(A short story)
“I’m happy,” says the girl to the world. She wears a smile, there’s a spring in her step, and her heart is full. No mountain is too high to climb, no ocean too far to swim, and she’s not afraid of the shadows.
She’s fearless.
How beautiful is the world! It promises excitement, adventure, and treasure. And the girl is ready to meet it. The girl craves it all. The girl thinks that this is the purpose of her life, to see the unseen, to know the unknown, to be what has never been before.
And then she stumbles. There’s a cut on her palm. It hurts, but not too bad. She’s still strong, she’s still happy, she’s still confident.
“I’m happy,” says the girl to the world, and she stands up, dusts herself off, and keeps walking.
Behold, the world changes. She sees more now. It is still a lovely place, but she learns that there are things she must avoid. Like the ruts in the path, and the stones, and sometimes the briars. It is not too hard. She can do it. She is the girl, and the girl can do anything. She is fearless!
“I’m happy,” says the girl to the world. And she goes on her way.
But the forest is growing darker. And the beauty is slipping away. She still tries to find it. She still thinks perhaps it is there. She is still confident. It will not always be this way. Day will come again and it will chase away the darkness.
“I’m happy,” says the girl to the world, and she thinks she is, though perhaps she is not as happy as she was before. But she is still happy. It’s not so terribly bad. And it can not last forever, surely.
The night grows colder and the forest darker. Where is the beauty she seeks? Where is the sun? Where are the treasures? Adventure hides itself away, and fear comes out to play.
“I’m happy,” says the girl to the world, but she is not really happy. She is afraid, and she does not know how to not be. She is trembling, and she does not know how to still herself. She is crying and she does not know how to stop.
But look! What is this? Where her tears have fallen something has begun to grow. It is small, and fragile, and the girl must draw closer to see it. Very close. Closer still.
In the dirt is a bud, a little green thing. It stretches itself to the sky, and then it unfolds, slowly, and there on the dirt is a thing of beauty such as the girl has never seen before; a flower.
The girl reaches down with trembling hands and touches it. And the flower glows to life. Slowly it uproots itself from the earth and then, with wonder, the girl watches the flower bury its roots in her heart. She can feel them wrap around heart, gently, and yet firm.
Above her skin the flower glows, and the girl touches it tenderly, gently. She can hardly believe it to be real. But she feels it within her, growing stronger still.
“I am not happy,” the girl admits to the world, “But I have hope, and I know that I will find what I am meant to”.
And so the girl goes on her way, and it is a while before she sees the light and beauty again. Some days it does not stay long, but the girl has found something more beautiful than she has ever seen before; hope, and she carries it with her wherever she goes. She will forget sometimes that hope is there, and she will cry tears, and she will be frightened. But that hope will continue to grow in her heart. And someday that girl will be a woman, and she will know, she has found what she was looking for at last.