The Unwanted Gift - 3

The turtle moves her head right and left and says: ‘Tom, your real problem is that you can’t read the map in your hands as your eyesight is poor.. You need glasses, son!’ 

Tom nods and confesses: ‘Yes turtle, you are right! I need glasses, would you lend me yours so I can read the map and find my way to school?’ 

The wise turtle moves her head right and left again and says: ‘No son, I can’t lend you my glasses! 

I’m too old and I can hardly see anything, so I need them to see around me.’ 

Tom is now disappointed as the wise turtle refused to lend him her glasses. ‘But I need help!’ Tom says. 

The turtle feels sorry for Tom and says: ‘Well, if you helped yourself and kept your glasses, you wouldn't be In this predicament right now, go on and take the path to the left of the tree and you will reach your school.’

 Tom is blissed that the turtle helped him, and he promises her that he will help himself and find his glasses and keep them safe. After he thanks the turtle, he hurries up towards the school, even before its building appears in front of him, he tries to remember where he threw his glasses in the dense school garden, maybe by the oak tree, or under the willow tree, no they aren’t there,

Tom’s guess is likely that he threw them by the pineapple bush 

Finally, Tom arrives at his school, and before entering the main gate, he tries to find the way home, yet he sees nothing but emptiness as if the area landmarks got erased! He looks out of the classroom window to see if his friends are really there, but he sees no one of them. He cannot even distinguish what is written on the blackboard. 

Tom walks around the classroom and enters the dense garden, and there he looks for the pineapple bush which is hiding in a dense lawn almost covering it. He is surprised by a pineapple fruit wearing his glasses, and says: ‘O pretty fruit, the glasses you are wearing are mine and I want them back!’ 

The pineapple fruit smiles, leans on the stem which is holding it, and says: ‘What? Have them back? Did you even lend them to me? Or I just found them here and put them on?’ 

Tom finds no words to argue with the pineapple fruit , as she is right, although he approaches the fruit, kneels down, and says: ‘please pretty fruit, I’m in need for my glasses to find my way home.’ 

The pineapple fruit moves the glasses on her eyes and says: ‘I like these glasses, they make me more beautiful and confident, and I see clearly with them too! 

I know that you hate to wear glasses, so they might not agree to get back to you.. Right, my dear pretty glasses? 

There, the glasses shake, and say: ‘Yes my dear friend! I don’t want to get back to Tom, he doesn’t value me, and he’s ashamed of how I look on his eyes, he never took care of me despite my constant attempts to help him see better and protect his eyes.’ 

Tom replies quickly: No, my friend, do not say that, I was reluctant to wear you because of my colleagues’ mockery, but now I got to know you well and I realize your medical and aesthetic virtues.’ 

The fruit bends at Tom and whispers: ‘ِAlright, well if you know now their value then there is no problem, I will lend them to you so you can go home, but after their approval.’ 

Tom feels relieved when the pineapple finally agrees to lend him the glasses whose approval didn’t take long. The glasses shake in joy and jump towards Tom saying: ‘Alright, I agree to go back to you my friend, but beware of neglecting me and my beautiful lenses.’ 

Tom promises his glasses to take care of them. He quickly puts them on and checks the map out, which finally appears to him. After he thanks the pineapple fruit for her kindness, he walks towards his house according to the path on the map. After a while on his way he hears the burning sun saying: ‘Goodbye Tom, it’s time for me to set.’ 

Tom turns around looking for the sun in the sky, but she disappears behind the mountain. Thick darkness spreads quickly in which Tom cannot distinguish a thing, the boy rubs his eyes under the glasses, then he opens them to find that darkness is still widespread, but this time under his cover. There, Tom realizes that he was in a long one of winter dreams, and he gets his hand from under the cover to open the drawer and pick up the rectangular box from which he takes the new glasses. After he wears them, he says to himself: ‘From now on I will never take off my new glasses. As for the old ones, I will leave them for the beautiful pineapple.’ 

The End 

short story for children

 written by

 Sarah Nabil