The Sad Seedling

A tiny seed laid buried in darkness lonely, frightened, wondering what she’d become. All around her were roots of those who had already pushed through the soil, and she hoped she’d one day be just like them. Slowly she grew until finally, the seed burst through the darkness. Bright light shone down on beautiful fuschia and purple flowers that spread throughout a giant garden. The seedling was excited to discover which color was inside her. The other flowers welcomed her and watched over her teaching her the rules of the garden. They too waited patiently to see what she’d become. They explained that their garden was the most important and most stunning of all gardens. The seedling loved her home.

Rain poured down making the seedling stronger. The wind pushed her sideways whispering, “you wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for me.” The seedling liked nighttime the best. It reminded her of her youth when life was quiet, and she carried the hope of what she’d become. Since she had started to grow all the other flowers constantly told her what to do, who to become, the importance of following their rules, in the quiet, it was just her voice she listened to. Her voice told her pink and fuschia were not her colors. The seedling felt different.

As the days passed, the seedling grew and grew. Light, wind, and rain made her strong on the outside. However, on the inside, she was sad because she still didn’t have any fuschia or purple buds. She was only green. The other flowers were growing tired of having to remind her of their rules. They demanded she be like them. They warned her that she’d be plucked from their garden and thrown away if she didn’t conform because they wouldn’t accept her if she were different. They knew they were the most beautiful garden in all the world and they didn’t want her to ruin their beauty.

One night after everyone had fallen asleep the seedling gazed at the sky. The stars twinkled, the full moon shone its light over the garden. The seedling made a wish to look like the other flowers. She pleaded with the moon and the stars, “please make me like them.” Being different caused her so much pain she blocked the voice inside her that told her she was beautiful too.

The next morning when she awoke she remembered her wish and hoped to see bright purple buds, but instead, she had grown taller and skinnier. The other flowers were disgusted. They scoffed, “what’s the matter with you?  You are not one of us.” Devastated, the seedling wilted.

She stayed wilted for days while the other flowers ridiculed her. Their words were cruel. The seedling no longer saw beauty in anything. She didn’t care what happened to her.

Taller and taller she grew despite being sad. The wind, rain, and light continued to make her grow until the whispers of the other flowers were drowned out by birds singing in the trees. She stretched tall to listen to their tunes. And when she did, she discovered that she could see far beyond the garden to a world abundant with color. Amazed at all the shades of yellows, oranges, blues, and all the shapes, tall, short and in between, never had she seen or imagined the brilliance that stretched beyond the garden. She smiled. The seedling became who she was meant to be a sunflower who was as beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside.

By KD Rausin