The Little Boy and the Warm Snow
By: Jocelyn Soriano
Tags: Short Story, Fiction, Life Lessons, Children, Short Fiction

“It’s good we were able to get this pink cloud that flies, don’t you think?” the boy asked his friend.

“Yes, yes, of course. I just wish this cloud could be thick enough so I could hide from this cold!” the firefly replied shivering.

“Well, let’s just think we’re out here to make a snowman,” the boy tried to cheer up the firefly.

“I don’t know. I’m just afraid I’d turn into a snowball soon! Look, snow is starting to fall.”

Instead of freezing them, however, the snowflakes provided a most welcome warmth for the two. For here, snow is warm like sunshine, and it shelters everything it touches from the cold.

“We’ve really flown into a strange land,” the boy wondered. For a moment, he remembered the warm embrace of his mother. He also recalled how she would make him a cup of hot chocolate before they sit by the fireplace on cold winter nights. Even winter was summer when they were together, but now, now only the warm snowflakes could comfort him from the biting winds.

The boy was in the middle of these thoughts when someone suddenly spoke, “What are you doing in this kind of weather?”

As the boy and the firefly turned to see who just spoke, they saw an elephant giving them what seemed to be a blanket.

“Thank you…we’re a little lost,” said the boy.

“Well, I can see that. But where are you going?” asked the elephant.

“We’re on a journey to discover something important,” said the firefly.

“I see,” the elephant replied. “I don’t want to be too inquisitive, but I want to be of help. What about this important quest?”

“Hmmm…” the firefly wondered whether he should reveal what the boy was searching for.

“It’s okay, Ben. Let’s tell him,” the boy reassured his friend.

“Ahem, Mr. Elephant, if you would really like to know, my friend here was trying to look for his name.”

“His name?” the elephant said.

“Yes, his name,” confirmed the firefly.

“I just wanted to know I’m good at something, sir. But I think I need to know my name first,” explained the boy.

“Oh, I see,” the elephant replied. “I may have something for you. Being the chief and eldest elephant, I have a lot to do around here. You see, it almost always snows. Even if the snow that falls here is warm, it still affects the trees. There is no food when it snows. Once in a while, the sun would shine a little and the plants would bear fruit. I want you to help me pick them and store them as fast as we could.”

“I guess that won’t be so hard,” the boy said as he considered the elephant’s offer.

True enough, the sun shone a little after days of snow. To the boy’s amazement, the plants grew so quickly and fruits were suddenly ripe and ready to gather. Being able to do something like this for the first time, the boy felt excited and glad. Together with his firefly friend, he had a really nice time picking the fruits from the trees.

One day, as they were strolling after a good day’s work, they came upon a river that seemed to be unaffected by the cold weather. Touching it, one could even think it’s a hot spring!

“Tell me, Mr. Elephant, has it always been this cold here?” asked the little boy.

“No, dear boy. A long time ago, this place was the warmest you could ever find. It has such a pleasant climate that life thrives almost everywhere.”

“What happened then?” the firefly asked.

When the elephant hesitated to reply, the boy asked, “Is there anything wrong? I hope we didn’t say anything bad.”

“No, you didn’t,” assured the elephant. “It’s me, I guess. It’s my fault that this place has become like this!”

“How could it be your fault? Could anyone control the wind or the snow?” asked the boy.

“It’s different here, my boy. Here, the weather is controlled by the heart of its inhabitants, particularly its leader. If we are happy, the day is sunny and bright. If we are sad or angry, it rains or it becomes unbearably cold. In this case, I have caused this terrible weather. I was supposed to lead others, to protect others. But I did this.”

“But…but what was it that made you so sad for so long? You said it’s been a long time since the sun fully shone.”

“A long time ago, I had a friend. We were like brothers; we go about doing work together and having fun together. We were able to make this place a better one. We were good leaders. One day, however, he left. He left without saying a word to me or to anyone. He just…left! Later on, we heard that he joined another tribe and he went farther away. At first, I thought he would come back, but…but I guess I have waited in vain. Now I hate him and I just can’t forget what he did!”

“I had a feeling it wouldn’t end well,” the firefly whispered to the boy.

“Shhh…” the boy warned the firefly.

Meanwhile, as the elephant felt more depressed, the weather became colder. The firefly felt so cold that he hid beneath the boy’s jacket to keep himself from shivering.

“Mr. Elephant, how I wish you could just forget whatever hurt you in the past. Many times, I feel sad myself. But as you said, maybe you should move on. You should do what’s best for your tribe.”

“I would surely like to. But it’s really hard to forget, little boy. It’s hard to forgive someone who isn’t even asking for forgiveness.”

“I can understand you, Mr. Elephant. But think about yourself, too. You’ve been sad for so long now. And think about your tribe. Think about how hard they need to search for food because of the weather. I know we can’t do anything about those who couldn’t even say they’re sorry…but maybe…maybe we can do something about how we feel inside.”

“I wish I could do it now but it’s really not that simple for me. You say those things because you haven’t felt what I felt. Don’t you know how painful it is to be abandoned by your dearest friend? “

“I’m truly sorry about your pain, Mr. Elephant. It’s true; I have never been abandoned by my best friend. Even so, I think no one is really exempt from being hurt. I was hurt, too…and you may not know how I felt like…how it felt like…to be abandoned by your own mother.”

The elephant dared not ask any more. He dared not look at the boy for the following days. He had always held on to his pain as though it were the biggest pain in all that world, but now, now he felt he could no longer hold on to it. His awareness of the boy’s pain somehow made him forget about his own. Because of his change of heart, the weather became a bit better as the days went on: the sun shone a bit longer, and snow rarely fell at all. One morning, the sun shone so brightly that everyone soon forgot all about the darkness, the hunger and the cold.

With that, the boy knew that it was time for them to go. He was merely beginning his own journey and he hoped that one day, the sun will shine for him as well.

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