Charley is introduced as a boy who likes to do different things. He likes to be loud sometimes so he is presented dressed in a lion costume and roaring. He is also shown swinging and running with friends, which are also things he enjoys.
Charley also enjoys time alone. He uses this time to do things like sit and think. He is shown doing something he likes very much: drawing. When doing these things alone, however, Charley admits to his mother it sometimes makes him feel different. His mother continually tells him that different is not bad. Different is just different. And being different is perfectly okay.
One day Charley goes to the park with his mom and encounters a girl who is very, very different from everybody else. Not only does she get around in a wheelchair but she doesn’t have any hands. After fantasizing about unlikely explanations for why she is missing her hands, Charley asks his mother why this girl looks so weird. At first he wonders if there is a such a thing as being too different and he wonders if this girl is strange because of how she looks.
Charley introduces himself to the girl and she says her name is Emma. He apologizes for saying she looks weird and explains how his mom told him that is a mean word sometimes. Emma agrees and then goes on to tell Charley that she also doesn’t like it when people stare at her or point at her or laugh or whisper about her to themselves. She tells him it’s okay to ask questions, however. So he asks why she has no hands and why she uses a wheelchair.
She explains that she was born this way. She has what is called limb differences, which means that her arms and legs are different and so she must use the wheelchair. Even so, she points out, she is the one who controls where the wheelchair goes. Charley responds that those things sure do make her a lot different from him. Emma points out that though they are very different, they are also very much alike in some ways.
Emma then goes on to tell Charley about how lots of people are different from them both. Those who can’t speak or hear must use their hands to talk. Others require specialized machines to assist them in breathing or walking. People who can’t see often use canes to guide them when walking. Emma asks Charley if he ever feels different from others. He thinks about his alone time drawing and thinking and admits he sometimes feels different then. Emma’s sister, Chloe, observes that some are different on the outside and some are different on the inside but everybody is different in some way.
Emma points out that she likes playing on the playground. Charley says he does, too. She tells him that she likes to swing. Charley says he does, too. With her wheelchair, she can play tag. Charley says he likes to play tag as well. Charley tells her that what he likes most, however, is drawing. Emma responds by picking up one his colored pencils with her foot and writes on a page in his notebook, “me too!”
Charley’s mom says it’s time to go home and Charley tells her all about the great new friend he met today. He explains that Emma is different, but not weird. He tells her he learned that different is just different but sometimes it’s great.
