Little Green

He opened his eyes in the darkness. His body felt weak, infirm. He was wrapped in a brown coat. He could hardly discern his surroundings. The darkness seemed to be impenetrable. Absolute. He could remember nothing. How he had ended up here was a complete mystery to him. But what he did know was that he did not like it here. It was dark, lonely, cold... no wait, it definitely was not cold here. In fact, it was comfortably warm. Why was it so? Dark places were supposed to be cold, right? But then again, he did not have any experience with dark places. As he contemplated this, a nagging thirst started in his micropyle. Looking around for means of rehydration, he was surprised to find moisture. Lots of it. Feeling rather bewildered and relieved, he absorbed some of it through his micropyle. The taste was unique. Potassium, sodium and... and a strange, synthetic taste he could not quite place. Hmm. Whoever his captors were, they had certainly taken care to make this a comfortable cell.

Thirst quenched, he began to think. Why was he here? Why could he not remember anything? Who were his captors? And, who was he? Though he tried very hard, searching the depths of his brain for answers, he could find none. He started to feel rather uneasy. True, the cell had every amenity, except light, of course. But he did not know anything about this place. He did not know anything about his captors or what they were planning to do next. Who knows, they might be planning to kill him! The very thought of it sent shivers down his little coat-encased body. He tried his best to wriggle out of it, intending to escape, but the coat would not budge. He then realised that he was not strong enough. It would need some more time for him to gain his strength. And then he would make his move.

For two days, he lay in his prison, eating and drinking until he felt that he could stomach no more. He felt his body straightening, strengthening. On the third day, he managed to punch through his coat. It felt quite strange to see his little greenish-brown legs, with its thousand little toes, medium brown at the ends. "I quite like the way I look", he thought, as he wriggled his toes and wedged them firmly into the soft earth.

On the fifth day, he freed his arms and upper body. He wriggled a bit, easing himself out and savoured the feel of the wet soil on his body.

He was getting stronger with each passing day. He felt his arms and legs growing, his body breaking free of the brown coat. He felt the surface beckoning, almost begging him to delight in their wonders. He imagined the beautiful brightness of the world above, and enzymes coursed through his body, forcing him up.

It was the ninth day. He could feel the surface to be tantalizingly close. Just a little more and he would be free. Excitement coursed through his xylems and phloems. He started clawing at the soil. Suddenly his hand bumped against something hard. He cried out in pain. Nursing his hand, he examined the blockage. It was a large patch of hard, dry soil filled with little stones. He pushed it. It did not budge. He pushed again, this time with a little more force. It still refused to budge. By now, he was quite scared. He could see no way out of this. Terrible thoughts raced through his mind. What if he never made it through? What if his destiny was to be trapped in the blackness of this unholy place? No! Never! He would not allow this. He would make it through. He would see the world. Thinking about this sent every enzyme in his little body to go berserk. Feeling dizzy with tension, he launched a blitzkrieg at the blockage. He pushed and pulled and heaved and shoved when finally, he felt something give. Yes!, he thought with feverish euphoria. Triumphantly, he gave the wall one final push.

The whole wall collapsed and seraphic golden sunshine caressed his face. Hungry for more, he levered himself up. Giddy with joy, he spread his arms wide and turned his face towards the light, closing his eyes. Opening them, he saw the great blue sky smiling down at him, congratulating him and welcoming him into the vast world beneath her. And, he thought to himself, it was truly a wonderful world.