No. 1 — The Panda with Zero Followers
- Miriam Tocino
- Jun 24
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 4
One true follower beats a thousand balloons.
There are moments when you want everyone to see you.
When you draw a picture. When you tell a joke. When you score a goal.
And sometimes… nobody claps. Nobody notices.
It feels strange, doesn’t it? Like you’re invisible.
On the internet, that feeling is called “followers.” They’re the little numbers that float above someone’s head, showing who pays attention.
But here’s the secret: numbers don’t always mean connection.
This story is about that. About balloons. About applause.
About a Panda who had too many followers… but not enough breath!
And about how, in the end, what matters is always the same: having someone who stays, even if they don’t clap.
The Panda with Zero Followers
In the Zoo of Influencers, every animal had balloons floating above their heads. Those balloons were their followers.
The flamingo had five million.The hamster, three hundred thousand.The parrot, seventy-two thousand eight hundred and fourteen.
But the Panda had a zero.
A big, lonely zero floating above his head.
Zerus looked at him with sadness.
“Poor thing,” he whispered. “He doesn’t have even one follower.”
Ona, standing beside him, said softly:
“Maybe he doesn’t need any.”
But Zerus had already come up with an idea. He built the Follower-Inflating Machine. Each time someone clapped, a smiling balloon appeared for the Panda.
Clap. One balloon.
Clap. Two balloons.
Clap. Ten.
One hundred.
One thousand.
The balloons multiplied, surrounding the Panda.
“What a success!” Zerus shouted.
But the Panda floated higher and higher, trapped inside the cloud of balloons.
“I can’t breathe!” cried the Panda.
Zerus looked at his face. He didn’t look happy.He looked trapped. So Zerus grabbed a little stick and began popping the balloons, one by one.
Pop. Pop. Pop.
The air cleared, and only one small balloon was left.
Zerus tied it gently to the Panda’s paw.
“This one is me,” he said. “Today I follow you because I want to be with you.”
The Panda smiled. Sometimes one is enough.
Big Questions for Small Thinkers
Why do you think the Panda didn’t look happy when he had so many balloons?
What’s the difference between having many followers and having real friends?
What makes a true friend special to you?
