Golden Leaf Day is a children’s booklet I wrote and illustrated during a children’s book course. It follows Patches, an anthropomorphic cat, on her first day of kindergarten.

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The story opens with three classmates teasing a student named Blue, making fun of how his art looks "weird." After this moment, we cut to Patches saying goodbye to her mom before stepping into the classroom for the first time. The teacher introduces her to the class, and Blue notices her right away—he thinks she looks cool and quietly wonders if she’ll notice him.

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Later, Patches eats lunch alone with her octopus lunchbox. The same three bullies approach and start mocking her for her “weird” food, making her feel embarrassed. Blue sees what’s happening and decides to stand up for her. Afterward, Patches lets Blue try some of her lunch, and he’s amazed by how good it tastes. Blue asks to be her friend and he introduces her to a game he made up called Golden Leaf Grab, where players try to catch falling leaves to earn points.

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As they play together during recess, the bullies watch from afar. Curious, they come over, apologize for how they treated them, and ask to join the game. The story ends with all the kids playing together—and Patches winning the game.

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Golden Leaf Day explores how empathy and simple acts of kindness can turn a difficult day into one filled with friendship. The illustrations use warm colors and expressive characters to capture the emotional ups and downs of a child’s first day of school.