I’ve heard this story told by a few people, and I don’t know for sure where credit should go, but I want to tell it anyway. There is an important and beautiful message in it, and I’ve got a feeling that I’m not the only one here who needs to hear it from time to time.
A Gift from the King
Many years ago, not far away, a kind and gentle king ruled over a small village. The king loved his people and welcomed them to his castle. The townspeople visited him often to tell him exciting news or ask him for help. Fairies and castle guards helped the king care for the people and carry out his instructions.
One day a beautiful child was born in the village. At the celebration of her birth, fairies from the woodlands came to give the baby a gift from the king—magical seeds harvested from the king’s magnificent gardens. Properly cared for, the seeds would produce a garden of beautiful flowers.
The fairies said that every little girl should have a place of loveliness—a place that would reflect her own beauty and remind her of her preciousness to the king. They told the child’s parents to guard the garden diligently because the terrible dragon would certainly try to ruin it. Only carefully protected gardens would escape the dragon’s destruction.
The dragon hated the fairies and their magical seeds. He despised music and laughter and the king’s flowers inspired them both. He was determined to destroy as many gardens as possible so he could rid the town of its loyalty to the king. Occasionally the dragon would even attack the king’s own gardens in an effort to destroy the source of the seeds, but the castle guards never rested and were much stronger. These failures enraged the dragon, increasing his resolve to destroy what he could and avenge his humiliation.
In the beginning, the child’s parents were careful, but as time passed without any sign of the dragon, they assumed themselves that he must have been defeated by the king’s guards.
But the dragon had not been defeated; he knew that people were easily fooled and, given enough time, would become careless.
The little girl’s flower garden fell prey to the dragon one night just after she had fallen asleep. She was startled by a loud rushing sound. Then a low growl frightened her so much that she shook from head to toe.
From her bed near the window she saw him coming. He flew directly to her garden and began circling, as if savoring the anticipation of destroying it.
She jumped from her bed and raced through the village calling for help, but she could not awaken anyone. She ran back to her window in time to see the dragon send his first blast of fire over her precious flowers. She watched in terror, paralyzed, helpless to protect her garden.
Breathing deeply, the dragon watched the garden burn. Then he noticed her at the window. He laughed when he saw her there silently weeping.
"Ah, little one, I have destroyed your flowers!" he proclaimed triumphantly. "Where are those who say they love you? Could none of them be roused to come to your defense? What a pity!" He laughed again, turned as if to go, but decided he wasn’t done with her. He was pleased that the garden was destroyed, but he knew that the fairies would return with their unlimited supply of seeds. His goal was not only to destroy the flowers but also to extinguish the child’s longing for beauty. "There’s not point in planting again" he sneered. "I will returned ruin whatever I find growing. Your caretakers cannot be trusted to protect you. You will always have to face me alone, and I will always be more powerful than you. Remember, little one, I will come again." Finally, he left.
When he was out of sight, the little girl hurried down to her garden to save what was left of her precious flowers. She ran to the well in the courtyard and began filling water buckets to put out the flames. She spent the remainder of the night carrying bucket after bucket until the smoke cleared. At dawn, the morning sun revealed that not a single flower had survived. Her beautiful garden had become a field of charred flowers and thick mud.
The fairies heard the terrible news and went immediately to the little girl’s home to give her more seeds. Reluctantly she took them. She wanted desperately to be surrounded by beautiful, fragrant flowers, but she was terrified of the dragon’s return. She determined that she would care for the garden herself because she dared not trust anyone else. She would keep her flowers so wet that they could never again catch fire. But the tiny new seeds were unable to withstand the constant watering and soon died. The fairies continued to bring her new seeds and tried to advice her, but her fear of the dragon compelled her to water incessantly.
Years passed, and the child, now a young woman, despaired of ever being able to grow flowers. She had grown accustomed to living in the mud.
"There is no use hoping for flowers anymore," she convinced herself. "It is best to accept that there will never be a garden. After all, without flowers to anger the dragon, I will not have to worry about his return."
From then on she accepted no new seeds from the fairies. They pleaded with her, but she refused. She had learned to trust no one, not even the king’s fairies.
"The mud is not beautiful" she said, "but it is soft and comfortable and requires little tending. Living in the mud is much simpler than continuing to plant and constantly fearing the next attack from the dragon."
The fairies were greatly saddened and told the king. He too was deeply distressed. Immediately he sent a messenger to the young woman with an invitation to visit him at his castle. He wanted to comfort her and tell her that he was going to battle against the dragon on her behalf.
But the young woman turned away the messenger. "I have no need of comfort from the king", she told him.
Each day following, the king sent an attendant to her home with a fresh flower, hoping to awaken her love of beauty and inspire her to plant again. The young woman rejected each of the king’s gifts. "Please tell the king to send no more flowers, " she finally instructed the messenger. "I no longer yearn for beauty."
One day the young woman was surprised by a visit from the king himself.
"Child", he said, "I have come to take you from the mud. You were never intended to live like this. I have beautiful gardens I want you to see. Take my hand and we will fly to lush places. Will you come with me?"
Suddenly angry, the young woman began to cry. "Why have you come now?" she sobbed. "Where were you when the dragon came? I called for help and no one came. If you are so concerned about me, why did you not come then and save my precious flowers? You cannot be trusted." Then she turned away and asked him to leave.
"Child" he said softly, "you have confused my nature with your experience in the garden. I wept for you when the dragon came. I urged people to help you but no one heeded me. I have always been with you, watching over you. I have wanted so much more for you than this. It is time to leave this place behind. You will never be fully satisfied here. Your soul longs for beauty. Will you hold my hand? Will you let me take you some place higher? I promise I will not drop you. I will not let you fall. It is not my nature to hurt you."
The young woman turned slowly and looked directly into his face. As she studied his eyes she could see that what he said was true. She reached up and placed her hand in his.
The king smiled and wrapped his hand tightly around hers.
"He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me…. He rescued me because he delighted in me." 2 Samuel 22:17-18, 20
"I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze." Isaiah 43:1-2
