My name is Jessica , I am nine years old . I had a brain haemorrhage. That's like a bruise but in your head. The problem with bruises in your brain is that there's no-where for the blood to go so I got very sick. They had to do an operation on me to stop the bleeding. I should have got better but I didn't. My head began to swell and they had to do another operation on me. This one put a plastic tube inside my head and then into my stomach. Then I was taken back to my room in Intensive Care. This is where Mum said I would recover. It's a small room painted pure white with a large window overlooking a lake. I can't see the lake because I'm lying in bed. Mum and Dad have just gone out with a nurse to talk to the doctors. Mum did say that they'd be back soon though. I'm lying here now.

That was when I heard the knocking on my door. I lay there wondering who was going to answer it. It continued and I waited. No-one must have been able to hear it for they didn't answer it. I couldn't wait anymore. I decided that whoever was behind that door needed to be let in. I got up out of bed, and went across to the door. It looked a perfectly normal door into the corridor, but when I turned the handle and pushed open the door there stood an elephant.
"Hello," I said laughing, "You're an elephant!"

He stood quietly, gently swaying his trunk.
"But if he's an elephant", I thought, "How did he knock on the door?" The sensitive tip of his trunk swung up and wrapped itself around the metal doorknocker and promptly knocked again.
"But you understood what I thought?"
"Yes", he replied, and uncurled his trunk from the knocker and gently wrapped it around my waist.

His breath was soft as he nuzzled the tip of his trunk into my hands. "I am the animal of your heart."
"Wow, you're the animal of my heart!" I said excitedly.
"Yes, and if you climb up onto my back, I will take you to meet all your other animals."