Author : Vivek Chakravarty

Tiny, the seed hung from the branches of the Cotton tree. He was waiting for his pod to break and release him into the world outside.

“How long do I have to stay here?” he asked the tree one day.

“You’ll have to be a little patient Tiny, it’s almost time and when your pod bursts, you’ll be going on the most important journey of your life.”

“I’ll travel far and wide and grow up to become a big tree just like you with seeds like me,” said Tiny.

“Patience Tiny, have patience,” said the Cotton tree. “You’re still hanging from my branch and you’re already dreaming about becoming a tree.”

“You know, a lot of seeds don’t make it to fertile ground?” asked a nearby seed. “Many of us land on rocks, in water and even get eaten up.”

This scared Tiny and he became silent.

Tiny hung from the branches of the tree for three more days. Many other pods burst and released the seeds, but Tiny was still stuck to the tree.

He waited and waited until finally, his pod burst too and he was flung into the world outside.

“Good bye, Cotton tree!” said Tiny, as the wind began carrying him away.

“Have a wonderful life, Tiny,” said the Cotton tree and waved bye with its leaves.

Tiny flew far away from the tree, until the wind stopped. He landed gently on the ground and took a good look around. There was sand everywhere.

“Oh no, this is sand. I’ll never grow up to be a big tree. I have to go somewhere else,” said Tiny.

He felt sad because the air was still. Without any wind, he’d be stuck here. Just then, a sparrow flew by. He called out to her.

“Ms. Sparrow, can you help me? I need to go to a place where I can grow up to become a tree,” said Tiny.

“I’d love to help, but if I pick you up with my beak, you’ll be smashed to bits,” said the sparrow.

“Then I’ll ride on your wings,” said Tiny.

The sparrow was worried that her wings might be damaged in the process, but Tiny managed to convince here and climbed aboard.

As they flew, Tiny’s soft fibers began to tickle the sparrow. As tiny twitched her feathers, Tiny was knocked off her wing.

“I’m falling!” shouted Tiny as he was knocked off, but soon remembered that he can only fall gently.

“I’m sorry, Tiny,” said Ms. Sparrow. “This is as far as I can go. Best of luck.”

Tiny waved bye and gently sailed to the ground. When he landed, Tiny was still unhappy. He had landed on flat, rocky ground.

“This is worse than the last place I landed,” he said to himself and looked around.

The wind picked up a little and blew him forward.

 “Maybe there’s fertile land on the other side,” said Tiny to himself.

As he moved forward, he saw a fast moving river.

“Oh no, if I fall into the water, I’ll never be able to become a tree. I have to do something,” he said.

Tiny noticed that an elephant was grazing nearby. He called out to the elephant.

 “Mr. Elephant, Mr. Elephant, can you take me to some fertile land? I want to become a big tree. Please help me get away from this waterfall,” said Tiny.

“I’m sorry, little seed, I can’t do that,” said the elephant.

“Why? Are you afraid of the waterfall too?” asked Tiny.

“No, no. I’ve got a cold. If step into the water, it’ll get worse,” said the elephant.

Tiny felt sad. As he stood there wondering what he could do, the elephant felt like sneezing.

‘Aaa-chooo!’ sneezed the elephant and blew Tiny away. Tiny thanked the elephant and sailed through the air. The wind picked up and carried him over the river and to the other side.

Tiny sailed through the trees, over branches and squirrels until he reached a clearing. The wind died down and Tiny landed on the ground. All around him were tall trees and plenty of sunshine.

“This is the perfect place and the perfect start to a new life,” said Tiny and began to germinate.