HOPE FOR THE FLOWERS - chinadevpeds.com

1 A different sort of bookFor everyoneExcept for those who havegiven up completely(and even they might secretly enjoy it) hope FOR THE FLOWERSHOPE FOR THE FLOWERSHOPE FOR THE FLOWERSHOPE FOR THE FLOWERSHOPE FOR THE FLOWERS words and pictures by Trina Paulos(1972)A about lifePartly about revolutionAnd lots about hopeFor adults and others(including caterpillars who can read) hope FOR THE FLOWERSHOPE FOR THE FLOWERSHOPE FOR THE FLOWERSHOPE FOR THE FLOWERSHOPE FOR THE FLOWERST rina PaulosMany thanksTo everyoneAll over the worldWho has helped meBelieve in the is the taleOf a caterpillarWho has troubleBecoming whatHe really is like myself like the more of love the real revolutionAnd my father who believed in 1 CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 1 Once upon a timeA tiny striped caterpillarBurst from the eggWhich had been homeFor so long.

2 Hello world, he said. It sure is bright out here in the sun. I m hungry, he thoughtand straightaway began to eatthe leaf he was born he ate and got one day he stoppedEating and thought, There must be more to lifethat just eating andgetting bigger. It s getting dull. So Stripe crawled downFrom the friendly treeWhich had shaded andfed was seeking were all sorts of newthings to find. Grass and dirtand holes and tiny bugs each fascinated nothing satisfied he came across someother crawlers like himself hewas especially they were so busy eatingThey had no time to talk Just as Stripe had been. They don t know any moreabout life than I do," he one dayStripe saw somecrawlers looked around fortheir goaland saw a greatcolumn rising highinto the he joined them he column was a pileof squirming, pushingcaterpilalrs a caterpillar appeared that thecaterpillars were tryingto reach the top but the top was so lost inthe cloudsthat Stripe had noidea what was felt new excitement like sap rising in thespring.

3 Maybe I ll find whatI m looking for. Full of agitation Stripe asked afellow crawler: Do you know what is happening? I just arrived myself, said theother. Nobody has time toexplain; they re so busy trying toget wherever they are going upthere. But what s at the top? continued Stripe. No one knows that either but itmust be awfully good becauseeverybody s rushing , I ve no more time! He plunged into the s head was bursting withthe new drive. He couldn t gethis thoughts second another crawlerpassed him and disappearedinto the pillar. There s only one thing to do. He pushed himself 2 CHAPTER 2 CHAPTER 2 CHAPTER 2 CHAPTER 2 The first moments on thepile were a was pushed and kickedand stepped onfrom every was climb or be more fellow caterpillarson Stripe s pile They became only threatsand obstacles which heturned into steps single-minded approachreally helped and Stripefelt he was getting some days it seemed hecould manage only to keep was especially then thatan anxious shadow naggedinside.

4 What s at the top? it whispered. Where are we going? On one exasperated day Stripecouldn t stand it any longerand actually yelled back: I don t know, but there s no timeto think about it! A little yellow caterpillar he wascrawling over gasped: I was just talking tomyself, Stripe mumbled. Its really isn t important I was just wonderingwhere we were going? You know, Yellow said, I was wondering that myselfbut since there is no way to find out Idecided it wasn t important. She blushed at how silly this sounded quickly adding, No one else seems toworry about where we re going so itmust be good. But she blushed again. How far are we from the top? Stripe answered gravely, Since we re not at the bottom and notat the top we must be in the middle.

5 Oh, said Yellow, and they both beganclimbing now Stripe had a new felt had lost his singlemindedness. How can I step on someone I ve justtalked to? Stripe avoided Yellow as muchas possible, but one day thereshe was, blocking the only wayup. Well, I guess it s you or me, he said, and stepped squarelyon her in the way Yellowlooked at him made him feeljust awful about : no matter what is upthere - it just isn t worth it. Stripe crawled offYellow andwhispered, I m sorry. And Yellow began to cry: I could stand this life hoping in whatwas ahead until I met you talking toyourself that day. Since then myheart hasn t been in it but I don tknow what to do. I didn t know how badly I felt aboutthis life until now.

6 Now when you lookat me so kindly, I know for sure Idon t like this life. I just want to dosomething like crawl with you andnibble grass. Stripe s heart leapt looked pillar made no sense at all."I would like that too, he this meant giving up the climb a hard decision. Yellow dear, maybe, we re close tothe if we help each other we canget there quickly. Maybe, she they both knew this wasn t whatthey wanted most. Let s go down, Yellow said. Okay. And they stopped clung to each other as massesof caterpillars crawled over air was terrible but they werehappy with each other and made abig ball so nobody could step intheir eyes and did nothing atall for what seemed along they didn tfeel anything crawlingover unrolled andopened their were at theside of thecaterpillar pillar.

7 Hi stripe, said Yellow. Hi Yellow, said they crawled off intosome fresh, green grassto eat and take a before they fell asleepStripe hugged Yellow. Being together like this issure different from beingcrushed in that crowd! It sure is! She smiled and closed 3 CHAPTER 3 CHAPTER 3 CHAPTER 3 CHAPTER 3So Yellow and Striperomped in the grassand ateand grew fatand loved each were so gladnot to be fightingeverybodyevery was like heaven for a as time passed even hugging eachother seemed a little know every hair of each couldn t helpwondering, There must be stillmore to life. Yellow saw how restless hewas and tried to make himextra happy andcomfortable.

8 Just think how muchbetter this is than thatawful mess we have left, she said. But we don t know what s atthe top, he answered. Maybe we were wrong tocome down. Maybe now thatwe ve rested the two of uscould make it to the top. Dear Stripe, please, she begged."We can have a nice home and welove each other and that s s much more than all thoselonely climbers have. She was so sure, Stripelet her convince only for awhile Stripe s hankering for the climbinglife worsened. The pillar hauntedhim. He crawled there regularly,looking up and the top remained day at the pillar, three thudsstartled big caterpillars had fallen fromsomeplace and seemed dead but one whispered, What happened?

9 "Can I help? He made out just a few words. The ll The caterpillar crawled home andtold were both very soberand quite. What did themysterious message mean?Had the caterpillars fallenfrom the very top?Finally, Stripe announced: I ve got to know. I must go and find out thesecret of the top. And more gently, Will you come and help me? Yellow struggled loved Stripe and wanted to be with wanted to help him she just couldn t believe thatthe top was worth all it asks to get wanted to get up too; the crawlinglife wasn t enough for her also had to admit that it looked likethe pile was the only way to do seemed to sure that Yellow feltashamed not to agree.

10 She also felt stupidand embarrassed since she could never puther reasons into words that his kind of logicwould somehow, waiting and not being sure wasbetter than action she couldn t believe couldn t explain, she couldn tprove anything but for all her loveshe couldn t go with just knew climbing was a wrongway to get high. No, she said, Stripe left her for his 4 CHAPTER 4 CHAPTER 4 CHAPTER 4 CHAPTER 4 Yellow was desolate crawled daily to the pilelooking for him and returninghome at night sad, but halfrelieved that she never saw she had, she feared she mightplunge after him knowing that sheshouldn felt like doing something,anything, rather that thisuncertain waiting.