Little Mae and Her Joy Flowers

Little Mae skipped up the walk with the mail. “Mama, just see!” she said, holding up an envelope. “It has my name on it! Is it from Miss Jenny?”

“Yes, indeed,” Mama said, sitting down on the steps. “Let’s open it and see what she says.” Mae’s eager fingers pulled out a small white card and a tissue-paper package. Mama opened the card and began to read:

Dear Little Mae,

I miss you since you have moved away. I have some beautiful Joy flowers in my garden that always remind me of you. Since I couldn’t send you any, I’ve sent you some seeds so you can grow them yourself. Your mama will show you how to plant them.

“Where are the seeds?” Mae asked.

“In this little package,” Mama said, opening the tissue paper to show her.

“They look like little sticks,” Mae said, picking one up. “Is it really a flower?”

“Not yet. It is only a seed right now, but it will grow and have flowers later,” Mama said.

Mae held the seed in her hand and stared at it. “When will it grow, Mama? Will it be big like me? What will it look like?”

Mama smiled. “You will find out when you plant it, Mae Darling. Would you like to have your Joy flowers growing by the mailbox?”

“No, I want them in my room,” Mae said, “right next to my bed!”

Mama laughed. “And how will they grow there?” she asked, opening the door to go inside.

“I will take care of them and feed them. I’m big enough,” Mae said. Then a little frown came to her face, and she asked, “What do my seeds eat, Mama? Will it cost money?”

“No, it won’t cost money. If you gave them a pot of dirt and some water to drink they will be quite happy.”

“Flowers don’t eat dirt, Mama!” Mae said with a giggle. “You’re being funny.”

“Well, what do you think they need to grow then?” Mama asked.

Mae tipped her head and thought a moment. “My Joy seeds would like it in my pretty doll dish,” she said, and ran to get it. The seeds looked like a little pile of sticks in the middle of the pink plate. Mae carefully took it into her bedroom and put it on the window sill. “They can get some sunshine there,” she said.

At suppertime Mae saved some crumbs from her cookie. “My Joy flowers will like cookies, won’t they, Mama?” she asked.

“No, Mae Darling,” Mama said, “sweets don’t help flowers to grow. But if you won’t believe me, you can try it.” So Mae put the cookie crumbs in a doll cup on the windowsill. The next morning she checked on her seeds, but nothing had happened.

“Mama, they didn’t eat the cookies!” Mae said. “Maybe they will want some of my jelly toast instead.”

Every day Mae tried something new, but the seeds never grew. Ants came to eat the crumbs and Mama wasn’t happy. Mae wasn’t happy either. “These aren’t joy flowers at all,” she said. “They make me sad, because they won’t grow.”

“Do you really want them to grow?” Mama asked.

Mae nodded. “They just look like sticks. I want flowers,” she said.

“Then I will show you what you must do,” Mama said. She took the pink dish of seeds in one hand and Mae’s little hand in the other. Together they went outside. The sun was shining on the dew drops and the ground around the mailbox was wet. Mama bent down and began to poke little holes in the soft dirt.

“What are you doing?” Mae asked.

“Joy seeds have to be tucked under the dirt to grow Joy flowers,” Mama said.

“But the dirt is cold and muddy,” Mae said with a frown. She looked at the little seeds in the dish. “How will they grow if we put them down there? I don’t think they will like it at all.”

“They might not like it now, but they will grow. Will you trust me?” asked Mama. Slowly Mae nodded her head. Together they poked the seeds in the soil and covered them up.

“They’re all planted,” Mama said, standing up. “Now they can grow.”

Mae looked down at the dirt. She couldn’t see a single flower seed and her hands were dirty, too. “I don’t like the yucky dirt,” she said. “How can Joy flowers grow when they can’t even see the sunshine?”

“They will grow. Just wait and see,” said Mama.

Mae waited all that day. The next morning she was up bright and early. She came inside with tears in her eyes. “They are all dead, Mama,” she said. “There are no Joy flowers at all. You said they would grow, but they didn’t!”

“You must trust me, Mae Darling,” said Mama. “Wait until next week, and then you will see them. Right now they are growing under the dirt.”

Mae wiped her eyes and looked at Mama closely. “Under that yucky dirt? Will they get squished?”

Mama shook her head. “They are strong little seeds. They can push the dirt out of the way when they grow. You must wait and see.”

So Mae waited. Finally one morning she ran inside. “Something is coming out of the dirt, Mama! It is small and green. Come and see.”

Mama went outside. Sure enough, little round leaves were poking out of the ground. “These are baby plants,” Mama said. “We will watch them and see. When they get a little bigger we can tell if they are flowers.”

“Flowers?” said Mae, touching the green leaves. “But they don’t look like flowers. They look like bean sprouts.”

“Soon they won’t look like bean sprouts,” said Mama with a smile. “But you must water them, because the ground is getting dry.” Mama got a cup of water and showed Mae how to carefully pour it around the plants.

“Yucky mud,” said Mae. “Why do they like it in the dirt, Mama?”

“Because that’s the way flowers grow. They have to have soil for their roots to grow into.”

“What roots?” asked Mae.

“Under the ground where you can’t see them,” said Mama. “Remember how bean sprouts have long white parts? Those are the roots.”

Mae laughed. “My Joy flowers are funny,” she said. “We put stick seeds in the dirt and now they are little bean sprouts.”

But they didn’t stay little for long. Each day Mae was excited to see how tall her flowers were growing. When the ground was dry she would water them.

“Mama, come and see,” she said one morning. “My flowers are getting big!”

“Yes they are,” Mama said. “Almost as big as you! See these little round balls? These are the Joy flowers that will open soon.”

And sure enough, the next day a bright pink flower with a golden center greeted Mae at the mailbox. Mae squealed with delight. “Ooh! Isn’t my Joy flower pretty?” she said. “Can I pick it, Mama? Will more grow?”

“Yes, more will grow,” Mama said. “Let’s get the scissors to cut it nicely. Do you want to put it on the table?”

“I want to put it in my room,” said Mae. “Now I can have my Joy flower in my room, can’t I?”

“Yes, and more to share,” said Mama. “Wasn’t Miss Jenny nice to send you the seeds? We should write her and tell her ‘Thank you.’”

“I’ll draw her a picture of it,” said Mae, “because she doesn’t know what it looks like.” And so she did—a bright red flower on a green plant by the mailbox. Mae looked at her drawing and frowned.

“It looks beautiful,” said Mama. “Shall I send it to her?”

Mae’s face brightened. “Oh, I forgot the dirt! Joy flowers have to have dirt to grow.” She took a brown crayon and added a patch at the bottom. Mama helped her write “THANK YOU FOR THE JOY FLOWERS” at the top and put it in an envelope to send to Miss Jenny.

Mama and Little Mae tucked it in the mailbox and put up the flag. A new flower was opening up and Mae stopped to admire it. “My Joy flowers like it out here, Mama,” she said. “Now I know how Joy flowers grow.”