My name is Meng.

I am eight years old and I live in Singapore.

If you ask me, Singapore is the most beautiful city in the world.

There are trees everywhere.

Gardens hang between the skyscrapers.

Flowers grow on rooftops.

And there are so many playgrounds that the whole city feels like one giant adventure park.

Every day I meet my friend Mei.

She is seven years old.

Mei lives in a skyscraper that looks like a giant mushroom.

My skyscraper looks more like a huge vase.

In Singapore, nobody thinks that is unusual.

Today is hot again.

Very hot.

Just like almost every day.

Nearly thirty degrees.

The air sticks to my skin.

Even in the shade, I am sweating.

It is just after lunchtime.

Mei and I are sitting at our favorite playground.

The climbing structures look like enormous flowers.

You can balance on petals, climb giant stems, and crawl through tunnels made of leaves.

But today we are not climbing.

Not yet.

We are waiting.

“How much longer?” Mei asks.

“Not long now,” I reply.

We look up.

Between the skyscrapers stand tall silver towers reaching toward the clouds.

Suddenly, a deep rumble echoes through the city's speakers.

“It’s coming!” I shout.

Mei jumps to her feet.

“Finally!”

And then it happens.

The first rainbows appear between the green skyscrapers.

Bright.

Colorful.

Beautiful.

They float between the buildings like giant paintings in the sky.

Red.

Blue.

Yellow.

Green.

The whole city seems to glow.

Then we feel it.

At first, only a little.

A cool breeze.

Then a few tiny drops.

And finally, the Rainbow Shower begins.

The cloud towers have collected enough water from the warm air.

Now they release a gentle cooling rain throughout the city.

Not too much.

Not too little.

Exactly right.

The cool air touches my arms.

It tingles on my skin.

Almost as if the city itself is giving me a hug.

“This is my favorite moment of the day,” Mei says.

I nod.

It is my favorite too.

As the drops land on the leaves, I spot a bird.

It is sitting on a flower nearby.

“Look!”

I say.

Mei follows my finger.

The bird has long yellow feathers that glow in the sunlight.

“Wow,” she whispers.

We watch it for a while.

Water droplets hang from every leaf and blade of grass.

The plants seem bigger every year.

As the climate has become warmer, the tropics have grown.

Many animals now live in Singapore that once lived much farther away.

I look around.

At the flowers.

At the rainbows.

At the trees.

At the shining drops of water.

Then I say,

“Mei?”

“Yes?”

“I think Singapore is the most beautiful city in the world.”

Mei smiles.

“Maybe.”

After a while, the rainbows slowly fade away.

The sun begins to take over the sky again.

The air grows warmer.

I stand up.

“Come on.”

“Where?”

asks Mei.

I grin.

“To the flowers.”

“Why?”

“Because today we're climbing all the way to the top.”

And before she can say anything, I start running.

Straight into our giant flower forest.

🌿