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An allegory

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An old woman stood next to her garden with a sun hat covering her grey hair and a hose

in her bony hand. The sun beat down heavily onto the garden and the water that sprinkled out from the hose nozzle made a rainbow appear. The old woman's wrinkled face broke into a proud smile, she valued her garden above all and was pleased to see it growing so well. The green leaves of her vegetables shined in the sun and sparkled were the water had touched them,. “You are all part of my beautiful garden,” the old woman whispered to her plants, “ I will care for you and protect you till the day I die.” As the woman finished watering her plants she wound up her hose and laid it bundled at the corner of the garden. “Good bye,” the old women softly told her plants and each of the plants answered back.

“Bye,” the four rows of pea plants and three rows green bean plants responded softly to the old women.

“Good bye,” said the row of corn stalks in a choir of husky voices. “Have a nice day,” the five rows of tomato plants sang in a sweet voice. Even the bees,

butterflies, and worms gave a small farwell. The last goodbye to be given was from the wise oak tree next to the garden. He looked onto the scene with a sad and tired atmosphere for he knew the world far too well. He knew of its beauty and sadness, its life and death, he knew this because he had lived what seemed like three life times. He saw the house at the top of the hill first being built by a lovely couple, he saw their children grow up, and the children of their children become adults. As The Oak looked at the woman as she climbed the hill to her house it saw her as a small child again, playing under its leaves with her friends. The scene the old Oak saw then changed to her as a young women holding hands with her lover and kissing his cheek softly. As the old women made her way farther up the hill The Oaks images changed to a family of five sitting at the base of it, having a picnic. A small child sat in the lap of the women and a man sat next to her, two other children sat next to her too. A beat later and it saw the women, now middle aged, posing with her husband and three young men, she smiled brightly at the camera. As this image faded out The Oak now saw the old women sitting up against its bark, a tear rolling down her face and a far off look in her eye as she kissed her best friends ring. As the images washed away The Oak looked at the old women once again just as she reached the top of the hill. “Goodbye,” The Oak whispered.

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….Days passed and the old women was not seen again. The plants started to worry about

their care taker. They asked each other what had happened and each made their own theory to where the nice old women went. “She probably got up and moved away,” the peas announced after a week of not being watered.

“Why would she do that,” The Tomato plants asked,“she said she loved us.”“She must have lied.” whispered The Corn stalks and because that sounded plausible and

appeased all the plants, they believed it. Soon the plants lived in poverty. The only water they got was from the rain and their only

nourishment was from the sun. The bees were the only ones left to help the plants. Every day four bees would fly around the garden each day and collect the pollen from the plants. William was the only bee who would talk to the plants although each bee would give thanks to the plants as they took pollen from them and the plants would give a thanks back for the bees could not live without the plants and the plants could not live without the bees. One day William asked the pea plants a small question, “Why do you just stand there all day long, do you not have any dreams?”

“How do you have dreams when you live in poverty,” The pea plants responded angrily. “I agree with the peas,” the green bean plants shouted as they overheard the conversation,

“We only have water the rain gives us and the only nourishment we get is the sun. How are we supposed to live life to it’s fullest when we have so little of the things we need?”

“It would be nice if we had fertilizer again,” the tomato plants added in, “ then maybe we could grow more pretty red tomatoes and make ourselves beautiful.” The tomato plants seemed to take on a wistful air as they dreamed of their own lost beauty.

“But didn't the old women take all your tomatoes from you?,” William questioned the tomato plants.

“She would only take a few,” they respond, “and then she would leave a few for us to trade with the squirrels and other bugs for help with pulling weeds and such. After all that we would still have some left to make ourselves look pretty.” The tomato plants sounded happy and pleased with this statement as they thought back to their glory days. The pea plants and the green bean plants agreed with the tomato plants, bobbing their leaves up and down to make their opinion noted by William.

The corn stalks then said sadly, “That was true until she lied to us.” At this all the plants went quiet and even the tomato plants looked put out. A sudden aura of bitterness seemed to cover the garden.

“Now we barely have enough produce to trade the squirrels and other animals to pick our weeds.” the pea plants added somberly. William didn't know what to say so he took his leave and sped out of the garden. As the bee started to return to his hive he was caught off guard by the heavy sigh of the old Oak Tree that nearly knocked him out of the air. Landing on a nearby flower to regain his balance, The Oak took this chance to ask william a question.

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“Do you envy them?” the tree asked in a tired voice as his leaves still shook from his heavy sigh.

“What would make you ask that?”countered William. “They have something you want, that is a reason for envy, is it not?” The Oak said softly.

To this William smiled a smile made of sadness and anguish and as he turned to leave answered the question.

“ I may envy them, but I also pity them. The plants only see what they don’t have. They don’t see that they have something I would trade my wings for, that I would trade my soul for.” With that he left the old oak tree and headed towards his hive, his home, and his prison. The Oak was left alone to his own thoughts once again. The sun was just setting and it was the end to a warm summer day. Out of nowhere a strong breeze blasted through the trees leaves and as the wind passed the oak couldn't help but ask himself what was coming next. As he gazed towards the vacant house he whispered a question that was taken away by the wind.

“Are you lonely too?” The old Oak Tree was not answered as he asked the question for he already knew the answer.

….As time passed nothing changed in the garden, then in the still of the summer warmth

something came and everything was changed. A loud uproar had just occurred when the pea plants started yelling at the tomato plants.

“stop drinking all the water.” the pea plants shrieked at the tomato plants, “you all drink so much none of us can have any, if you keep it up we’ll all go dry and shrivel up.”

“We don’t mean to,” whined the tomato plants, “We drink as much as we need. We can’t help it that were in the middle of a drought.”

“Well you all drink too much then!” “You guys drink the same amount as the tomato plants do!” the green bean plants

shouted at the pea plants. As the fight continued both sides seeming to get angrier and angrier. Every plant was now screaming at another plant, all their voice swirled together to form a load mass of unintelligible sound that not even themselves could make out. Then seemingly out of nowhere a small animal appeared. It had a bushy grey tail and small intelligent black eyes.

“What are you all fighting about?,” the squirrel yelled at the plants over their own talking. At the sudden outside noise the plant got very quiet very quickly, as though a breeze had come and blown away the noise. As the sudden silence hung over the garden, the pea plants were the first to speak up.

“We had just noted that the tomato plants are getting more water than we are,” they stated in an angry tone, “and anyways, who are you and why are you here?” As the tomato plants began to defend themselves they were interrupted by the furry little animal.

“I am Woodrow the squirrel and I am here because you have a problem,” stated the squirrel in a confident manner. He knew all about the problem the plants were having. He knew about the water shortage and the need for fertilizer. He also knew how all these problems had

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started. He had been watching the plants for sometime now.“We know we have problems,” all the plant snapped back, all but the corn stalks at least,

for it was content to stand still in the light breeze.“Why do our problems have anything to do with you?” the green bean plants asked

angrily.“Because I can help,” replied the squirrel in a calm voice. At his words the corn stalks

seemed to come to life.“What do you mean you can help us?,” “For starters, I can get you more water.” Woodrow responded in a cool voice. This

sentence astonished the plants. The tomato plants had started talking excitedly with each other and the corn looked almost dazed, it was only the pea plants and green bean plants who kept calm.

“What would we have to give you in return for the water,” The pea plants and green beans said in unison. Both parties were skeptical of the furry little animal and Woodrow knew this, he also knew he had to earn each of the plants trust.

“All I want is a few tomatoes and other vegetables you produce, nothing much really, all I really want to do is help you kind plants.” he said in his most innocent voice. His word were persuasive, and the plants want for more water was great, soon they were all agreeing with the sweet furry little friend.

“We are fine with that,” The corn stalks said in an excited voice.“So are we!,” The tomato plants exclaimed.“ I guess, we will agree then.” said the green bean plants, “thank you for offering to do

this.” While listening to the discussion the pea plants seemed to come to a realization.“But how will you water us?” They questioned, “you are such a tiny little squirrel and the

hose is very big.” The other plants started to agree with the green bean plants, how was this little animal supposed to handle the big hose? The confusion in the garden was raised as the plants started to talk among themselves. Each had there own thing to say about how Woodrow would accomplish this task and if he could. As Woodrow heard this confusion his face became smug and knowing.

“Do not worry about that my friends,” Woodrow yelled over the plants, his voice seemed to command every ear in the world, because as he said this all went silent. “I have my ways, and I will get you your water by the weeks end.” With these simple words the little squirrel was gone, bounding down the hill behind the garden, until he was not scene. He was gone so fast the plants could ask no more questions and soon they erupted into talking again.

While this event had taken place the old oak had listened in on the whole thing. He had seen the little squirrel run off and now was witnessing the plants joyful laughter. The garden seemed brighter than before. The leaves looked greener and the soil was browner.

“What a thing hope can do,” the oak whispered as a breeze went through its leaves. The rustling they made reminded the oak of of a child climbing through it’s branches, he even thought for a second he heard the soft giggles of a child.

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….Five days had passed and there was still no sign of Woodrow. The plants had become sad

again, and only the corn stalks still had hope that the little squirrel would come and deliver them water. The bees had just finished pollinating the flowers for the day and William stopped to talk with the pea plants.

“Why have you all been so sad?” the bean asked, he had noticed the dreary aura around the garden for a few days now, but was reluctant to ask the plants what was bothering them. He didn't want to dig too far into the affairs of the plants, but the question had been burning in his mind.

“we guess the garden have been a little sad lately,” admitted the pea plants, “but we knew this would happen anyways so it is no surprise to us.”

“But what did happen?” William raised his voice as he asked again. To this the whole garden started to reply. The green bean plants started telling their take on the little squirrel while the tomato plants told about the lie he spread to them. The corn stalks even muttered about lost hope for a few seconds before dropping back into silence.

“I don’t understand,” William yelled over the noise, “Who is this squirrel and what was the promise he made?” Every plant then stopped talking as the pea plants finally spoke up to tell the story. They explained to the bee that a squirrel named Woodrow had come to them five days ago to make a deal. The deal was that if Woodrow got water for them, then they would give him some of their produce. After the encounter Woodrow had run off and nobody had seen him since. They all thought him to be a liar, just as the old woman was.

William didn’t know what to make of the plants and this little squirrel’s deal. It was normal for the plants to make deals with the squirrels, but this seemed different somehow. Just as the pea plants had finished telling their story and William had gotten lost deep in thought a figure came out of the bushes. All the plants turned towards the commanding presence and as it got nearer to the plant they saw that it was their little squirrel friend, Woodrow.

“Hello, my friends,” Woodrow said to the plants calmly, then turning to William asked in a much more serious tone, “And might I ask who this is?” The peas were the first to respond.

“This is William, but besides that, were have you been and what happened to the water you promised?” The peas angry tone seemed to infect the other plants and they all started to shout at the little squirrel in front of them.

“Calm down,” Woodrow commanded, “I have come to tell you your water will be delivered tonight, when you wake tomorrow morning your soil will be filled with water.” The garden had gone silent at his words and they all looked at Woodrow in a dumbfounded state.

“Do you really mean that,” The tomato plants quietly asked, it was almost as if they had not talked at all, the silence still felt thick in the air.

“Of Course,” Woodrow whispered back, and then off he was again, back into the bushes he had just come from. William was the first to crack the spell that Woodrow had left on the plants.

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“I guess I’ll be off then too,” he said as he flew off to think about what he had just witnessed. All the plants said their delayed farewells to William as if programmed to, all were lost deep in thought of the squirrels words. As the day flowed on the plants focused on growing produce, and on the excitement of the water they would soon receive. The tomato plants would release squeals sometimes at their excitement, and the corn stalks would sway back and forth to release pent up energy. Only the green beans plants and pea plants remained calm so as not to let themselves feel hope or disappointment. As the night grew nearer the plants became determined to stay up and watch Woodrow water them. This seemed impossible to the plants as the excitement of the day had worn them all down, even the pea plants and green beans were tired . They all soon drifted to sleep as the sun set and the sky became a black mass filled with twinkling stars.

In the dead of the night small creatures marched down from the hill that held the house of the old women. All of them carrying a section of a very long tub and with all of their might they dragged it to the edge of the garden were the plants slept deeply. A figure stood at the front of the hose and though he was small, a aura surrounded him filled with confidence and importance. Maybe it was the way the small figure held himself, or maybe the way he controlled the army of furry mammals. It might have been just who he was that made him carry this demanding atmosphere. So as he stood at the front of the hose he took out a small piece of white string. Two other squirrels came to his side and each took one end of the string. They stretched it over the handle and each walked backwards. The string put pressure on the handle until it slowly started to be pushed in, and soon a steady stream of water was coming from the nozzle. It sprinkled over the plants gently and moisturized the soil. As this happened Woodrow looked confidently at the garden and from it heard a small content sigh from a tomato plant. His featured seemed to turn soft for a second and as him and his troops brought the hose back up the hill he whispered a good night to the plants.

The oak stood watching the squirrels retreat back into the bushes as the cold air chilled his bark. Something was starting, the oak knew this, but what it was, he wasn’t quite sure. Only time could tell the future and the oak had plenty of it. So the oak did what he always had, he waited and drank in the calm atmosphere. What he waited for was a mystery to him, but nonetheless he waited.

….As the sun rised the next morning the plants awoke to their promised water. The tomato

plants were the first to wake and yelled at everyone joyously as they found their roots filled with water and the soil still moist.

“It’s amazing,” they sung, “I can’t remember ever having this much water.”“It does feel nice,” the pea plants sighed contently, “We do wonder though how

Woodrow got the water to us and where he is.”“ Us too,” said the green bean plants, “he also hasn't collected the produce for the water

yet,”

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“I’m sure he’ll come to get it,” the tomato plants responded half heartedly to the green bean plants. All that they could think about was the happiness they felt and the excitement of the new found possibilities that they could use the water for. The tomato plants thought about the beautiful tomatoes they could grow on their green arms, while the pea plants and green bean plants thought about the produce they could trade squirrels to pick the weeds around them. Even the corn stalks’ heads were filled with thoughts of large pieces of corn growing on their stalks, a more appealing look than being bare of corn, like they were now. Lost in thoughts as the plants were they didn't notice when Woodrow came to the border of the garden.

“How do you like the water,” He questioned smugly, “I hope its to your satisfaction.” As he spoke all the plants turned too woodrow, snapping them out of their day dreams. The peas were the first to recover and offer a thanks to the little squirrel.

“Thank you for the water,” the pea plants said in a pleasant tone. They then asked what was on everyone's minds at the moment, “But how did you get the water to us?” at this question a small smile crept over Woodrows face and in a very low voice answered.

“It was the work of my magic.” At these words all the plants were dumbfounded. They couldn't believe what they were hearing, at least the pea plants and green bean plants couldn’t. The corn stalks on the other hand, although surprised, seemed satisfied with this answer and went back to daydreaming. The tomato plants seemed to accept this answer too, but were interested in the mechanics of this magic Woodrow spoke of.

“What do you mean by magic?” the pea plants asked, being the most skeptical the squirrel’s claim.

“Its just as I said,” he responded coolly, “I used the magic of mother nature to give you all water last night.” As Woodrow said these words he walked around the garden, as though inspecting everything in it.

“So you mean to say you have been granted special powers by mother nature to bring water from the clouds whenever you want ,” the green bean plants asked. The smug looked still remained on Woodrow’s face as he answered.

“Yes, I have been granted special powers from mother nature, but I cannot use them anytime I would like,” At this point his face twisted into a portrait of fatigue, “It takes a lot of energy to use my powers and sadly I can only do it once a week, and even thats only if I get the right nourishment.”

“How much food do you need to work you powers?” the tomato plants asked, genuinely interested in the squirrel’s powers. At this question Woodrow smiled sweetly.

“ Not that much, just a few tomatoes and peas. Corn and green beans are also very nutritious.” At this point all the plants were very convinced of Woodrows magic and were very willing to give up their produce in order to keep him healthy so he could supply them with water. Just as The plants were about to tell him this a voice spoke up from the side of the garden.

“I don’t believe you,” yelled William as he flew towards Woodrow, “you are a liar and a manipulator.” at these words Woodrow looked over to William and gave him a small scowl as the plants gasped at the accusation the little bee had just made . William had wanted to see this

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morning if the plants had truly been given water, so he woke up early and came to see what had happened. He ended up showing up just as Woodrow had claimed to have magic and of course, didn’t believe a word the sneaky little squirrel had said. William had seen these action before and would not be tricked by them again. He had to warn the plants about Woodrows true intentions, and he had to do it fast.

“Why would you say that.” Woodrow asked calmly although his voice was filled with ice. He new the bee was smarter than the plants so he had to think fast, he had to stay cool.

“I say this because mother nature does not give special powers to individuals, Everyone is created equally and...” Just a William was bout to finish his argument Woodrow hastily interrupted him.

“You are just jealous that I have been given these powers and you have not,” he said in a commanding voice, “and I bet you would like to take them away from me too!”

“That not...,” again before William could finish Woodrow interrupted him, and now he addressed the plants.

“This cruel bee is trying to steal my magic, the magic I just used to give you all water,” Woodrow announced loudly, “he wants this magic for himself.” At this the plants gasped in shock. They could barely believe their friend William would have such horrible intentions.

“Don’t you see what hes doing,” William pleaded with the plants, “ hes manipulating you!”

“This is a lie!,” Woodrow shouted to the plants, “Look at this bee and see his treachery, see how he is the one thats been manipulating you all along.” William looked to the plants, he saw the untrustworthy looks. The hurt the plants felt seemed tangible in the air and it was all directed towards william, like knifes were cutting into his stomach. William had nothing left to say.

“We could see his disloyalty all along,” the pea plants admitted, “ He has always been jealous and greedy.” At these words William sunk to the ground, landing on a small dandelion, he looked up at the plants sadly, he was not going to win this battle. All the plants now claimed to have seen william as disloyal, and that they never liked him. Even the corn stalks was calling him a liar. The disgust in the choir of voices was enough to make him sick, but before William could do anything Woodrow spoke up once again.

“You and all of your kind, are banned from this garden!” He seemed to spit out these words, and as though meaning to rip the wing off from William, the corn stalks yelled together in a choir of angry voices.

“Leave, leave, leave,” The corn stalks chanted this, over and over again.In a rush William picked himself up from the dandelion with his delicate wings and flew away from the noise and hate. The angry aura seemed to chase him all the way to the big oak tree as he hid in its leaves. He watched as the gardened calmed down as he left the sight of the angry plants. Woodrow then seemed to exchange a few more words with them, then scurried into the bushes where he had came from.

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A while passed before William crept from the safety of the oaks leaves, the sun was setting in a sky that looked like cotton candy and the cool air was soft against his wings. The atmosphere was almost opposite to what William felt like. The air should be tearing up his wings and rain should be pelting his back. William was the one who felt betrayed. The old oak felt the bee finally move in his leaves as he flew to the ground in front of him.

“Are you still jealous of them?” The oak whispered the question.“No, I’m not,” The bees said sadly, “I can’t believe that actually think he has magic.” he

whispered under his breath. To this the tree thought before responding.“He might not have the magic of rain,” the oak said slowly, “but he has other dark

powers.” With this the bee looked at the old oak for a few seconds, then slowly started to move his wings and slowly fly way.

“Good-Bye,” The oak said to the little bee as he flew away.

….The garden had many changes in the weeks to come. The bees no longer came and all the

pollination was done by butterflies. Woodrow also had hired other squirrels to pick the weeds from the plants and spread fertilizer in the soil. The squirrels would even use pesticides on the plants to keep the bugs away. With all of the help that plants were getting the garden looked more beautiful than it ever had. The plants were a brilliant green and the soil was a dark brown, but there was a price for all of this. The plants had to try their best to grow as many vegetables as they could, and then after they were ripe, they had to give away most of it to Woodrow. All the plants were content about this though, because they knew they had a better quality of life than before, and it was only natural they had to pay a price.

Weeks had passed since there was any mention of William the traitor, and most of the plants had forgotten about the incident that had made the bees leave, that was until Woodrow was seen talking to the worms that lived underneath the garden.

Woodrow was standing to the side of the garden where he was surrounded by a group of pink little worms. Later as all the worms burrowed back underground, the plants questioned Woodrow about the meeting.

“What were you talking to the worms about?” the pea plants questioned Woodrow as he did his daily walk around the garden.

“I have recruited them as guards.” he confidently told the plants. As Woodrow spoke all the plants went silent and listened in on the conversation.

“Why do we need a guard,” The tomato plants asked worriedly. The plants didn't think they had anything to fear.

“Because of the bees of course!” Woodrow said to the plants as though it was obvious, “They might come back and try to hurt you all.” At these words all of the plants gasped. They had never thought that the bees might try to harm them.

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“How will the worms guard us?,” the green bean plants asked, “They are smaller and weaker than us, after all.” Woodrow had expected questions from the plants so he was ready to answer them quickly and confidently.

“Its because they are so small that they make good guards. If the bees try to invade us they won’t even notice the worms watching them.”

“Thats exactly what we were thinking,” The pea plants commented to Woodrow, “its a wonderful plan.” all the plants now nodded their leaves in agreement as though they were all thinking the same thing, every plant accepted the plan. As Woodrow had gained the plants trust back he now told the plants that everyday worms would be found on the top of the garden soil to keep guard, but for them to keep guard they needed food, so they would have to give up some of their produce to the worms. The plants quickly agreed to these terms, most of them frightened by the thought of the bees hurting them. And so from then on little worms scurried about the garden, listening into conversations pea plants had with each other, and counting the vegetables on each plant. After a hard day at work they would report everything back to Woodrow and he would give them the food they earned.

As a month passed and the worms could not report much in the garden. The plants all seemed happy and content, they loved their leader and for all they knew he loved them back. That was until the worms started over hearing small comments from some of the tomato plants. They would complain about the lack of vegetables on their pretty green arms or that maybe Woodrow was getting greedy. They never acted upon these thoughts though, so Woodrow allowed them to carry on as they would, thinking they complained for something to do, not for any real reason, and they would stop eventually. The complaining carried on for many weeks though, and from it seemed to bubble up anger and resentment for Woodrow and the tomato plants that thought him good. As the anger bubbled their resentment grew and one day it was too much for them to hold back.

As the Squirrels came around to pick the tomatoes from the tomato plants for the day they did something they thought was truly sneaky. As the squirrels went by, the tomato plants carefully hid a few of their tomatoes so when the furry little creatures did pick their produce, instead of grabbing all but one, which was the usual price for the day, they missed a few more, leaving the tomato plants with plenty of tomatoes for themselves. As the little animals picked the vegetables from their vines they stayed quiet and breathed slowly, trying to give nothing away. When the squirrels finally did leave the garden after getting their food the tomato plants rejoiced about their plans great success, they had gotten away with it. As they rejoiced little eyes watched them. They listened in on everything the Tomato plants were saying, and memorized each of their words. After the rejoicing was finished and the tomato plants had fallen to sleep, the worms slowly locked their small eyes on the bushes, and started to make their way towards Woodrow.

The next morning as the sun slowly rose over the garden and all the plants woke, Woodrow emerged from the bushes. He slowly walked towards the edge of the garden and with each step that brought him closer also brought a dark aura that he seemed to be carrying. When he finally reached the border he looked out over the plants, his eyes piercing into each one of

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them. Anger rolled off from him and slowly spread into the garden, as it touched each plant, it quickly turned into fear that infected every plant. The gardens attention was on Woodrow now as he began to talk.

“We have a traitor among us,” Woodrow said in a deep commanding voice, “Some of you have been hoarding your produce.” The plants were still silent as Woodrow talked, even the peas did not utter a sound, so Woodrow went on. “ You have been keeping your vegetables to yourself, even though I have promised to give you water every week and keep you healthy, for the small price off food. And what do you think I do with the energy I get from the food you give me? I will tell you how I use it, I use it too make rain fall from the heavens and water all of you!” as Woodrow talked his voice got louder and louder, until he was yelling at the plants. “By keeping the produce to yourself you are hurting the whole garden, and when you hurt the garden, that makes you a traitor!” As Woodrow yelled the plants became more scared than they ever had, for one of them was a traitor, a traitor was could be one of them. Woodrow stopped talking for a few seconds now, as he let his words sink into the plants. All the plants looked a Woodrow, all of them asking him the silent question. All of them wanting to know who the traitors were. Woodrow broke the silence as he commanded the plants, “Show yourself traitors”. At his words the tomato plants that had hoarded their tomatoes seemed to crumble under guilt and started to shake.

“We’re sorry,” they cried in unison, “We are the traitors.” As they said this all of the plants gasped in shock. They would never had suspected the tomatoes to do such a thing.

“You all must be punished for your crimes,” Woodrow said in a calm voice. Then he clapped his paws together, on this action twenty squirrels jumped from the bushed and scurried into the rows of tomatoes. Screams started to come from different sections of the plants as the squirrels bit into the stems of the tomato plants who had admitted to being traitors. They chewed through their bodies and soon they came toppling down, their stems no longer strong enough to support them. When they fell the squirrels picked up the dead plants and dragged them into the bushes where they were never seen again. The screams were now gone and the garden was left in an eerie quiet. Only two rows of tomato plants remained and no plant knew what to say, so they didn’t say anything. Woodrow now spoke in a quiet, almost soft tone.

“This had to happen. Traitors must be punished,” He looked at them all softly now, “I hope you all learn from the traitors mistakes, do not make their deaths in vain.” Woodrow now turned around and headed for the bushes once again. From behind him he heard the soft mumbling of the corn stalks.

“Traitors must be punished,” they said in unison. A second later Woodrow had disappeared into the bushes and the plants were left to themselves.

The oak tree watched the plants go about their daily lives after the incident. It had seen everything that had happened. It watched as the squirrels dragged the plants into the bushes, leaving nothing but a stump of the tomato plants left in the garden. It almost made the oak feel sick. The sun was high in the sky now and its warmth spread out over the oak’s bark. It was only a external warmth it felt because on the inside he felt numb and cold.

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“I’m sorry,” the oak whispered into the warm air as he hoped the words might reach its destination.

….Many weeks had passed since the traitors had been discovered and the garden had mostly

returned to normal beside the always looming fear the plants felt. They were always scared now. They were scared of the bees that might attack any second, and of the traitor that could be found among themselves. They was even an amount of fear they held for Woodrow and his power. All of them were scared. Another change in the garden was the price they had to pay Woodrow. Instead of letting them keep some of their produce they were no longer allowed to have any. Woodrow had told them more worms and squirrels needed to be hired. Out of fear the plants didn’t argue or object, they let Woodrow have their produce. Woodrow also came out less to see the garden, and when he did, his little legs seemed to have a hard time holding his chubby body up.

As the weeks strung together with the same monotone atmosphere, the plants had a lot of time to think as they grew their produce.

“There used to be more than this,” the pea plants whispered one day, “or maybe we used to have something we don’t have anymore.”

“How could that be?” the tomato plants asked, “ We didn’t have water before, but now we have it, we didn’t have fertilizer before, but now we have it. Everything is provided for us now.” All the plants now thought about this. What did they have before that they didn’t have now, what was missing.

“It must not have been anything tangible,” the green bean plants said thoughtfully, or else we would have noticed by now. The garden fell into silence again as they all were lost in thought. Even the corn stalkers were trying to think deeply about the matter. They all looked around them and thought of things they had, and then thought of the things they didn’t. Only one word came to mind as the corn stalks thought and slowly they said it out loud. At hearing the word all the plants nodded their leaves, that was the thing they didn’t have.

“How did we ever miss that.” the pea plants whispered as all the plants went back to work and the melancholy day continued.

The oak watched as the plants worked and grew their produce. He had overheard what they were saying and gave a sad sigh.

“They finally found what was missing, but its already too late.” As it whispered this a breeze came along and grabbed ahold of one of the oaks leaves. It came free and twirled in the wind, it danced in the air, then found a resting spot on the ground near the oak. The softly spoken word from the corn stalks must have road on that wind the old oak thought. As it looked at the leaf on the ground the old oak spoke words only meant for himself.

“We all remember a time when we were free or we thought we were, a time of decisions and choices, a time of individuality and growth, But being free is also a time of insecurity and change, everything is different from day to day. It is something that is fought for but also given

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up easily.” As the oak told itself this it couldn't help but ask the big question. “Is freedom good, or bad, or neither.” As the oak asked this he did not get a response back, not because no one was listening, but because no one knew the answer.