Short story by Usha Thakur, from Montreal (Canada)


After lunch, Roger came out in his backyard to read the last quarter of his novel. For some reason though, he did not sit on one of the chairs by the picnic table, but instead he sat on the ground, and leaned his head and back against a huge maple tree. In less than 10 minutes that Roger had been there, he slapped on several flies, beat up on a couple of ants with the maple branch he had in his hand, and was about to slash down a dandelion flower when he got distracted by someone behind his neck. Swearing, he slapped hard at the back of his neck and grabbed hold of whatever it was but could not tell because he had mutilated it so badly.

“Why is everyone after my blood,” yelled out Roger
“Because you are after there’s!” came a reply

Roger stood motionless. He circled around to see who it was but did not see anyone. Just as he was getting his thoughts together, he sneezed a few times. Wiping his nose from the end of his T-Shirt, Roger’s eyes got focussed upon the one and only dandelion flower in his backyard.

“I am going to take care of you right now!” said Roger to the Dandelion. He marched inside his house quite furious and returned carrying a can that had the symbol of poison. Just as he was about to spray on the Dandelion, Roger heard the same voice say “You Coward!” Roger froze like statue.

“If you think” continued the voice “you can be happy, healthy, and content by destroying all the other species around you, then you are digging your own grave.”

Roger’s initial reaction was total amazement that a Dandelion was talking to him, but very soon that changed to arrogance.

“Do you have any idea Mr Weed what I have in my hands?” ask Roger with a sniff up his nose.

Looking at the can and then at the Dandelion, he continued “All I have to do is just press once on the can and you will choke to death before my eyes.”

“And so will my little ones” said the Dandelion. Roger noticed that there were a couple of little shoots coming up near the Dandelion flower.

Following a few minutes silence, the Dandelion asked almost in a pleading voice “Could we ever co-exist?” This was a bit too deep for Roger, but since he did not have an answer, he posed a question hoping that the response would soothe his ego “Why did you call me a coward?”

“Because” replied the Dandelion rather calmly “there is no bravery in destroying anyone over whom you already possess physical strength. Moreover, only cowards take by force or manipulation what does not come to them voluntarily.” Roger repeated this statement twice before he got it, and just as he was about to respond, he noticed an army of ants approaching him. Roger picked up the poison can and was about to spray on the ants, when the Dandelion said “Don’t! Just step aside to your left,” and to his surprise Roger did, and began to watch the ant show. They were coming out of a hole from behind the Dandelion and racing in a straight line towards his house and entering into another hole. Occasionally he saw a bulge in the rank and file and when he bent down to see, it was a mama ant giving a ride to her little ones, and whenever the little ones fell off her back, they would crawl over the adults before getting back up on their mom. The little ones seemed to be having a lot of fun. Within less than five minutes, there was not a single ant to be seen.

“Your see,” said the Dandelion philosophically, “most of the times you and your kind are in our path; we are not in yours.” Just then Roger sneezed again and he remembered why he disliked Dandelions so passionately. “Well, what about when you are virtually killing me?”

“We have been around for thousands and thousands of years and have nourished many creatures on earth. We and our kind are not destroying your health; that is something you are doing to yourself!” said the Dandelion

“How so?” shot back Roger.

“Well,” reasoned the Dandelion “your immune system is so weak that anything and everything can get you.”

“Oh! So now you are a doctor?” said Roger sarcastically. Cutting Roger off, the Dandelion asked “What do you know about my healing properties?” Roger’s smirk turned to desperation. He tried hard to think of something intelligent to say but could not really come up with an answer. So he said, shrugging his shoulders “Why don’t you educate me Mr Weed?”

Ignoring Roger’s attitude, the Dandelion spoke seriously “You and your kind only know how to use all the other species for yourselves, as if we were put on this earth only for your use. Has it not ever occurred to you that before you landed amongst us we all existed? That we did not and still don’t need you for our existence?”

Roger was still processing the Dandelion’s words, when the latter continued “You don’t know this so let me tell you. Thousands of years ago when the earth was abundant in everything, we prayed to the Universe to add another species, and since we had co-existed for thousands and thousands of years with so many types of species, we thought it would be the same with another one. We were so thrilled when we first saw your kind on earth. In fact, by the time you arrived, the Universe had everything in place for your maintenance: plenty of clean water and air, ample plants to serve as food, and enormous amount of space for you to move around. We also noticed that the Universe gave you something that it did not give any other specie: it gave you the intelligence to create, but very soon we found out that it also gave you twice the intelligence to destroy anything or anyone that you cannot control and dominate. And, if you look around honestly, you will see and sense how much of that clean water, air, and fertile earth (and the species that live in those environments), you are choking to death.



Roger was definitely in the listening mode, although he did not have a clue how to absorb all that was being thrown at him. Intellectually, however, Roger could relate to what the Dandelion was saying, and he did try to think of at least one moment when the human specie consciously sacrificed for another, but he could not remember such an instance, as if that would have set the record right.

“For you” continued the Dandelion, “I am just a weed to be gotten rid of but in many part of this Universe I am revered and thanked for my nurturing properties. Why don’t you visit a real forest and witness how we all co-exist, how we accept the cycle to life and death, how we allow the old to die and be born as new life, and how we rejuvenate the earth. We make each other stronger not weaker. Just look at this maple tree you are sitting under – I did not destroy it and it has never tried to destroy me!”

“OK enough! Give me a chance to breathe” said Roger in an anxious voice. He used the silence of the next few minutes to reflect upon what had just been said. Roger’s thoughts went to the company where he worked as Director of Innovative Research. His department’s mandate was to bring together the best minds in the country in all the disciplines with the aim of figuring out how the virgin areas in each discipline could be exploited for the maximum benefit of ‘mankind.’

“Are you still there?” asked the Dandelion

“Yes, I am still here” said Roger in a very calm voice. A few more minutes passed and Roger asked in a gentle voice “How do you suggest we co-exist when for our survival we need to destroy at least a bit of the other species?”

“Why do you believe so?” asked the Dandelion. When Roger did not respond, the Dandelion continued “The Universe has bestowed in you and your kind the capacity to create and also the responsibility of nurturing all species living on this planet.”

“That is a huge responsibility” said Roger a bit horrified.

“Isn’t it?” responded the Dandelion.

“But you have still not answered my question” insisted Roger.

The Dandelion responded with a question “When your 14 month son feeds at his mother’s breasts, does he destroy his mother?

Roger remained quiet, and the Dandelion continued “When you pluck fruits and vegetables, do you actually destroy the plants? If, to obtain what constitutes food for you, you have to destroy one or more species, then have you and your kind ever considered doing without?

By now the Dandelion had earned a lot of respect from Roger. In fact, he was surprised to find that deep down he actually agreed with the Dandelion. Looking through the trees into the light blue sky, Roger asked the Dandelion “If you could ask our Creator to grant you one wish what would it be?”
Without hesitating for a moment, the Dandelion said “I would pray that our Creator devour ALL except the human specie.

“What?” yelled Roger.

After a moment’s silence, the Dandelion continued “Alternatively, I would pray that the Universe devour only the human specie so that the rest of us could breathe and co-exist as we used to.”

Roger could not believe his ears probably because he had been going through live as if nature was totally passive and his kind was all that mattered. Before he could respond, the Dandelion asked “What would you wish for?”

Staring at the Dandelion, and still in shock, Roger said “I would pray that I be given another chance to prove that we can co-exist.”

“Why should I believe you? asked the Dandelion.

“That is because until today…..” Roger stopped and starred at the Dandelion

“Go on I am listening” said the Dandelion.

Clearing his throat, Roger made another attempt. “Well, that is because until today I was not even aware of the beautiful garden in you and the weed in me and in my thinking.”

For the next few minutes there was pin drop silence. Then, Roger broke the silence by asking in a gentle voice “Is it too late to me and my kind to undo what has been done?

The Dandelion still did not respond and Roger kept staring at the Dandelion with pleading eyes, hoping to hear a positive response, but instead what he heard was his wife “Honey, the dinner is ready!”

A few minutes passed and the Dandelion had still not said a word. “Well,” said Roger as he stood up “Think about what I said and we’ll discuss it tomorrow morning.”

Before he entered the house, Roger turned to the Dandelion, lifted his right hand with one finger up, and yelled “Just one chance!”

THE END!