Ellie's Strawberries

Every morning, little Ellie would cross through the shadows of Lonely Mansion, grab her sun hat, and step outside into the land of strawberries. Her plump red friends would be waiting for her on the edges of their stems as the sun peaked over the rolling hills of the countryside and glistened off the dew drops clinging to the leaves. She would greet each one with a cheerful "Hello!" and cradle it in her hands. Closing her eyes, she wished for the strawberries to grow into the sweetest and most delicious strawberries in the world. Visions of strawberry shortcake and milkshakes danced in her head, and she smiled warmly.

One day, Ellie's caretaker and the owner of Lonely Mansion approached her with his hands behind his back and a grave look on his face. He wore a suit of shadows and Ellie cowered at the site of him.

"I'm afraid you're growing too old for strawberries, my dear," he said. "Isn't it time to take up chores such as knitting and cleaning?"

Ellie lowered her head and nervously stroked the brim of her sun hat. "But I like my strawberries," she said feebly. "I like spending time with them."

"Of course you do," he said and then turned away, leaving her be.

A large amount of time passed after that incident, large enough for Ellie to have grown in stature. Once again, the owner of Lonely Mansion approached her and posed the same question.

"Why should I do those things?" she said with more confidence. "These are my strawberries and I love them."

"Very well then," he said and stalked back into the shadows of Lonely Mansion.

Another large increment of time passed and a terrible storm unleashed itself upon the whole countryside. Ellie was forced to stay inside the vast mansion, which seemed darker and emptier than usual. The thunder made the windows shudder and wind was so strong that it made a terrible howling noise as it blew through the chimney. The storm lasted for days, and Ellie had nothing to do except knitting and cleaning.

When the sky finally cleared, Ellie rushed outside only to find her strawberries uprooted and destroyed. Not a single one was left intact. The sun shone brighter than usual, exposing every last detail of the damage. Ellie could only stand and stare at what had once been the only thing she ever cared for. She wanted to cry, but she was simply too shocked to muster up the emotion.

A tap on the shoulder startled her and she quickly turned to see her caretaker smiling at her.

"You're probably glad that this happened," she said with a scowl.

"There is more to the world than strawberries, my dear."

"There's more to the world than knitting and cleaning too."

He kept smiling at her and then stepped out into the sunlight. It was the first time Ellie had gotten a good look at him in a very long time, if ever. Away from the shadows of Lonely Mansion, he didn't seem so scary. He held his fist out to her and opened his hand, revealing a small pile of seeds.

"They cannot last forever, but you can clean up and replant and they will come back to you."

Ellie stared at his hand for a long time and then took the seeds with a smile. "And maybe while I wait for them to grow back, I can knit a strawberry hat and a strawberry scarf."