Gail Bush: Hi there. My name is Gail Bush and I am the author of Our World is Whole. But first, you need to know three true things about me. Number one, I believe in who I am. I just always have. I'm not the best, but I do my best. I'm not the smartest, but I love to learn. I just know what makes me feel the most like me. Number two, I hold on to people in my life. I just don't let go of friends. My closest friends are from kindergarten, and I have three big brothers who are very dear to me. And three, I love to write. I write notes, poems. I write stories. I like writing in pencil and lined yellow paper. I write on a computer. I play with words. That's just a part of who I am.

Our World is Whole is a young person's world. In the story you meet an uncle, a neighbor, a cousin, a pet, and some parents. And they are just being themselves in their everyday life, all believing in who they are and, whilst holding onto each other, they belong to each other. And that's what makes their world whole. They say together, we are we.

And now you and about you reading this book one or two, or maybe ten times. And you might think, "Wait, I have a world in my home, in my class." Yes, you could write your own world is whole story. And your teachers could write one, your librarians, and maybe your class could write one together. Just think about it. It might be fun. And remember, I said that I am not the best. You go ahead and write a better whole world story than I did. I'll be very happy for you. Really, I will. And I know you can do it. How do I know? That's right, because I believe in you. So to recap, we learned about me, Our World is Whole, and about you. Yep, about you.