- [Narrator] Lead support for this program has been provided by the William Penn Foundation with additional support from The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, The Sidewater Family Foundation, The Thomas Locke Charitable Fund and viewers like you.

♪ At the start of the day ♪ The sun says hello ♪ It's shining my way ♪ It's saying let's go ♪ It's so nice to hear the button go ding ♪ ♪ Who could it be ♪ My heart starts to sing ♪ Albie's Elevator ♪ Albie's Elevator ♪ Albie's Elevator ♪ Oh, yeah ♪ Each floor is a friend ♪ Each floor is a neighbor ♪ And where do we meet ♪ On Albie's Elevator ♪ Albie's Elevator ♪ Albie's Elevator ♪ Albie's Elevator ♪ Oh, yeah ♪ Albie's Elevator (bright music) (upbeat music) (elevator dings) - Flashlight.

- Flashlight.

- Fuzzy blue towel.

- Fuzzy blue towel.

- Whisk.

- Whisk.

(upbeat music) - Oh, hi, I'm so glad you're here.

The elevator was making a little sound like (imitating elevator).

So, Jay is here fixing things up.

He's super handy and he has a cool bag full of fix it stuff.

- Curry butternut squash hand pie.

- Curry butternut squash hand pie.

- Mm.

- While Jay works, I think now is the perfect for our daily elevator check.

- I absolutely agree.

- Elevator buttons, ready!

- [Tibitz] Elevator buttons are colorful, shiny and activated, ready.

- Duck art ready!

- [Tibitz] The ducks remain best friends, ready.

- Pep talk ready.

- You are an idea machine.

- Ooh, I like it.

(bright music) - I think we're all one here.

- All right, hey, Jay?

Where did you get all the cool fix it stuff in your bag?

- Oh, it's just bits and bobs I collected over time.

You never know when it might come in handy.

You can take a look inside if you like.

- There are so many cool things in here, fun tape.

- Very useful.

- Safety goggles.

- Eyeballs are precious and must be protected.

- Mm-hmm.

(gasps) Jay, what's that?

- Oh, that's a packet of seeds.

- Seeds?

- Seeds.

- [Together] Seeds.

- I meant to plant them last spring, but forgot and must've just stashed them in my fix it bag.

- So, you're telling me that there are orange flowers like this picture inside the envelope.

How is that possible?

- Well, it's not the whole flower smooshed up in there.

It's the seed.

(Albie gasps) The seed is like the itty bitty flower baby.

You plant it in some soil and then you water it and give it sunlight and then eventually, it'll grow into a flower like the one you see in this picture.

- (gasp) What an amazing magic trick.

- It's not a magic trick, it's nature.

- Well, can it plant I, Jay, can we, please?

- I think that sounds like a great idea.

I'll just need to get a pot and some soil.

Could you drop me off at the lobby?

- No problemo.

Lobby, please, Tibitz!

- Arriving at the lobby.

- I'll be right back, Albie.

- I'll be waiting here with the flower babies.

(upbeat music) Just waiting here.

Yep.

Just waiting around.

No big deal.

Jay will be back soon, right?

(floor rumbles) Okay, it's been like a hundred years, where is Jay?

- I'm sure he'll be back soon, Albie.

- I just wanna plant these baby flowers so they can grow into big size flowers and I can't do that if I have to wait around as my whole life passes by while Jay is out getting soil.

What is soil anyway?

- Though it looks similar to dirt, soil actually contains minerals and nutrients that aid in the growth, oh.

She's not listening.

- Oh, you poor sweet baby flowers.

Seems as though I just found you but a moment ago and now, now, it's been a lifetime of sitting around waiting for Jay who has disappeared, probably to some far off place like Nova Scotia or possibly to the moon to get soil.

Will I ever get to plant you?

Will I ever get to see you grow into orange flowers like the picture on the front of this envelope?

Who knows?

Who knows if Jay will ever.

- I'm back.

- Oh.

Jay, what took you so long?

It's been days, months, years.

(bright music) - It's been like three minutes.

I had to get the supplies we needed to plant your seed.

So, here we have a pot and it's full of soil.

Now, you can add a seed in this little hole and I'll cover it up.

Now, we can add a little water on top and there you go.

- But where's the flower?

- What do you mean?

- Well, we put the seed in the soil, we covered it up, put some water on top, shouldn't we get an orange flower like this?

- (laughs) Well, not right away, it's going to take some time.

- How much time?

10 seconds.

- More than that.

- More than 10 seconds?

Seriously?

- It's probably going to take a couple weeks.

Albie, some things just take time.

You'll have to be patient.

- Can't we speed things up.

Don't you have some sort of flower speeder upper thing in your fix it bag?

There's no such thing as a flower speeder upper.

It's just going to take time.

I know, let's find some garden friends who we can visit.

- Garden friends who have a magic potion that makes flowers grow, huh?

- No.

- Or maybe we can find a watch that speeds up time so we can see the flower grow faster.

- Yeah, I don't think that exists.

But- - Mm.

- Gardeners have a ton of experience growing flowers.

Maybe they can help you learn how to be a little more patient.

Could you hit that button for me, Albie?

- You got it.

(upbeat music) - Starling mode activated, Albie.

(upbeat music) ♪ Powering up, up, up, up ♪ Whirly course fluxing ♪ Location locked on - All selecting groove master, groove mastering.

♪ Powering down down, down, down, down, down, down.

♪ - We have arrived.

- Hi, there.

- Hi, I'm Sidney.

- I'm Steve.

- I'm Jay and this is my friend, Albie and we just planted some seeds.

- And I'm a little, well, a lot disappointed that I'm gonna have to wait weeks for them to grow into flowers.

- Well, Albie, seeds are like children.

They take time to grow.

- Yes, and you just have to take a little care with them and they'll do really well.

- Well, you've gotta take good care of the seeds, of course, you've gotta keep them warm when they're just getting started.

They have to be in good soil.

You have to give them water and you can't water them too much.

- Then in a little while, you start to see little green leaves coming out of the soil and you know that you've taken good care of them and your seeds are on their way to making beautiful plants.

- How do you know so much about seeds?

- That's a good question.

I started growing things when I was about your age.

I did radishes and carrots and was so excited that I decided to keep going with it and here we are now, we've designed this big garden called hugel.

- Hugo what?

- A what?

- A hugel is another name for a mount, which is what this shape is that you see here.

- So, the way you make a hugel is you begin with the logs and then you pile twigs and sticks on top of it and then leaves that you raked up during the fall and you put those on top of it and then finally you put soil and you plant your seed and it creates this wonderful environment for seeds to grow.

- How long did you have to wait until your plants got bigger?

- Well, it takes a long time.

I would say you really will see it happening in a couple weeks.

- What did you do while you waited?

- There's so much to do in a garden.

You have to weed it, meaning taking out plants that you don't want to be in the garden.

You have to keep it watered.

You have to tend to other plants that are growing, so there's so much to do in a garden while you're waiting for seeds to grow.

- So, we focus on the things that we can do instead of the things that we aren't able to do.

- The plants have to grown in their own time.

We can't make them grow any faster.

- And now look at it.

- And we love it, look at it.

It looks great, it took some time, but it's really well worth it.

- It's amazing (gasps).

- Here, why don't you take this watering can.

It'll help to make your seeds grow.

- Wow, thanks.

- Bye.

- Bye, Albie.

- Bye, Albie, good luck with your flowers.

- Take care, good luck.

- Thanks Sid and Steven.

(upbeat music) I think I figured it out, Jay.

- Oh, yeah?

- Mm-hmm.

- Instead of staring at the pot and trying to force it to hurry up, I'm going to focus on the things I can control.

First, I'm going to decorate the baby flower's pot, mm-hmm.

So, I'm gonna start by putting some orange polka dots around the top part of the pot.

- Excellent choice.

- The orange reminds me of the flower that the little seed is going to grow into.

- Well, I found this little gnome in my fix it bag.

- Why do you have a gnome, Jay?

- Um, because he's adorable.

(Albie laughs) And sometimes when I'm working on an especially tough problem, I can ask the gnome for advice.

- (gasps) The gnome talks?

- No, but he always listens.

Anyway, do you think you would use him?

- Of course.

He can stand guard in the pot sort of like a guard for the seeds.

- Oh, little seed guard.

- Ooh, and I'll use these twigs for my twig collection to put in the back like little trees for the gnome.

- I didn't know you had a twig collection.

- Oh, yeah, I have a very impressive twig collection.

Winter twigs, twigs I found when I was happy, twigs I found when I was a little sad.

Twigs that look like sticks.

- Ooh, what's that one?

- Oh, king of the twigs.

Best twig I own.

- Oh, obviously.

- Mm.

(upbeat music) - I think this pot looks great.

- And how are you feeling about your seed now?

It could still be a few weeks before it grows.

- That's okay, Jay.

I know it's going to take time and I need to be patient.

Besides, I'll use the time I have between now and when the flower grows to be the best plant babysitter.

(grand music) I'll check on the plant every day and give the plant water when it's thirsty.

- That sounds like a great idea, Albie.

- Thanks for giving me the seeds, Jay, and for lending me your gnome.

- Oh, it's gnome problem, get it?

- Mm-mm.

- I will miss you little friend.

(somber music) (bright music) (organ music) - Oh, hi.

I'm just drawing a picture of what my little seed looks like right now.

Mostly dirt and the garden gnome.

But if I keep taking good care of it, hopefully, it'll turn into a beautiful orange flower.

Have you ever planted a seed before?

Did you have a hard time waiting for it to grow?

I was feeling pretty frustrated with all the waiting, but now I'm gonna focus on the things I can do instead of the things I can't do.

(elevator dings) Ooh, that sound means another neighbor needs a ride in the elevator.

I wonder where they're heading?

Maybe they want to see my incredible twig collection.

(gasps) I better polish up the twigs just in case, yeah.

Where'd I put my twigs?

(gentle music) (bright music) (upbeat music) (elevator dings) - Zoom!

Zooms day away, whoa!

Zoomity, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, oh, hey, you're here.

You came on a great day.

My friend, Gabe, is coming to play and Zia is going to teach is a cool new game, charades!

But first, it's time to make sure the elevator is ready.

Ready, Tibitz?

- Ready.

- Elevators button, ready?

- [Tibitz] Elevator buttons are colorful, shiny and activated, ready.

Albie trampoline legs ready, 'cause it's an exciting day.

- Trampoline legs are in tip top springy condition.

(legs spring) - Yee ha!

- Ready.

- Pep talk, ready.

- Pep talk.

Albie, you're smart, kind and strong, too.

Whatever comes your way, remember, we believe in you.

- Thank you, Tibitz.

I believe in all of us.

We're gonna make it a great day.

(elevator dings) - (gasps) Gabe, playtime, game time, playtime with Gabe time (imitates bugle).

Playtime, Gabe time, it's playtime with Gabe time.

Playtime, Gabe time, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi.

- Hi, albie.

- You're just in time to play a game (laughs).

- I don't think a game sounds like fun today.

- You don't think a fun game sounds like fun?

But you love games.

- I just wanna go home.

Fourth floor, please.

- But?

- I'm fine, I just wanna go home.

- Okay.

Fourth floor.

- Oh, floor four.

- Bye.

(somber music) - Tibitz, what happened to Gabe?

Gabe is normally super smiley and loves to play.

She seemed so excited to play charades before.

- Oh, it's very unusual.

- Where is Gabe going?

I thought she was gonna play charades with us.

- She said she doesn't want to play.

- Did something happen?

- Gabe said she was fine, but she did seem not fine.

She was acting kind of grumpy.

- Oh, no.

- Yes.

- (gasps) Maybe Gabe is mad at us.

I can't figure it out.

She was acting, well, acting not like her usual smiley, ready to play self.

- Hmm, well, the game we were gonna play.

- Charades?

- Charades, yes, charades is all about acting.

- Acting.

- We use the clues someone is giving with their body to guess what they're trying to say.

- So, maybe we can use the clues Gabe gave us to figure out why she doesn't want to play.

- Exactly.

- Ah!

- I know just the person to visit.

Albie, come on.

- Okay, Zia.

- Could you hit that button, please?

- Oh, you got it, ha ah!

(elevator whirls) (upbeat music) - Starling mode activated, Albie.

♪ Powering up, up, up, up, up ♪ Whirly course fluxing ♪ Location locked on Lights, elevator, action, go, go voice.

- [Together] Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go.

♪ Powering down, down, down, down ♪ - We have arrived.

- Ma.

- Ma.

- Ma.

- Oh, hi.

- Oh, hey, Zia.

- This must be Albie.

I'm Devon.

- And I'm Hannah.

- Hi, Albie, my friend is an actor.

- And actor?

- We're theater artists, which means we're singers.

♪ Mi, mi, mi, mi, mi (Devon claps) - And dancers.

(upbeat music) - And actors.

(bright music) - To be or not to be.

- That is the question.

(bright music) (Devon laughs) - Acting is all about imagining what it's like to be someone else.

- Mm-hmm, you use your voice and your body and your face to act out your imagination.

- The goal is to show people how you're feeling without having to use words.

- Hey, that's charades.

(Albie gasps) - Exactly.

Charades is an acting game.

- Oh, I'll go first.

- Ooh.

(bright music) - Oh, you're swimming.

- You're playing a drum.

- Oh, oh, oh, you're stirring something in a big bowl.

- You're baking.

- That's right.

I was imagining I was mixing a big bowl of cake batter.

- How is she making me guess these things without words?

Amazing.

- It's acting.

- Acting.

- You're writing a motorcycle.

- You're playing hide and seek.

- You're juggling.

Oh, I got it.

(both laugh) - Now, let's try this one.

What do you think I'm feeling?

- Hmm, you have a big smile, so I think you're happy.

- And what about this one.

(bright music) - Ooh, well, now your arms are crossed and you're looking around a lot.

You aren't smiling anymore.

Are you scared?

- Great job, Albie.

We can communicate all kinds of things with our bodies and our faces.

- What you feel on the inside can show on the outside.

You can use these clues to think about how someone is feeling.

- Thanks for showing us all about acting.

- No problem.

- Bye, Albie.

- See you later.

- Bye.

Wow.

Charades seems like so much fun.

Now I really wish Gabe was here to play.

- I'm sorry, Albie, but we can't make our friend play if she doesn't want to.

But we can use our new acting skills to help us figure out Gabe's clues.

- We'll play emotions charades.

- Yeah.

- So, you'll guess the emotion you see and tell me when we find an emotion that reminds you of Gabe.

- Great.

- Now, just a reminder, one person acts, everyone else guesses what the clue is.

- And no talking, Zia.

(Zia exhales) (Zia flaps lips) ♪ Mi, mi, mi - Okay.

Ready for action.

(Zia gasps) - Oh, is your tummy hurting?

- Oh, I know, I know that one, I know that one.

Are you surprised, Zia?

- You're right, Albie.

- Nice work.

- Great acting, Zia, but I don't think Gabe was surprised.

- [Zia] Hmm, let's try another one.

- [Tibitz] Oh, you're thinking.

- I am thinking, Tibitz, but that's not it.

Oh, oh.

- (gasps) Are you mad?

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, you're mad.

Maybe that's how Gabe was feeling.

- That does not look like how Gabe looked.

- Wait, you saw how Gabe looked, Albie.

You've got the clues in your memory.

Tell them to me and I'll act them out.

- Good idea.

Okay, get ready.

When I saw Gabe, she was standing with her head downs and her shoulders slumped and was not looking at me.

- Does this look mad?

- No.

- Maybe she was tired?

- I don't think so, Tibitz.

I think she looks (gasps) sad.

But why would Gabe be sad?

Just had the best trip ever.

- People can be a bit more complicated than charades.

- We figured out some clues about how Gabe was acting, but maybe we should ask her about how she's feeling.

(elevator dings) (Albie gasps) - Hi, Albie.

Hi, everybody.

- Hi, Gabe, how are you feeling?

- I'm fine, Albie.

- You say you're fine, but your head is down and your shoulders are slumped and you're not looking at us.

Are you feeling okay?

- I'm fine.

I just had a great weekend visiting my dad, but now nothing seems fun.

I don't wanna play games, even though I usually love games and I didn't wanna eat pizza even though I usually love pizza.

Oh.

I guess maybe I miss my dad.

(somber music) - You know, sometimes I miss my granny because she lives far away.

Missing her makes me sad, too.

- But I don't like feeling sad.

- Gabe, you're our friend if you feel happy or sad.

- It's okay to feel however you feel.

We're still your friends.

- Thanks, Albie and Zia.

I still don't feel like playing, but maybe I could watch you play your game.

- Yay, I'm just glad to see you.

- I missed you, Gabe.

- I missed you, too, Albie.

- Who's ready for charades?

(characters gibber) - Thanks for playing Charades and learning all about acting with me.

Pretending is really fun.

We also used our new acting skills to figure out what Gave was saying with her body.

She was sad.

Have you ever been really sad before?

I think everyone feels sad sometimes.

- Hey, Albie, Huggy Pepper's gonna need your help guessing this one.

He's stumped.

- Gotta go help Huggy Pepper.

See you soon.

You're a helicopter.

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, you're a dinosaur with a piece of popcorn stuck in her teeth.

Oh, oh, oh, you're a DJ from the Light 2000.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Lead support for this program has been provided by The William Penn Foundation with additional support from The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Sidewater Family Foundation, the Thomas Locke Charitable Fund and viewers like you.

(bright music) - [Announcer] Continue the fun at home with art projects, activities and printables paired with the episode you just watched.

Available at whyy.org/albieselevator.

(dog barks) (slow jazz music) (technological music)