Once upon a time, there was a pod in which lived five little green peas. They all thought they were the luckiest peas in the world because the whole world looked green. In fact, they were right, because the pod itself was green, the sun shone warmly on it, and the rain often came to give them a bath, washing the pod clean and shiny.
These five little peas lived in the pods, lined up in rows, pushing no one and crowding no one. Every day there was light during the day and darkness at night. Life was simple but comfortable. Time passed day by day, the little peas slowly grew up. They began to be a little bit unable to sit still, thinking: we just stay here all the time? What is the outside world like?
One of the smallest peas said, “I think there must be something interesting happening outside, I want to go out and see it.” The other larger pea said, “Whatever, just let it happen, what’s meant to be will happen.”
The days flew by and the pod slowly turned yellow and the peas inside followed suit. They thought the outside world had turned yellow too, but in fact it was just the pods getting old.
One day, the pods were suddenly picked and fell into the palm of a little boy’s hand. The boy was holding a lot of pods and was going to play a game with them – bean shooting with a bean gun!
“We’re going to be released!” The peas shouted excitedly. “Finally we’re going to be free!”
At this point, the smallest pea said, “I wonder, which one of us will fly the farthest?” The biggest one said, “Never mind that, let’s just listen to God.”
“Pop!” With a sound, the pod split open and five peas rolled out together and landed in the little boy’s palm.
The boy chose a pea, loaded it into his bean gun, and shot it off with a bang. The pea flew and shouted, “I’m going to explore the wide world! Whoever can catch me, I’ll obey him!”
The second pea said, “I’m going to fly straight to the sun, that’s the real adventure!” After saying this it too was knocked out.
The other two peas rolled around on the ground, muttering, “Let’s just walk around and go wherever we want.” But finally they were loaded into the pea gun and flew off with a bang.
The last pea was the quietest, it didn’t speak, it just looked ahead. When it was shot out, it didn’t shout or brag, it just said softly, “Let nature take its course.”
It flew and flew, and it didn’t get very far before it ended up on an old board under a penthouse window. It got into a crack where moss and mold grew and it looked dirty and damp. The pea was encased in these plants and no one has seen it since.
But the little pea was not forgotten, for it would bring an unexpected story.
A miracle from a little pea
In this old penthouse, there lived a poor woman. She had to go out to work every day, such as scrubbing stoves, sawing wood, and doing menial tasks. She was very hardworking and hardworking, but her family was still poor.
She had a daughter who was not very old, but very weak. The little girl has been sick for several months and can hardly move while lying in bed. The doctors said her condition was not good and she might not last long.
The mom looked at her daughter lying in bed and felt very bad. She said, “Maybe she will soon be able to see her sister who passed away. I have two children, and it’s hard to raise one, and now she’s the only one left, and I can’t bear to have her leave me.”
But strangely enough, the little girl didn’t get weaker and weaker as everyone thought. On the contrary, she began to have some spirit, and although she could not get out of bed yet, she lay quietly every day, looking out of the window and staring.
Spring came and the sun became warm. One morning, when her mother had just opened the window, a ray of sunlight shone into the room, just spilling into the little girl’s eyes. She blinked and saw a little green thing next to the windowpane, swaying gently in the wind.
Curious, she asked her mom, “Mommy, what is that green thing? It’s moving.”
Mom went over to take a look and said with surprise, “Oh, it’s a little pea! It actually grew leaves here. You’ll have a little garden to look at from now on.”
Mom hurriedly moved the little girl’s bed toward the window so she could see the growing little plant more clearly. Then she went back out to work.
That evening, the little girl said to her mother, “Mommy, I feel especially nice today, the sun is shining warmly on me. That little pea is growing so well, and I think I will get well in time, and when I do, I will be able to stand up and walk out into the sunshine.”
Mom was both happy and sad to hear this. She promised with her mouth, but she didn’t really believe that things would really work out so well. Still, so that her daughter would not be disappointed, she got a small stick and held the pea seedling upright, and pulled a string so that it could climb up the hill.
Day by day, the pea seedling grew taller and taller, and even bloomed. Mom said excitedly, “Wow, it’s going to bloom! It looks like our luck has really come.”
The little girl also became more and more energetic, and she often leaned on her bed and watched the little flower slowly grow. A few days later, she was even able to sit up on her own, and the color of blood began to come into her face.
A week later, for the first time, she was able to sit for a whole hour, the sun shining down on her, and she was so happy. Her mom opened the window and a pink pea flower bloomed in front of her. The little girl lowered her head and gently kissed the petals. At that moment, they both felt it was a special day.
Mom was touched and said, “Dear baby, God himself must have planted this pea to keep you company, to give you hope and to give us joy.”
The fate of the other four peas
So what happened to the other four peas?
The first pea, who said he was going to venture out into the wide world, ended up flying too far, falling into a gutter under a roof, and was later eaten by a pigeon. Like the Biblical prophet Jonah, it had an “adventure”.
Two other lazy peas were taken by pigeons before they could fly very far, and became food for the pigeons. Although they did not do great things, but also for nature to contribute to a power.
The fourth pea was going to fly into the sun, but it accidentally fell into a stinking ditch and soaked there for weeks. Its body soaked up more and more, and finally got fat like a balloon.
It said proudly, “Look how great I am, I’m about to burst! There is no other bean in the world as strong as I am.”
The gutter next to it seemed to respond to it, “You’re right, you really are the fattest one.”
The significance of the last pea
And that fifth pea, though it didn’t fly very far or utter any grand words, quietly in a corner, gave a little girl the courage and hope to live.
The little girl’s face grew rosier every day, and her eyes brightened. She stood in front of the window, folded her hands, and whispered her thanks to the blooming pea flower.
The fat pea on the other side of the gutter was still boasting, but no one heard it. The little girl on the top floor and her mom, on the other hand, have rediscovered the meaning of life because of an insignificant little pea.
Summary
This story tells us that sometimes the most insignificant little things can make the biggest difference. An ordinary pea unintentionally falls into a little girl’s life and becomes her hope and strength.
Not every pea has to fly high or go far to be valuable. Sometimes, doing a small thing quietly can lead to a great miracle.
So don’t always think about being the brightest one, or always envy how beautiful others are. As long as you are willing to do something with all your heart, even if it is just a small and insignificant thing, it may bring warmth and hope to others.
