The Rose was not beautiful.Everyone said so.The scampering squirrels on the treetops,the rude parrot who lived in the mango tree,even the birds and butterflies who visited the garden and who were polite on principle.They all said that the little Rose had neither the bloom nor the beauty as befits a rose.The rose tree,of course,felt sad,and sometimes angry,on hearing such comments.With ferociousness and indignation in degrees that only a mother could possess,she held close her little one,as if to prove to the whole world that her baby was the most precious thing to her,whatever others may say.But as the night fell,and one by one,the inmates of the garden fell into deep slumber,the rose tree stood awake,her heart wringing with concern about her poor,poor child.
The little Rose knew what was eating her mother.Beauty though she may not be,she was not dumb.She knew she was what everyone called The Black Sheep of the family.She just couldn't understand what went wrong.All her brothers and sisters were beautiful -full of life,bloom and beauty.It was she who didn't fit in.She,with her pale, shrivelled-up petals which were so obstinate and simply refused to open up.She had overheard the wise lizards in the garden say that beauty is of no importance and that it was the wit and wisdom that mattered.But considering she had none of those either,or so she thought,she was what you could call a complete failure.Her already curled-up petals drooped a little more and she hung her head.Heart heavy with bitter thoughts,the little Rose stood alone,a piteous and miserable image,with no one to comfort her,for who would befriend such a plain little thing.
The night waned and dawn came about,and still our heroine stood the same,wrapped up in her cocoon of sorrows.When the gentle rays of the morning sun touched her,she lifted her head a little.It was at that moment that she saw him for the very first time-a handsome butterfly,soaring towards her,with a dazzling smile that melt her heart.Something stirred in her heart as she watched him,an emotion which she couldn't distinguish.Her little heart fluttered and she felt shy and tongue-tied.To her astonishment,she found herself hoping,even praying for him to notice her.And surprisingly enough,that was just what happened.He landed right in front of her,gave a beaming smile and began to talk to her,nineteen to the dozen,chattering away all about his journey,as if they were the best of friends.She listened,enthralled and a bit frightened at the same time.Emotions she never even knew existed,tormented her and as she stood listening to his tilting voice,she was afraid he wouldn't ever,ever like her.
But miracles never did cease to happen.He came to see her every day,with his wonderful laugh and sparkling eyes.The little Rose had a friend at last.And oh,what a friend!He was everything anyone could hope for.He told her about the strange lands he visited,the strange sights he had seen.He made her bubble with laughter with his funny tales.He made her sit on the edge of her seat with suspense and thrill.He moved her to tears when he told her of the great sorrows of the world.Ideas,wonderful fascinating ideas filled her mind and she shivered with pleasure when she thought of all that he had said.He made her see everything in a whole new light and like a Cinderella transformed at the touch of the magic wand,her personality bloomed out of the cocoon that she herself had created for her.The other creatures in the garden were all astonished by this very unlikely pair,but the rose tree was happy.The tinkling laughter that could be heard from her child,when the Butterfly was nearby,filled her heart with joy and content.
The little Rose was also truly happy.For the first time in her life,she forgot about her sorrows,her complexes and He,He alone filled her heart.Little did she know that she had fallen desperately in love with him.She was living for those moments that she spent with him.She didn't know that her time with him was drawing close to an end.But the Butterfly knew this,and it troubled him.He was a wanderer and now,time has come for him to move on.Goodbyes had never troubled him before-they were a part of his life.But this time,it was different.He couldn't even think about parting with this shy,gentle friend of his,let alone actually do it.The soft tinkle of her laugh,her delicate scent,the worshiping glance she gave him,the mischievous twitch of a smile she wore when she was pulling his leg-all had begun to have an intoxicating effect on him.He wanted to enclose her within his wings and stay with her forever and ever,but he couldn't.He had to leave her real soon.And his heart felt like lead whenever he thought about it.
The fateful day arrived.He had told her about his journey the day before.She had paled a bit and that was the only outward sign of what went through her mind.But he,who knew her as well as he knew himself or more,was not to be fooled.He could feel the turmoil inside her as if reflecting his own state of mind,and as he flew down to her today,he realized that they could never be truly happy away from each other.It was then that the Butterfly made the boldest decision in his life.He decided to stay with his love-yes,by then he had realized what it was that he felt for her-it was Love,that wonderful thing which he had heard so much about but never truly understood,until today.
She lifted her dainty head and gazed at him.Tears glistened on her face like pretty dew drops.Her wide eyes roved about his face lovingly as if to remember every detail of her beloved,as if to engrave it in her heart..for she was to part with her soul mate this day.Finally,her gaze landed on his eyes..What she saw there,I cannot explain to you.It is something very much beyond words and expressions.It is something that I see every time I look into my lover's eyes.The warmth of it engulfed her and she let out a little sob of joy.He dipped down and kissed her..it was at that moment she had her very first blush.
And no one said ever again that the Rose was not beautiful...
The little Rose knew what was eating her mother.Beauty though she may not be,she was not dumb.She knew she was what everyone called The Black Sheep of the family.She just couldn't understand what went wrong.All her brothers and sisters were beautiful -full of life,bloom and beauty.It was she who didn't fit in.She,with her pale, shrivelled-up petals which were so obstinate and simply refused to open up.She had overheard the wise lizards in the garden say that beauty is of no importance and that it was the wit and wisdom that mattered.But considering she had none of those either,or so she thought,she was what you could call a complete failure.Her already curled-up petals drooped a little more and she hung her head.Heart heavy with bitter thoughts,the little Rose stood alone,a piteous and miserable image,with no one to comfort her,for who would befriend such a plain little thing.
The night waned and dawn came about,and still our heroine stood the same,wrapped up in her cocoon of sorrows.When the gentle rays of the morning sun touched her,she lifted her head a little.It was at that moment that she saw him for the very first time-a handsome butterfly,soaring towards her,with a dazzling smile that melt her heart.Something stirred in her heart as she watched him,an emotion which she couldn't distinguish.Her little heart fluttered and she felt shy and tongue-tied.To her astonishment,she found herself hoping,even praying for him to notice her.And surprisingly enough,that was just what happened.He landed right in front of her,gave a beaming smile and began to talk to her,nineteen to the dozen,chattering away all about his journey,as if they were the best of friends.She listened,enthralled and a bit frightened at the same time.Emotions she never even knew existed,tormented her and as she stood listening to his tilting voice,she was afraid he wouldn't ever,ever like her.
But miracles never did cease to happen.He came to see her every day,with his wonderful laugh and sparkling eyes.The little Rose had a friend at last.And oh,what a friend!He was everything anyone could hope for.He told her about the strange lands he visited,the strange sights he had seen.He made her bubble with laughter with his funny tales.He made her sit on the edge of her seat with suspense and thrill.He moved her to tears when he told her of the great sorrows of the world.Ideas,wonderful fascinating ideas filled her mind and she shivered with pleasure when she thought of all that he had said.He made her see everything in a whole new light and like a Cinderella transformed at the touch of the magic wand,her personality bloomed out of the cocoon that she herself had created for her.The other creatures in the garden were all astonished by this very unlikely pair,but the rose tree was happy.The tinkling laughter that could be heard from her child,when the Butterfly was nearby,filled her heart with joy and content.
The little Rose was also truly happy.For the first time in her life,she forgot about her sorrows,her complexes and He,He alone filled her heart.Little did she know that she had fallen desperately in love with him.She was living for those moments that she spent with him.She didn't know that her time with him was drawing close to an end.But the Butterfly knew this,and it troubled him.He was a wanderer and now,time has come for him to move on.Goodbyes had never troubled him before-they were a part of his life.But this time,it was different.He couldn't even think about parting with this shy,gentle friend of his,let alone actually do it.The soft tinkle of her laugh,her delicate scent,the worshiping glance she gave him,the mischievous twitch of a smile she wore when she was pulling his leg-all had begun to have an intoxicating effect on him.He wanted to enclose her within his wings and stay with her forever and ever,but he couldn't.He had to leave her real soon.And his heart felt like lead whenever he thought about it.
The fateful day arrived.He had told her about his journey the day before.She had paled a bit and that was the only outward sign of what went through her mind.But he,who knew her as well as he knew himself or more,was not to be fooled.He could feel the turmoil inside her as if reflecting his own state of mind,and as he flew down to her today,he realized that they could never be truly happy away from each other.It was then that the Butterfly made the boldest decision in his life.He decided to stay with his love-yes,by then he had realized what it was that he felt for her-it was Love,that wonderful thing which he had heard so much about but never truly understood,until today.
She lifted her dainty head and gazed at him.Tears glistened on her face like pretty dew drops.Her wide eyes roved about his face lovingly as if to remember every detail of her beloved,as if to engrave it in her heart..for she was to part with her soul mate this day.Finally,her gaze landed on his eyes..What she saw there,I cannot explain to you.It is something very much beyond words and expressions.It is something that I see every time I look into my lover's eyes.The warmth of it engulfed her and she let out a little sob of joy.He dipped down and kissed her..it was at that moment she had her very first blush.
And no one said ever again that the Rose was not beautiful...
