John was a very shy child. He felt so embarrassed being with other people that he didn't dare say anything, and he almost always kept quite and still over in a corner, fearing what might happen if he opened his mouth.

One day, when some people were visiting, Juan felt so ashamed that he hid in a bedroom. Suddenly, a bubble appeared right in front of him, and out of it came a little elf. With exaggerated gestures of pain, the elf covered his large ears with his hands and shouted:

-"Please! Please! Stop screaming like that. I can not stand it..."

With that shock the boy forgot his shyness, and asked the elf:

-"Why are you crying? Who is shouting at you?"

-"What d'you mean who is shouting at me!? "

he replied indignantly,

-"is there anyone else here?"

The boy looked around. It was true, they were alone.

-"What? But I almost never say anything ... I'm always really good,"

he said, trying to excuse himself.

-"Oh, yeah!"

went on the elf without losing his anger

-"I really believe that. You were yelling like I haven't heard anyone yell for ages ..."

-"But if I didn't even open my mouth ..."

-"Go on! This really is good! As if to scream like a madman you have to open your mouth!"

-"Of course,"

replied John,

-"how can I shout without opening my mouth?"

Then the elf's face changed from anger to surprise.

-"Aaahhh ...."

he said, lowering his voice,

-"you mean you don't know? Nobody told you that your eyes, your hands, your feet and your whole body talk all the time? Now I understand everything!"

And coming over to John, as if divulging a secret, the elf began to explain that each part of the body speaks its own language - and does so without stopping - and how each gesture we make says one thing or another, whether in a low voice or shouting. In the end the elf gave John a little bottle, dropped some magic droplets into the boy's ears, and told him:

-"Now you'll see what I'm saying. With this potion you can be like me and hear with your ears what people are saying without a word passing their lips."

It was an amazing experience for John. For a few days, he could hear how everyone kept up two or three conversations, even when completely silent. And he heard his parents say nice things to him simply by looking at him, and he heard his neighbour's feet complain because the lift was slow in coming, and he heard the butcher's head thank a generous lady for the tip she gave him. But what surprised him most was on his birthday when he met a girl who was also shy. She looked constantly to the ground and didn't dare talk to anyone. His magic ears could hear her loud cries:

-"I do not want to be here! I do not want to play with anyone! I hate parties!"

And knowing what the girl's eyes and feet were saying wasn't true, he came and told her what they were shouting without her knowing about it, and he wet her ears with a few of the magic drops from his bottle. And that really made them feel ashamed!

Together, John and his new friend set out to investigate which gestures and postures to make to ensure their bodies were quieter and more pleasant. And so it was that they discovered that smiling, looking into people's eyes, approaching people and politely saying "hi" and "bye" meant their bodies stopped yelling, and so they became charming and pleasant children.