THE LITTLE WHITE FLOWER WITH THE YELLOW MIDDLE

I know that the title of this blog may seem a little strange, but once you've read this post, you might understand why I chose it as my title. When I was about 17, I wrote this story. Years after I even remembered writing it, my Grandmother returned it to me. She had held onto it for me because she loved it and hoped I would do something with it. I hope you enjoy it as much as she does:


Under the hot African sky there is a field.
In the field there are many flowers. All the flowers look the same. They are all white with yellow middles.
In the community of white flowers with yellow middles is a family. In this family is a father, a mother and a little girl. They all have white petals with yellow middles The little flower family has always been very happy. The little flower spends her days swaying in the warm wind and singing songs under the shimmering sun with all her flower friends. All the flower children wave their white petals and shimmy their yellow middles together. The little flowers can’t imagine wanting anything more.

One warm day while the little white flowers with yellow middles were singing songs in the shimmering sun, a big truck pulled up alongside the small field. Out of the big truck stepped two big brown boots followed by two small red wellingtons. The red wellingtons stopped by the singing white flowers with yellow middles. A big hand reached down and picked up the little girl flower with the beautiful white petals and the golden yellow middle. All the flower children cried out for the little flower. They tried to hold her hands tight under the soil but the red wellingtons carried her away – far from all the other white flowers with yellow middles.

The red wellingtons carried the little flower into a big house. The little flower forgot to be scared because in the house there was so much to see. Much more than she had ever seen in the field filled with white flowers with yellow middles.

The little flower was placed in a vase. In the vase there were more flowers. But these were flowers that the little white flower with the yellow middle had never seen before. These flowers did not have white petals with yellow middles. These flowers had red petals with green middles. Beautiful red velvety petals with bright green middles. The little white flower with the yellow middle could only stare at these beautiful flowers around her.

The other flowers spoke to the little white flower with the yellow middle. They told her there were many more flowers like them. Even more beautiful than them, with different coloured petals and different coloured middles. They said there were so many different coloured flowers that the little white flower with the yellow middle would never see them all. The little white flower with the yellow middle missed her father and her mother and all her little flower friends but she really wanted to see all the other coloured flowers far away from the small field filled with white flowers with yellow middles.

The little white flower with the yellow middle felt the red wellingtons lift her out of the vase of red flowers with green middles and out to a garden filled with all the other coloured flowers. In the distance she saw the small field filled with white flowers with yellow middles and waved goodbye to them as she explained that she was going to find all the different coloured flowers far more beautiful than white flowers with yellow middles.

The little white flower with the yellow middle was amazed by all the flowers she saw. One was more beautiful than the next. There were red flowers with green middles, purple flowers and orange flowers, there were flowers of every colour and flowers of every size. There were flowers with thorns and there were flowers with tendrils. Flowers with leaves and flowers without. There were big flowers and small flowers and there were flowers that were tall and flowers that were short. The little white flower with the yellow middle giggled with delight and decided to stay amongst all the beautiful flowers far from the field filled with white flowers with boring yellow middles. The little white flower wanted to sway with the beautiful flowers in the warm wind and sing songs with them under the shimmering sun but the beautiful flowers ignored the little white flower with the yellow middle. They held hands with each other but the little white flower with the yellow middle could not reach that low so she watched. She smiled as she watched because it was enough just to look at all the beautiful flowers sway in the warm wind and sing songs under the shimmering sun.

Man sunny days went by and the little white flower with the yellow middle noticed that one of her white petals was becoming red like the flower she was leaning on. The little white flower with the red petal and the yellow middle was bursting with excitement. Perhaps now the beautiful flowers would let her say with them in the warm wind and sing songs under the shimmering sun. But the beautiful flowers did not notice that the little white flower now had a red petal. A few more sunny days went by and the little white flower leaned against a purple flower until one of her white petals became purple. Perhaps NOW the beautiful flowers would let her sway with them in the warm wind and sing songs with them under the shimmering sun. But the beautiful flowers still did not notice the little white flower with the red and purple petals and the yellow middle. But she stayed and watched the beautiful flowers because they were so beautiful to watch and she was so far from the field filled with white flowers with yellow middles.

Many more sunny days went by and the little white flower with the red and purple petals and the yellow middle began to feel weak. She
looked at her petals and noticed they were turning brown like the soil

she was standing in. the little brown flower was too wise to get excited. One sunny day the big brown boots returned and tossed the little brown flower into a big black bag. Inside the bag were many brown flowers just like her. The little brown flower was so happy to be around flowers like herself again. Perhaps these were her friends from the field filled with white flowers with yellow middles and they had become brown too. But the brown flowers were old and they did not want to sing songs with her and they did not want to sway their petals in the black bag.

The little brown flower tumbled out the big black bag and begged the wind to take her home to the field filled with white flowers with yellow middles. She had had enough of seeing all the beautiful flowers. She had missed swaying in the warm wind and singing songs with her friends under the shimmering sun. When the little brown flower got back to her field she ran to all her flower friends but they not want to sway with her in the warm wind and they did not want to sing with her in the shimmering sun because they did not know her. She was a little brown flower in a filed filled with little white flowers with yellow middles.

The little brown flower cried and cried. Until eventually the mother flower with white petals and a yellow middle wrapped her petals around the little brown flower and held her little hand and swayed with her in the warm wind and sang to her under the shimmering sun because she knew that the little brown flower was really still the same little white flower with the yellow middle.

THE END