby led her to the shallow end. "First, you have to trust that the water wants to hold you up. Think of it like a big, friendly hug."

For the next hour, Barnaby taught Cleo how to paddle, how to kick, and how to float on her back like a sunny leaf. At first, Cleo was scared. But soon she was gliding through the water, her golden fur streaming behind her like moonlight.

"I'm doing it!" Cleo cheered, splashing water everywhere. "I'm swimming!"

When they reached the other side of the pond, all the other creatures cheered. The sphinx who couldn't swim had learned from a **cat** who loved to swim.

That night, as the stars twinkled above the pond, Cleo told Barnaby a secret. "I thought sphinxes were supposed to know everything already. But now I know something better."

"What's that?" asked Barnaby.

"That friends can teach us things we could never learn alone—and sometimes the bravest thing you can do is try something that scares you."

Barnaby purred. He knew exactly what she meant.