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Why do we have to sort garbage?

Once upon a time, in a land filled with lollipop trees and giggling rivers, lived a big, grumpy trash can named Rusty. Rusty wasn’t always grumpy. He used to be shiny and happy, bouncing with excitement as children tossed their empty juice boxes and crumpled drawings into his wide, welcoming mouth. He loved his job! He felt important, like a superhero for the land, keeping everything clean and tidy.

But then, things changed. The children stopped sorting their rubbish. Instead of neatly placing their banana peels in one spot, their plastic toys in another, and their used paper napkins in a third, they just tossed everything into Rusty all at once! It was a chaotic mess!

One morning, Rusty woke up to a mountain of garbage. Shiny wrappers were tangled with soggy apple cores, plastic bottles were crushed against discarded newspapers, and smelly old food scraps were stuck to everything. Rusty sighed a huge, rusty sigh. He tried to organize it all, but it was impossible. The banana peels were rotting, making the whole can smell awful. The plastic bottles were jammed together, preventing anything from being easily removed. The newspapers were soaked, turning into a slimy, sticky mess.

Rusty grumbled, "This is terrible! I'm absolutely overwhelmed! I can't handle this anymore!"

He slumped his metal body, his usually cheerful face now a picture of frustration. He felt like he was drowning in a sea of carelessly discarded waste. He wasn’t just a trash can anymore; he was a giant, smelly, overflowing garbage mountain!

Suddenly, a little wisp of smoke puffed out from his rusty lid. It swirled and formed into a tiny, grumpy-looking cloud. "I'm going on strike!" the cloud grumbled, mirroring Rusty’s own unhappy mood. "I refuse to deal with this unorganized chaos!"

The little cloud zipped around the land, spreading the news of Rusty's strike. The lollipop trees drooped, the giggling rivers stopped giggling, and even the bouncy mushrooms looked glum. The land was starting to become dirty and smelly, just like Rusty's insides.

A little girl named Lily, who loved to play near Rusty, noticed the change. She saw the overflowing trash can, its usually cheerful paint chipped and faded. She noticed the sad lollipop trees and the silent rivers. She knew something was wrong.

Lily's mum, a kind kindergarten teacher, had taught her all about recycling and sorting garbage. She explained that different types of rubbish need to be dealt with in different ways. Paper can be recycled to make new paper; plastic can be reused or recycled; food scraps can be composted to make rich soil for the plants; and glass needs special treatment to ensure it doesn’t break into harmful pieces.

Lily remembered her mum's words. She understood that throwing everything together was not only messy but also prevented these important processes. She felt bad for Rusty.

She rushed to Rusty and spoke to him gently. "Oh, Rusty," she whispered, "I’m so sorry! We didn’t know we were making you so unhappy. We didn't understand how important sorting our trash is."

She then carefully started sorting the garbage. She separated the banana peels from the plastic toys, the newspapers from the juice boxes. She even carefully cleaned the sticky mess. She worked slowly and diligently, humming a little tune as she went.

As Lily sorted, the little cloud watching from above began to shrink. As more and more garbage was sorted, the cloud felt lighter, happier. It realised Lily understood!

Slowly, Rusty’s mood improved. The separation of the waste made him feel much better. He could now see clearly what needed to be composted, what could be recycled, and what needed to be disposed of properly. The banana peels were no longer rotting amongst the plastic, the newspapers weren’t soggy and stuck to everything. He could breathe again!

He started to shine again, little by little. His rusty body seemed to straighten, his surface becoming less dull. The little smoke cloud vanished completely, replaced by a puff of cheerful steam.

From that day on, the children in the land learned to sort their garbage. They understood that looking after Rusty was not just about keeping him happy, but about keeping their beautiful land clean, healthy, and full of life. Rusty, once a grumpy old trash can, became the happiest trash can in the land, proud to play his vital role in keeping their world a beautiful place. And he always remembered Lily, the little girl who had taught him, and everyone else, the importance of sorting their rubbish. The lollipop trees blossomed, the rivers giggled again, and everyone lived happily ever after.

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