Based on a story told by Giselle Birch, aged 5 years
A little girl and her grandmother went to the market to do some shopping. An old man called out, "Flower seeds for just 10 cents!" The little girl, who loved flowers, paid for the seeds with her pocket money and planted her seeds in her grandmother’s garden.
When spring came she waited for the little green shoots to appear, but they did not. The following spring too, nothing grew. The little girl felt disappointed and sad.
The next time she saw the old man at the market, she said, "Those seeds you sold me never sprouted!" The old man replied, "Those are no ordinary seeds. When children from different countries unite like the flowers of a garden, the seeds will grow into the loveliest flowers you have ever seen!"
The little girl remembered that her great-grandfather was a Bahá’í and had met Abdu’l-Bahá many years before in Haifa. Abdu’l-Bahá said we are all the flowers of one garden and all the leaves of one tree, and that the reason why each flower is a different colour and size and shape and scent is because it makes a garden more beautiful. He said that all the flowers belong to One Garden and One Gardener. God.
The little girl went to school. She made friends with children from places like India, China, Africa, Arabia, America and many other countries. On her birthday she invited them to a party. Everyone had such fun at the party, and when it was time to go home, a surprise was in store!
The seeds the little girl had bought had begun to grow and now the flowers bloomed. They were in all the splendid colours of a rainbow. Each was of a different shape and smelled so sweet.The little girl turned to her friends, “All of you have made it possible. Thank you! This is the best birthday present I have ever had!”Labels: Stories on harmony |
