The Sunflower Story: The Sunflower and the Stone
The seeds ripened, fell into the soil, and eventually sprouted and grew. This process was natural and logical, but one particular seed unexpectedly offended a stone in the process.
This stone was ancient and, as it was said, it loved tranquility. It was extremely steadfast in its ways. For countless years, no matter how much the world changed, it maintained its composure, remaining completely still. Needless to say, it considered itself insightful and cultured. Thus, it planned to write a book. In its plans was a work of philosophy, which would include grand and profound topics such as: “On Immobility as a Universal Law,” “On the Eternity and Beauty of Darkness,” “On the Stone’s Determinative Role in Existence,” “On Quiet and Calm as the Essence of Happiness,” and so on. One day, as it was contemplating its philosophical plans, a seed, without its permission, boldly intruded into its world and settled there, refusing to leave. This greatly annoyed the stone. Not only was its peace disturbed, but, worst of all, its entire philosophical system was shattered.
The stone was determined to change the situation. However, this was not easy. It could neither completely deny the seed’s existence nor had the power to drive the seed away. After much thought, it finally came up with an idea. It decided to add a chapter to its philosophy, titled: “On the Ugliness of Seeds and Their Inevitable Self-Destruction Due to Disrupting Universal Tranquility,” and so on.
“Just wait and see!” the cultured stone muttered to itself. “Even if you exist, you’re small and weak; let’s see how long you can survive!”
The seed, of course, paid no attention to this. Not only did it remain, but it also became increasingly restless. It even began to breathe and sing. It enjoyed singing songs about growth and development, with lyrics full of optimism and confidence, often mentioning warmth, spring, and similar themes.
The cultured stone became very agitated:
“Just wait and see! The wind will start blowing soon.”
And so, the stone, which had always cherished quiet, suddenly found itself eagerly hoping for wind, believing that it would freeze the fragile seed, while it itself was impervious to cold or heat.
Sure enough, the wind started to blow, one gust after another. First came cold winds, then warm ones. Or rather, cold winds brought warm winds, cold brought warmth, and winter brought spring. Finally, spring arrived amidst the wind.
The restless seed not only didn’t freeze to death but sprouted and took root. Its roots grew beneath the stone, and its sprout pushed out beside the stone, emerging above the ground.
“Don’t be so smug just yet, wait and see!” The stone still refused to admit defeat.
So, the stone began hoping for rain, even though, strictly speaking, it didn’t really like such things. But it believed that the rain would drown the seed, while it seemed impervious to either moisture or dryness.
Before long, it really did start to rain. Lightning flashed, thunder roared, and the earth trembled. The sight even made the stone, which had hoped for rain, shudder. However, the tender sprout not only didn’t fear the rain but joyfully welcomed it, growing vigorously. After several heavy rains, the sprout grew into a perfect sunflower.
“Just wait and see!” The unyielding stone still uttered this same phrase.
It thought: Perhaps the little sunflower won’t be able to grow any further. Perhaps, if it grows taller, it won’t be able to support its own weight and will suddenly collapse.
But the little sunflower didn’t stop growing due to these curses. Its roots dug deeper every day, its stem grew thicker and stronger, and its leaves became more lush. Finally, one day, the little sunflower turned into a big sunflower, blooming a large, golden-yellow flower. The flower faced the sun, tirelessly following its path, and later produced many seeds. Then, the new seeds began to mature, ready to fall into new soil and grow into new sunflowers.
As for the disheartened stone, its philosophical work would never be completed, but its ending was not entirely tragic. After endless battles between cold and heat, continuous alternation between wet and dry, and constant penetration by plant roots, it eventually cracked and turned into nutrients for the plants.
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
