One little girl in Los Angeles found a beautiful and creative way to deal with the loneliness of pandemic-induced isolation. 4-year-old Eliana Pauls was fed up with the “sickness,” as she called the coronavirus pandemic, and so to create a distraction for the little girl who just wanted to see her friends again, her parents helped her create a fairy garden around a tree in their LA neighborhood.

Complete with painted rocks, tiny houses, pinwheels, and assorted sparkly trinkets, the little patch of joyfulness was meant to cheer up others in the neighborhood, and passersby were encouraged to contribute to the mystical landscape.

Eliana’s magical garden caught the eye of another neighbor who was also feeling lonely due to the isolation and some personal hardships. Photographer Kelly Kenney was taking a stroll through the neighborhood, trying to clear her head, when she spotted Eliana’s garden.

Affixed to the tree was a polaroid of Eliana, and after reading the description attached to the tree, Kelly decided to contribute to the garden by becoming a fairy herself.

The next day, Kelly wrote a letter pretending to be a fairy living in the garden named ‘Sapphire,’ and left it at the garden for Eliana to find.

The note said that Sapphire would leave a sparkly gift for Eliana if she completed three tasks:

1. Say 5 nice things to people you love
2. Do 3 helpful things for someone in need
3. Draw a picture of your favorite animal so I can show the other fairies

Kelly shares all the details of her enchanted new friendship with her tiny neighbor in this Twitter post, which has been shared almost 150,000 times. 

Eliana’s mother, Emily Pauls, shared with USA TODAY that Eliana was in “an extended state of wonderment” after receiving her first letter from Sapphire. The little girl promptly began attending to the tasks Sapphire had assigned her, as well as dictating a return letter to her mother.

Sapphire’s first letter sparked a series of notes between the “fairy” and Eliana, as well as the exchange of small gifts and photoshopped pictures depicting Kelly shrunken to fairy-size. In the midst of hardship, fear, and uncertainty, her newfound identity as “Sapphire the fairy” gave her a purpose that extended beyond herself. December move.

Ms. Kenney says she “felt like immediately when I found it, the whole family wedged themselves into my heart. I was so alone at the time, physically and mentally, and I felt like these people were kindred spirits.”

Kelly had left her contact info with Eliana’s mother early on (so that Eliana’s parents wouldn’t be concerned about who was leaving notes for their daughter) and the two coordinated so that Kelly and Eliana could meet before the family moved.

“Sapphire” concocted a story saying she was also moving, and that fairies briefly grew to human size while moving their belongings. Eliana’s mother took her to the fairy garden to check for any letters from Sapphire, but much to the girl’s surprise, Sapphire was also at the garden “collecting” the remainder of her things.

Ms. Kenney utilized old Halloween costumes to dress up like a real-life fairy, complete with pointed ears, and pretended to be startled by Eliana’s sudden appearance. “Just the way she looked at me when she first saw me will stay with me forever,” said Kenney. The two chatted about all that is dear to a 4-year-old heart, including what life is like as a fairy.

Eliana and her family moved from the neighborhood, but she and her fairy friend Sapphire still write to each other, continuing to sprinkle magic and happiness into each other’s lives.